Luxury Street

We will now return to the narrative of my trip to Europe.  You may remember that we left off in Zurich.  I had visited the art museum, wandered around the Old Town and had dinner in a historic restaurant.  It was then time to head to the train station, and head back to the home of my cousin Brigitta who lives in Uster, a short train ride away.

I followed the Limmat River to where it flows into Lake Zurich.

From the head of the lake, I took Zurich's most famous street Bahnhofstrasse to the main train station.  ("Bahnhofstrasse" means "Train Station Street".) The street is largely pedestrianized, but beware.  The city's trams also run along the street.

The street dates from the second half of the 19th century, when the city walls were torn down, and the ditch in front of the wall was filled in to create an avenue.

The street is lined with elegant buildings which date from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

However, Bahnhofstrasse's fame comes not from its architecture, but from the fact that it is one of the world's most exclusive shopping districts.  It ranks right up there with Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills and 5th Avenue in Manhattan.  The most expensive designers have shops along the street.  Also all the astronomically expensive Swiss watchmakers, like Rolex, Patek Phillipe, and TAG Hauer have their shops here.

 

At the end of the street is the main train station.

I had walked the entire length of Bahnhofstrasse, and you know what?  I had not bought a single thing.