Image by Christine Syrad

Despite not being a girly girl and despite never being able to maintain manicured hands due to my climbing, I found this place really enchanting and am contemplating using the cold weather as a hiatus from climbing just so I can pull beautifully manicured hands out of my ski gloves this year. Just for a change.

Schminkbar is tucked away behind Bahnhofstrasse and is the perfect little oasis in the middle of all the shopping chaos that surrounds it. Upon entering you’re faced with a bar where you can order a hot tea or perhaps a prosecco, whichever you find relaxes you more. If you come just in time for your appointment, don’t fret, you will get some tea and a fruit kebab during your treatment anyway.

What I find so appealing about this place is that you won’t find an air of pretentiousness that can sometimes waft around such salons. Since my nails never resemble anything other than tools that help me grip walls, I usually feel embarrassed about presenting them to a manicurist. Here I felt like it’s ok to walk in with claws and expect to leave with hands fit for a magazine spread.

The quick manicures and pedicures are perfect for those of us in a perpetual hurry who still want to look polished – they only take 30 mins or so max!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Schminkbar | Relaxing | Manicure CHF 30
Beatengasse 9 | Kreis 1 City | +41433330808
Mon 11:00 – 20:00, Tue – Fri 09:00 – 20:00, Sat 09:00 – 18:00

Image by Christine Syrad

Sunday Brunching is one thing I’ve tried and tested many times here in Zurich and I’ve seen that some places do food better than others while others offer better atmospheres. Piazza is one of the places you go to for the atmosphere, although the food’s not half bad either. Just make sure you book yourself a spot since, as is often the case here in Zurich, brunch tends to be a busy ordeal and there’s nothing more heartbreaking on a Sunday than turning up to your favourite place only to find it’s booked out…again. If you do miss the boat, you can always come back for an afternoon snack or beers in the evening!

What I love about this place is its location – I think it’s safe to say that Idaplatz is still a little bit of a hidden gem buried in a residential part of town. In the summer it boasts a crowd of fun-loving people who happily rest their tight-jean-wearing bums on the benches while sipping on beers bought at the kiosk. When it’s still too early for beers you can sit in one of the charming bars lining the square, Piazza being one of them.

Some people describe the piazza as making you feel like you’re elsewhere in Europe and while I agreed at first, I now think it’s actually very typical of the relaxed side of Zurich visitors to the city tend to oversee because they expect it to be nothing more than a finance hub.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Piazza | Bars, Coffee & tea, Relaxing | Large brunch CHF 24
Idaplatz 2 | Kreis 3 Wiedikon | +41445589529
Tue – Sat 09:00 – 00:00, Sun 10:00 – 18:00

Image by Minimum bouldering

I started bouldering back in England at university and although I wouldn’t call myself a supreme hardcore climber I do thoroughly enjoy it. Not only the activity itself but the laid back attitude that seems to be a mandatory character trait for those who indulge in the sport.

When I moved here I was delighted to find that my flatmate was a climber too. We set out to find ourselves a nearby bouldering spot and came across Minimum…after about 45 minutes of searching for it! It’s not the easiest place to find so I’d suggest you write down the exact address if you decide to go and check it out. It’s right by tram stop Post Wollishofen.

The bouldering facilities are simple but more than adequate. The one limiting factor would be the size and only because the place seems to have become increasingly popular! I don’t blame people from wanting to become regulars after visiting this place though – it has a built in bar, a common use barbecue (bring your own meat), they sell cheap and tasty food in the evenings and once a month they host a music event.

I’m a bit out of practice at the moment so if you see a small black haired girl cursing in the corner somewhere because she’s dropped a few levels, come over and say hi!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Minimum | Relaxing | Own shoes CHF 14
Bachstrasse 15 | Kreis 2 Enge
Mon – Tue 17:30 – 23:00, Wed 12:00 – 23:00, Thu – Fri 17:00 – 23:00, Sat-Sun 13:00 – 20:00

Image by Miltiadis Sarakinos

Zürich is surrounded by several hills. On the northwestern side we have the Hönggerberg, offering great panoramic views of the city and hosting several buildings of the famous Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH).

The forest at the northwestern side of the Hönggerberg is my family’s favorite hiking tour. It is our destination during those exceptional occasions that I accept to skip the lake and seek different colors. It offers the feeling of being deep in nature despite being officially within city limits.

Our most unforgettable visits took place during the exceptional autumn of 2006 when the weather remained persistently sunny, mild and dry until December. The leaves suffered a slow death on the trees for the pleasure of our eyes. In Hönggerberg this resulted in a prolonged lavish orgy of colors (see photos).

So autumn is the best time to go. You will be rewarded with a pleasant spectacle of green, yellow, orange and red.

Beautiful mushrooms complement the scenery. If you collect any, make sure you bring them to the appropriate authority for control before eating them.

For the lazy ones (like me): take public transportation to Grünwald and head into the forest through Grünwaldstrasse. Sometime later you will end up descending into inhabited areas.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Hönngerberg | Relaxing
Grünwald | Kreis 10 Wipkingen
Autumn is the best

Image by Miltiadis Sarakinos

Even today I still come across people who think of Zurich as a sterile city of bankers and merchants selling expensive watches (to the bankers). But we, who are neither bankers nor merchants, have made Zurich one of the best addresses on earth. We have created our little special scenes all over the city.

So we took the beautiful pedestrian walk along the eastern side of the lake and made a scene out of it.

Of course, from all seasons, the summer wins. Not so much because we can have a meal or drink watching the lake or visit a Badi for a swim. But rather because we can express our “life is good” attitude. We are street performers, jugglers, youngsters listening to rap on a battery powered stereo, petites bourgoises eating take-away sushi or just a family with a kid hanging around. We love and photograph again and again the deep red sky of the dusk. And we don’t mind the occasional smell of cannabis.

We like the melancholy of the autumn for the colors of the trees. And in the spring (maybe as early as February), we’d lie next to the water to absorb solar radiation in anticipation of the summer.

However, I, personally, love that Saturday afternoon in the winter; when the sky is grey and there’s plenty of snow on the ground. I’d be alone and feel like I own the place. Moments later, I’d be jumping into the ice cold water of the lake (check the Sauna Utoguai article).

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Utoquai Promenade | Art & culture, Music, Relaxing, Snacks, Restaurants
Utoquai | Kreis 8 Seefeld
24 hours daily