traveldelight

Hi
Will be in Amsterdam for 3 days Brussels for 3 days and Zurich for 6 days. A business trip for my partner but a leisure one for me. My request is any inputs from you on ,apart from the regular tourist spots, your favourite places in these cities like for example in Rome I went to see the maxxi gallery which was designed by zahra hadid which was an art piece in itself. The conceptual display and flow of the gallery made one feel part of a bigger picture. One worth being a part of.
If you have such an unique experience do tell because I would love to explore.
Thank you

PalenQ

http://www.cobra-museum.nl/en/home.html

Few folks trek out to suburban Amstelveen to check out the COBRA museum of modern art and architecture but if looking for something unique and cutting edge check it out!

tailsock

Brussels: Grand Place, Manequin Pis, and Parc du Cinquantenaire are some of the highlights. Devote one day as a daytrip to see Bruges or Ghent

outwest

In Brussels don't limit yourself to the Grand Place and Mannequin Pis (we've been to Brussels three times and still haven't bothered to see the MP).

If you like art nouveau check out the Victor Horta House. We also really enjoyed the Van Buren house (a great art deco house--a bit out of the center but easy enough to get to).

The Matonge is the African area and it's a really vibrant and interesting place for a meal. We ate dinner there twice on our most recent trip and it was good, inexpensive and fantastic people watching.

Or have a cone of fries at Maison Antoine or Place Flagey--great fries and great people watching.

Pepper_von_snoot

Zurich?

Zurich is a Borgesian nightmare.

A labyrinth with mirrors.

The memory of Shakespeare trying to read Goethe but coming up with passages from the King James bible.

You only go to Zurich to hide money, sweetie.

Walk down the Bahnhoffstrasse. Those gals sneering at you make Zza Zza Gabor look like
Maria von Trapp.

Heil Hiltl!


Thin

PalenQ

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ite-things.cfm - some off-beat places are covered in this thread me and others have done.

traveldelight

Super thanx palenq, tailsock, outwest,pepper von snoot, duly noted n surprised, I shall check them out.
I do agree pepper von snoot but something...anything....Zurich ? Did convince my partner though to pepper down the days in Zurich ....what do I add ? Been to Lucerne n neighbouring ones a couple of months back. Thanx

kja

I enjoyed my time in Zurich. I thought the Kunstmuseum and Landesmuseum well worth visiting (and well worth at least 1/2 day each, I loved the Chagall and Giacometti stained glass windows of the Fraumunster (visit in the morning for the best light and don't miss the cloister next door), I enjoyed a short boat ride through the city and into the lake and back....

I only had two days in the city and so didn't have enough time to visit some of the other places that I had thought I might enjoy, like the Museum Rietberg.

traveldelight

Thank you so much kja.....I'll make it a point to visit them..thanx

simpsonc510

When you are in Zurich it's very easy to hop on a train and go to a different place for a day (or part of a day). Consider Basel to the west or Einsiedeln to the south or St Gallen to the east. Each is very different.

I, too, love to stroll the Bahnhofstrasse and then to up the hill and over the river to the old town area. Great for strolling/window shopping.

menachem

Zurich's got great and off beat night life along the Limmat and in the Old Town. Bahnhofstrasse is boring indeed, but around Lake Zurich and in the Old Town things are much more lively.

If you're there in October, there's the art fair.

and

http://www.rotefabrik.ch/en/home/

always something going on

WeisserTee

Well, OP, with that itinerary, you can tell everyone you're going to see Europe from A to Z.

In Brussels, there are some wonderful neighbourhoods to wander around. We really enjoyed exploring the city during the five years we lived there. If you're willing to venture farther afield, a visit to the Chateau de la Hulpe and the Fondation Folon (a collection of the works by Belgian artist Folon) is an enjoyable way to spend an afternoon. You can get there and back on bus 366. http://chateaudelahulpe.wallonie.be/...3?id_article=2
http://www.fondationfolon.be/ (great little website)

I agree about the Limmat area of Zurich, I like poking around there and stopping in cafes. Of course, with six days in Zurich, you have plenty to options for day trips -- the Alps, Lake Constance, the Bernina Express, or, of course, you could take in a sampler of the 30 museums here in Basel, where we live now.

Re the Bahnhofstrasse, it's all under construction right now, so it's not looking as swanky as usual. I was at a meeting there on Thursday and Swiss friends told me that many tourists are now flocking to Les Trois Pommes to see if they can manhandle that now infamous Tom Ford bag. ("We touched the bag that Oprah couldn't!")

Anyway, there are two places that I frequent on/around Bahnhofstrasse. The first is Café/Bar Al Leone. I like stopping there for a drink. The second place comes with a money-saving tip -- if you go to the bar on the ground floor of the Jelmoli department store (the bar is between the handbags and cosmetic departments) on a weekday late afternoon and order a drink, you get a free bagel sandwich with it. Just an FYI in case you're feeling peckish AND thirsty around 3:30 pm.

simpsonc510

With construction on the Bahnhofstrasse, how's traffic, and traffic patterns, WeisserTee? I'll be there in less than two weeks, staying for 3-4 days. We always drive in and park at Jelmoli (we stay near the airport).

simpsonc510

Oh, and thanks for the tip on the free bagel sandwich! I know exactly where that bar is located.

WeisserTee

We don't have a car in Switzerland, so I don't know how difficult it is getting in and out...but there were cars all around, so it must still be possible. FWIW, the free bagelwich might be offered only with a prosecco or wine...I don't know if it's offered with a sparkling water or coffee.

Have a good trip!

simpsonc510

...wine would be no problem....