□ Placeholder: 07 — Zurich and a hike that didn't happen
[7 Sep]
Hello from a train back to Zurich!
If you get this message then it means I didn't fall off one of the cliffs of the snow laden paths during the hike earlier today. I couldn't walk on those lethal black ice that had accumulated on the paths last night.
It was a shit show dumpster fire by the weather gods. Just the night before our planned hike, it snowed in the mountains. I failed to account for the weather predictions and played my optimistic card too early. I have been planning Pizol Lake Hike for the last 100 days or so. So much so, that I had remembered the names of all the five lakes that we were supposed to see throughout the walk — Wangersee, Wildsee, Schottensee, Schwarzsee and Baschalvasee. Out of five, we ended up seeing one — Wangersee — taking us three attempts because the fog won't clear.
As I am venting down my disappointment, a lady sitting opposite me is knitting... something. An activity that I haven't seen someone performing in a while. She appears to be calm and quiet but every now and then when she picks up the phone, her hello is opposite to her appearance. However, her knitting is having a calming effect on me.
The journey from Zurich to Wangs (pre trailhead for the Pizol Lake Hike) is mostly on the bank of Zurich Lakes with Central Swiss Alps on the other side of the lake. The train passed by a house - a single house - on one of the hills and I think to myself, automatically, the phrase secluded house. I don't know why. Just like when Tracy Smith screws the lid on the steaming thermos and thinks of the phrase heat capture.
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[Today]
Zurich was a nice city to spend a weekend. A typical European city but nice. It would have been even nicer to spend a few more hours in the mountains with increased visibility.
In Zurich, a cup of cappuccino costs about ₹400. An hour train ride mounts up to ₹3,000. Lowest single journey ticket on a public transportation? About ₹300! And yet, everything feels worth it in Zurich. (Probably a quality bias? I don't know.)
Here're some postcards from the city and the nearby mountains for you to enjoy:
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Until next time,
K