World Economic Forum Trip: Day 2 (Zurich)

I woke up to a lovely sunny but frosty morning. It had stopped snowing and I could see the hills in the horizon from my hotel room balcony.

As planned, we boarded the train at 11.28am to Zurich. It was a full train and Ning and I were seated to friendly, talkative and inquisitive Swiss boys.

Then we arrived Zurich. It was cold, overcast and snowing. But we were not deterred. It was our only free day and our first time ever in Zurich and we were adamant to enjoy the city. Ann, a blogger living in Baden, had planned to join us, but she eventually couldn't make it. Nevermind. Next visit, perhaps.

It so happened the Malaysia Airlines office was in front of the Zurich train station (thank you Ann for directions), so we dropped by and asked the friendly staff for tips on where to go and what to do! It was a strange sight to see a caucasian dressed in the Malaysia Airlines uniform.

So we made our way to the Niederdorf-Strasse, an old street lined with boutiques and cafes and interesting shops leading to the gothic part of the city. The street winds its way up a gentle hill, and we stopped along the way many, many times.

First stop: shoes.

Ning: Abang, cantik jugak ek kasut boot nie.

Ramli: Ye ke? Nampak macam pelik je, Cik Ning.

Ramli, the one half of Mohram, came along with us. I've always thought that Ramli was a severe and strict guy of not so many words. Wrong. Turned out he's a joker like Ning and loves a good chat.

Thankfully, we didn't waste too much time in the shoe store. The next store we entered was a coat and jacket haven, and I tried on many coats myself. I finally decided on this fabulous coat of questionable origin. I just hope Greenpeace fanatics and animal rights activists don't splash paint all over me.

Ning found this gorgeous goatskin coat and fell in love with it immediately.

Now that I was on a roll, I decided to acquire another coat, of even more questionable origin. Now I really do look like a Manhattan pimp.

One hour later, we walked out of the store in our new coats and went next door to Crumpler, the Aussie bag and luggage shop. Ning bought this stunning suitcase for a steal.

I didn't quite fancy bags, so I strolled outside and decided to take pictures of the adjacent fountain when suddenly out of the blue two Swiss boys ran into my camera frame and posed for me! How nice!

Tall boy: Welcome to Zurich! I like Chinese!

Me: Really? I like Chinese too!

If you think it wasn't really cold, check out the icicles!

Here's another novel sight.

Meanwhile, Ning was in the next shop buying scented bath salts, scrubs and deliciously smelling soaps.

Fiona: See how soft your skin is after scrubbing it with this soap!

Ning: I'll have a dozen, please. No. Make that two dozen.

David: Would you like some more bath salts or will these be enough?

Me: Yes, I think I have plenty enough to last a year. Maybe two. Thank you.

Then we entered another shoe store! Look in the window and you can see someone famous asking for her size for a pair of boots.

Me: Ning, that will be your third pair of boots in two days.

Ning: Suka hati mak! Mak suka! Mak suka!

After spending hours along the Niederdorf, we finally arrived the Grossmunster, the gothic enclave of the city. We took tons of pics and stopped at the nearby Starbucks for coffee. Then it started getting dark and we made our way to the Bahnhofstrasse, a long and curving street that is now one of Europe’s most prestigious shopping streets, packed with jewellers and designer boutiques.

Ramli was amused by how much the watches cost!

And Baby Elle loved taking pictures!

My new Timberland boots were killing me. So I decided to buy these pair of lighter boots which were much more comfortable. Click on the pic for a closer view.

Next stop was a perfumery. The uneducated staff with very bad make-up and fake tans were rude and inhospitable. I could not decide if they were just rude people or simply racist, unlike Fiona and David at LUSH who were very friendly and nice.

But this did not deter Ning. She loves her perfumes.

Then we came to Swarovski, the famous crystal store. Ning was in heaven.

And tried almost every piece of jewellery they had. Another hour.

Baby Elle was busy too. Making friends with a Greek boy called Filipo.

Filipo was browsing the store and Baby Elle, being a friendly Malaysian, struck up a conversation, which led to this picture being taken.

Baby Elle: You have very nice thick eyebrows. I'm a make-up artist. You should let me trim them for you.

Filipo: Yes, of course.

Baby Elle: How old are you?

Filipo: Yes, of course.

Baby Elle: You don't speak English?

Filipo: Yes, of course.

The 'conversation' went on for several more minutes, before Filipo excused himself and ran towards the direction of a pretty looking girl.

It was already 6.30pm and we made our way back to the train station. It was crowded and noisy, like any other station.

But Ning had not finished shopping. Even at the train station, she managed to wander into the shops and buy more hats and mufflers.

We boarded our train at 8.12pm and made our way back to Rapperswil, exhausted but very satisfied.

End of Day 2 in Switzerland. Tomorrow is sound check up at Davos. I am excited!