Our first stop of the day is Duomo. The big-ass white cathedral that took several hundred years to build. We take the metro there and was amazed at
it. Chin has seen it before but it was
my first time. Absolutely stunning. That’s all I can really say because pictures
do not do it justice. For anyone that
may be going there in the future be advised that you have to dress
appropriately. Women need their
shoulders covered and certain shorts are not allowed.
We also wanted to see the Last Supper mural but it was not
open on Mondays. Guess that means
another trip to Munich!
After Duomo we headed to the same restaurant as the previous
night. Lunch consisted of some pizza,
salad and more sorbet. Chin also got a
wine and I a beer. As one would expect
the wine was very affordable and very tasty.
We loved everything about the meal (sans the anchovies). We then went to find a market to pick up some
snacks and drinks for the next train trip.
We failed on our first attempt so we headed back to the hotel to
checkout around 2 pm. We then headed
early to the train station just down the street and found the market over there.
With time to spare we wanted to see if we could get on an
earlier train to Zurich. Once again
things become complicated. This turned
out to be a challenge because what’s a day in Europe without a challenge! Our
tickets where purchased through a company in Switzerland. Therefore, we need to find the ticket office
for this company other company. We can’t
go to the normal ticket counters. It’s
that whole international/national train situation again.
We found the place but the name on the ticketing office was
not the same name we were told to look for.
We only found it because we knew the railroad was called Bahn and we saw
THAT name. The ticket office was 2
streets away from the railroad station. We
were told it was just outside the front of the station. 15 minutes waiting inline behind an old and
confused German man and we are told we can’t change our tickets because it says
in French on the ticket “No changes.” This means we have 2 hours to kill and take
the time to relax with an espresso and a cappuccino at a local café. It wasn’t bad. The espresso was quite strong but I did get a
double shot. We walked around for a bit
and found another market to visit where I eventually got some Italian coffee to
add to my collection but it turns out not to be Italian coffee! It is called Café Touba “Diar”. Diar is the capital of Senegal so the coffee
is named after the capital of an African country. It contains spices in it which makes it very
unique and strong. So strong that when I
put the used coffee grounds outside I can still smell the coffee grounds
through my outside window 10 feet away. It
has taken me a little while to get use to but it sure wakes a person up in the
morning when you drink it black from a French Press!
Some more walking and
browsing lead us back into the train station and then on to our next
train! This train would hopefully be
taking us to Zurich were we will be catching a flight back to the states. The goal is to fly from Zurich to JFK and
then on to ORD.
The train ride was not without it’s issues. Minor but being over an hour late does suck
but I can forgive them in that we were able to see some amazing scenery. The Italian Alps were cool but the Swiss side
makes you feel like you are in a movie.
Back in Zurich we catch a shuttle to the Hilton where we
grab some food before having our last night in Europe.
On Day 12 we headed to the airport and caught our
flight. Nothing out of the ordinary for
the trip back.
I took 162 photos/videos with my phone on Day 11. I couldn't get enough of the Swiss Alps. Here is a link to that album:
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You may be thinking that the Ueckers like the Swiss Alps better than their current home but I can assure you we will still take our white sandy beaches and warm temperatures over anything. That’s not to say we wouldn’t be open to any short-term assignments but our hearts are in the Caribbean.
I hope people enjoyed reading about our little trip. This is the first time I’ve written something like this. I wish to not dishearten anyone from taking an adventure like this. We overcame all the challenges put in front of us and now we are wiser and better prepared for whatever comes next.
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