Maps Of Switzerland

Sitting astride the River Limmat, Zurich Switzerland is a beautiful city set against a backdrop of snow-clad peaks in the distance and overlooking the waters of the lake. A large part of the city is occupied by its charming old town, composed of narrow, hilly alleys and historic buildings magnificently restored to their former beauties.

But more than just candy for the eyes and a source of traveling delights for tourists, Zurich Switzerland is also one of the leading financial centers of the world. In fact, the Zurich stock exchange is one of world’s four largest, with those in New York, London, and Tokyo occupying the top three spots, respectively.

And the seemingly endless facets of Zurich Switzerland does not stop there. More than just a cold-hearted business city, Zurich Switzerland is also seat of the avant-garde Dadaist movement that started in 1916.

Among the group of writers and artists who joined the movement were famous names, like Jean Arp, Tristan Tzara, and Hugo Ball, all of whom rebelled against the traditional artistic expression.

Yet, Zurich

Switzerland also has its fair share of non-activist residents. The city has attracted the likes of Irish author James Joyce who re-envisioned his native Dublin in Ulysses by observing the mores of Zurich.

The city is considered as not only the political but also the spiritual capital of Switzerland. No wonder. Zurich Switzerland is full of extraordinary galleries and museums and luxury shops along Zurich’s Fifth Avenue, the Bahnofstrasse. The city’s important position as the political capital is further sealed with the latest addition to its profile – Zurich West, which used to be an industrial neighborhood of cranes and former factories. Now, this part of Zurich Switzerland is quickly being transformed, turning spaces into restaurants, art galleries, bars, and dance clubs.

When you visit Zurich Switzerland, be sure not to miss the following places:

Grossmunster

English speakers affectionately call it the “Gross Monster,” but the Grossmunster is a magnificent cathedral with impressive twin towers circa 1781. Each of the towers features caricatures of Gothic forms bordering on the comical, figures which perhaps earned its English nickname as

well as a clever play on the pronunciation. On one side of the south tower is an enormous stone statue of Charlemagne, the Holy Roman Emperor, who sits enthroned.

Kunsthaus

If you like to visit museums or galleries on your travels, then you shouldn’t miss Zurich Switzerland’s Kunsthaus. The gallery houses a permanent collection of excellent paintings ranging from the medieval, Dutch and Italian baroque to the impressionistic styles. One of the rooms contains the superb works of Johann Heinrich Fussli whose paintings hover in the space between the grotesque and the darkly ethereal. Painters like Picasso, Klee, Kandinsky, Degas, Chagall, Munch, and Matisse are