Zurich, almost by chance

Almost by chance, and against our habits, which usually keep us holed up at home on New Year's Eve, we decide to make a quick dash to Zurich. We plan the trip by train, using the legendary Swiss railways (which, for better and worse, aren't really that different from the Italian ones). Still, crossing central Switzerland, with its meadows, its lakes and its mountains, remains a unique spectacle, at times even more beautiful than what we saw on our travels in Scandinavia. Zurich's old town is very large, mostly pedestrian, and stretches along the right and left banks of a river that soon flows into the lake.

The right bank (starting from the station) is the one given over to Bahnhofstrasse, the famous Swiss shopping mile (though it's actually "only" 1.2 km long), with the usual boutiques of the usual big designers, the department stores and some chocolate shops that unmistakably remind you you're in Switzerland. The left side, where we stayed, is a slightly more historic centre with a myriad of restaurants of every ethnicity; naturally there are traditional Swiss ones where I imagine you eat excellent raclette, fondue and rösti. I say "imagine" because we never managed to find a table. On the other hand we visited a few Italian restaurants that could hold their own in Italy for the quality of the food, the service and the welcome. Even the prices, knowing where you are, are reasonable.

On New Year's Eve the city is closed to traffic and turns into one big open-air party, with thousands of people pouring into the streets; on every corner there are little bands playing music for every taste, while the stalls offer food and drink from all over the world. At midnight, on the lake, there's a big fireworks display put on by the city's hoteliers: all in an atmosphere of great celebration, necessarily chaotic, but never once did we feel in danger, without seeing a single police officer. Finally, for anyone who, like us, has the time, we recommend a visit to the Swiss National Museum, in a lovely castle behind the station. Even for those who aren't museum lovers, this place describes the evolution of the Swiss people and culture well, without ever being boring.