Zurich: clean, efficient, polite.  Yes, it is all of those things, but it is NOT sterile.  The people are warm and many seem to have a dry sense of humor.  They appreciate life and their great city.  The winding cobblestone streets of the Old Town make way for winding motorways, the trams are easy to navigate, and there are parks everywhere it seems.

I love Zurich.  If I were going to live in Europe, and if I had a lot of money, I would live in Zurich.  This small city is home to less than 500,000 people in the city proper who speak Swiss German (which sounds nothing like my high school German).  This city has everything!  Sitting on the banks of Lake Zurich, surrounded by forests and rolling hills, with moderate temperatures, the Romans knew how to pick a location and modern man seems to agree.  It is considered the top city in the world for quality of life by the consulting firm of Mercer.  Mmm…there may be a direct correlation between quality of life and quality of chocolate available.

My favorite excursions, besides chocolate shopping, is just walking the maze of streets in Old Town, or buying a transportation pass that gives you access to the ferry and spending the day cruising the lake with wine and bread (much cheaper than the lake tours and you meet interesting locals!).