Easter meant a lot to us this year than ever before, not that I was a planning for any celebrations or expecting a guest home, it was perhaps because we were heading towards Switzerland during the vacations. The country of chocolate, cheese, watches, skiing slopes , and the breath taking alps.
Ranga had booked the flight and the accommodation in December itself. So I had to just look at the other side of my travel. There were far more interesting places to visit than the days in our hand. Had to first shortlist the places, look at the weather, pack the essentials, find some eat outs, local transportation..........and so much more since we were going on our own as against the conducted tours.The first thing I did was to call the consulate of Swiss in Barcelona a week before to enquire if we needed a visa in order to enter Swiss thru Spain. Well there came a pleasant reply that a valid Indian passport along with Spain’s residential card would do the trick and we could stay there for a period of 3 months without a visa he didn’t forget to add that we were not entitled to work.Nevertheless we had crossed the biggest hurdle of getting permission to enter Swiss.The next biggest challenge was to counter the weather. I browsed couple of websites which forecast the weather for a week in Swiss; none was different from the other, all claiming that the weather would be between -2 to +4. So the best of my cloths were unpacked and sweaters, jersey, jackets, socks, gloves, and mufflers anything and everything which could keep us warm took their seats.Initially we had booked only for handbags which was now to be altered since the luggage was too much to fit into only handbagsHad exchanged some Euros for CHF (Swiss franc) as precaution money.
Our flight was from El Prat de Llobregat barcelona at 6:45 am to Flughafen airport zurich. We reached there around 8:15. After leaving the plane we headed directly to the arrival hall and went through the passport control. This didn’t take more than a moment or two. The Swiss immigration officials were really quite efficient and well groomed.
Flughafen Zürich is located 12 kilometres from downtown Zurich in the suburb of Kloten
Zurich airport railway station (Zurich Flughafen) is located underneath the terminal. The Zurich S-Bahn was quite punctual and luxurious too.
Our stay was in Swissotel Zurich which was a deluxe hotel conveniently located between Zürich Airport and the centre of Zürich in the newest business district of the city called Oerlikon. It would take around 10 minutes to reach the centre thru trains or around 25minitues by tram
We were now in Zurich the largest city in switzerland with the population of 376,815 at the end of 2007; population of urban area is 1,007,972 and capital of the canton of zurich. The city is Switzerland's main commercial and cultural centre, the political capital of Switzerland being Bern and is widely considered to be one of the world's global cities. According to several surveys in 2006 and 2007, Zurich was named the city with the "best quality of life" in the world.
Wednesday, 2 April 2008
Monday, 8 October 2007
COSTA BRAVA-TOSSA
Pearl Of Costa Brava - Tossa De Mar
Pearl Of Costa Brava - Tossa De Mar
The spectacular natural beauty, historically rich monuments, celebrated cultural heritage combined with cheerful and friendly people make Tossa a tourist’s paradise.
Situated about 80 km from Barcelona, Spain, Tossa is famous for its medieval town. Essentially Mediterranean, its beaches, coves and bays symbolise one of the most emblematic landscapes of the Costa Brava.
Costa Brava means "wild" or "rough" coast. The origin of this name is not very old. Catalan intellectuals chose Costa Brava to promote tourism at the beginning of the 20th century. It is also known as the "Flower of the Sea", and "Blue Paradise".
It is a splendid one and a half hour drive by bus from "Barcelona Station Nord". Spectacular is the - journey through the road that winds it's way around the hills in a never-ending slalom, the unveiling beach, you would never want to take off your eyes even for a moment. There are great cliffs and dense forest protecting many of the bays. Most of which are only accessible via private estates, the reason behind it is to perhaps ensure that the beaches don't get overcrowded.
We reached Tossa by 1:20 pm. It was a pleasant arrival, the place was pretty calm and quite, could feel the air of a perfect laid back Sunday atmosphere.
We chose to locate the Information centre, as always, and found one nearby, but this time around it was closed, since it was a Sunday. Anyway the sign boards never let us down. We followed it to reach the center of the city.
Restaurants, beach, medieval castle of Tossa de Mar, the municipal museum are all at walking distance from one another.
Pages from HistoryThere is ample evidence of settlements dating back to the Neolithic period. Between the 4th century BC and the 1st century BC appeared the first Iberian settlements, followed shortly after by the Romans in the 1st century.
Economy: Contrary to popular belief of the town´s traditional source of income being sea activities, in medieval times and until the recent arrival of mass tourism, the local economy was mostly dependent upon production of grape wine and cork. Fishing has been relatively minor contribution to the village's economy, although it has certainly provided an alternative source of income in times of economic crisis.
ATTRACTIONS OF TOSSAVila Vella
Villa Vella, meaning ‘old town’ is a fortified village which has been declared as National Historic-Artistic Monument. The construction dates back to end of 12th century. There used to be five towers. Only three have been preserved: the Homage Tower, the Entrance Tower and the Jonas Tower. One of the old five towers was demolished in 1917 to construct a new lighthouse.The walls are said to have been particularly effective against the frequent attacks during the sixteenth century. It has a Roman origin. At the beginning of the 20th century, ruins of the old Roman walls were also discovered inside walled town.
Weather:
The weather in the Costa Brava is the typical in the Mediterranean area, with its four differentiated seasons. A hot summer, a rainy fall, a cold winter and a sunny spring.
Gastronomy:
Tossa offers variety of rich catalan cuisine consisting of fish and other seafoods. One of the star attraction is the 'Paella'. The 'Paella' is a rice course with Mediterranean sea food (lobsters, clams, mussels) and vegetables. Other local specialties are the 'fideua' - sea food noodles and the 'arros negre' (black rice) - rice with cuttlefish ink.
Observations -
The mountains that surround the old town of Tossa still show the green of its dry forests. Costa Brava has not been "destroyed" with the construction of high apartment’s, buildings and hotels. Current laws do not allow the construction of new buildings by the sea.
Its important to note that Tossa does not offer vegetarian food in any shape or form. It is strictly advised to carry food from the centre of the city (if you find any, or cook yourself as most of us do) or to get into some supermarkets and have some biscuits or fruits for time being.
Well it’s the case with almost all tourist spots. Being in Spain for couple of years we have learnt the art of packing food when we are out or to sustain with some local fruits.
Pearl Of Costa Brava - Tossa De Mar
The spectacular natural beauty, historically rich monuments, celebrated cultural heritage combined with cheerful and friendly people make Tossa a tourist’s paradise.
Situated about 80 km from Barcelona, Spain, Tossa is famous for its medieval town. Essentially Mediterranean, its beaches, coves and bays symbolise one of the most emblematic landscapes of the Costa Brava.
Costa Brava means "wild" or "rough" coast. The origin of this name is not very old. Catalan intellectuals chose Costa Brava to promote tourism at the beginning of the 20th century. It is also known as the "Flower of the Sea", and "Blue Paradise".
It is a splendid one and a half hour drive by bus from "Barcelona Station Nord". Spectacular is the - journey through the road that winds it's way around the hills in a never-ending slalom, the unveiling beach, you would never want to take off your eyes even for a moment. There are great cliffs and dense forest protecting many of the bays. Most of which are only accessible via private estates, the reason behind it is to perhaps ensure that the beaches don't get overcrowded.
We reached Tossa by 1:20 pm. It was a pleasant arrival, the place was pretty calm and quite, could feel the air of a perfect laid back Sunday atmosphere.
We chose to locate the Information centre, as always, and found one nearby, but this time around it was closed, since it was a Sunday. Anyway the sign boards never let us down. We followed it to reach the center of the city.
Restaurants, beach, medieval castle of Tossa de Mar, the municipal museum are all at walking distance from one another.
Pages from HistoryThere is ample evidence of settlements dating back to the Neolithic period. Between the 4th century BC and the 1st century BC appeared the first Iberian settlements, followed shortly after by the Romans in the 1st century.
Economy: Contrary to popular belief of the town´s traditional source of income being sea activities, in medieval times and until the recent arrival of mass tourism, the local economy was mostly dependent upon production of grape wine and cork. Fishing has been relatively minor contribution to the village's economy, although it has certainly provided an alternative source of income in times of economic crisis.
ATTRACTIONS OF TOSSAVila Vella
Villa Vella, meaning ‘old town’ is a fortified village which has been declared as National Historic-Artistic Monument. The construction dates back to end of 12th century. There used to be five towers. Only three have been preserved: the Homage Tower, the Entrance Tower and the Jonas Tower. One of the old five towers was demolished in 1917 to construct a new lighthouse.The walls are said to have been particularly effective against the frequent attacks during the sixteenth century. It has a Roman origin. At the beginning of the 20th century, ruins of the old Roman walls were also discovered inside walled town.
The Municipal Museum
It is situated in the middle of the walled Vila Vella, considered as the first Modern Art Museum in Spain, painters, sculptors and writers from different European countries came to Tossa to enjoy the art and culture.Chagall, Georges Kars, Andre Mason, Metziger, among other foreign artists appreciated the unique atmosphere of the town. The archaeological section demonstrates the presence of man from the Paleolithical period until the later Middle Ages.Vila Nova
The Vila Nova, or 'new town' is a maze of narrow cobbled streets offering a plenty of houses on rent, hostels, bars and restaurants. As you pass through the streets, the ice cream parlour, jewellery shop, the branded clothes would never fail to attract you.
Watch Tower
The watch-tower of 'Can Magi', were built to defend the towns from the attack of the North African pirates. They used to communicate between themselves and to keep a constant watch with one or two watchmen who, in case of danger, advised the town so that the inhabitants could safeguard themselves inside the walls.The Socors
The Socors (Virgin of Aid) Chapel was built during the last fourth of the 16th century, probably as an offering from the merchant Antoni Caixa, to thank the Virgin of Aid. The Chapel, which was originally situated on a lonely place of the outskirts, turned into a crucial point for the development of the village and also into an important religious centre, due to the enormous devotion professed to this virgin by seamen and traders.Blue Waters:
It has three main beaches. The Tossa Beach, in front of downtown - 'El Codolar', behind the walls and 'la Mar Menuda', on the other side of the bay. Between the town's two main beaches, 'Platja Gran' and 'Mar Menuda', is this small cove called 'Platja del Reig'. This small sand beach is worth a visit.
Weather:
The weather in the Costa Brava is the typical in the Mediterranean area, with its four differentiated seasons. A hot summer, a rainy fall, a cold winter and a sunny spring.
Gastronomy:
Tossa offers variety of rich catalan cuisine consisting of fish and other seafoods. One of the star attraction is the 'Paella'. The 'Paella' is a rice course with Mediterranean sea food (lobsters, clams, mussels) and vegetables. Other local specialties are the 'fideua' - sea food noodles and the 'arros negre' (black rice) - rice with cuttlefish ink.
Observations -
The mountains that surround the old town of Tossa still show the green of its dry forests. Costa Brava has not been "destroyed" with the construction of high apartment’s, buildings and hotels. Current laws do not allow the construction of new buildings by the sea.
Its important to note that Tossa does not offer vegetarian food in any shape or form. It is strictly advised to carry food from the centre of the city (if you find any, or cook yourself as most of us do) or to get into some supermarkets and have some biscuits or fruits for time being.
Well it’s the case with almost all tourist spots. Being in Spain for couple of years we have learnt the art of packing food when we are out or to sustain with some local fruits.
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