Zurich, part two

Zurich has continued to be a time of new experiences! I have found few places in my travels where one can get around on public transportation using so many different modes of travel. Yesterday, I traveled by train, tram, bus and boat. The transport system is excellent here - the trains are so smooth, it is easy to fall asleep; the trams are a little louder and not as smooth but take you to many convenient places; the buses fill in the gaps and the boats are a wonderful change of pace, as there are several lakes and rivers nearby to explore.
On Tuesday, we went to Stein am Rhein - a small medieval town on the Rhein River, northeast of Zurich. It was only an hour train trip and after having an amazing crepe lunch - both savory and sweet (white, dark and milk chocolate in one crepe - the most amazing taste to behold!), we wandered around this little quaint town and left the town via a boat that took us down the Rhein River to Schaffhausen, where we took a train the rest of the way to Zurich. The boat trip was so relaxing and it was another nice day. Along the way we passed a small nude beach (people were out sunning themselves, which is why we knew it was a nude beach), as well as some nice homes. At one point we went under a low bridge and the captain had to lower the upper portion of the boat in order to get under the bridge..never saw that before. The day ended quite differently as a nasty thunderstorm came up really fast and as we left the train, we got completely drenched! Even if we had had our umbrellas (I know, never go without your umbrella), we would have been just as wet as the wind was very strong. But it was another adventure and fortunately there is an efficient drying room in the apartment building so our clothes were dry by morning!
Wednesday, we went into Zurich and walked around the old city, visiting a couple churches: the Fraumunster, where there is a gorgeous set of windows created by Marc Chagall. We also went to the Grossmunster, where Zwingli began the Reformed movement in Switzerland. Of great interest to me, was seeing the Cabaret Voltaire - where the Dada movement began in 1916. Every year I talk about that movement in my 20th century music history class and mention its start in Switzerland and it was cool to see exactly where it was. There are still a few items on the walls pointing to the important events.
Today, Thursday, Susan and I took the train to a cable car and went up the side of a mountain near Zurich. We ate lunch at the wonderful restaurant at the top and then since she had to retrieve Lucky, her dog, I decided I wanted to hike the ridge of the mountain to another prominent place. So I went on a 5.5 kilometer hike which gave me some beautiful views of the city of Zurich below. It was challenging at times - the markers said the trail was easy and flat - I decided that compared to hiking the Matterhorn, this was probably easy and flat, though my experience is that the Swiss definition of flat must be the average of up and down! Anyway, the weather was beautiful and there were some cool breezes along the way and I took my time. I enjoyed it very much - especially toward the end when I heard a variety of cowbells on the cows that were roaming in the pasture below me. It made me smile, because every time they moved, it created a wonderful counterpoint of beautiful metallic sounds...I heard it for more than 20 minutes after I left the pasture - it just echoed throughout the valley. I took a train back down to Zurich once I finished the two hour hike - tired but very happy for my accomplishment and the time to enjoy God's beautiful creation, including the clean, fresh air! It was a great day!