Journey to Switzerland Day 11

The Grossmunster Cathedral with its two towers

The large crypt

The beautiful stained glass

Day 11 : August 9th

Today we traveled back to Zurich to visit a cathedral. We hopped into Mr. Carter's car and got a ride there in 15 minutes. Once we arrived at ten o'clock, we hopped on a bus to the cathedral called Grossmunster, which is no longer used for church masses. It is a 12th century Romanesque building, rich in the history of Catholic saints and stories of Protestant preaching. It was free to go into the cathedral, but to go up into the tower cost us 2 francs each. In American money, this is only $1.68.

The church, with its beautiful architectural style and stained glass windows, dominates the city of Zurich since there are no other buildings comparable in size. Inside the church, there are frescoes painted on the walls depicting saints, and it was entertaining to see the different types of gargoyles. Lindsay even found a monkey gargoyle! There is also a large sculpture of Charlemange. According to legend, the Grossmunster was founded by Charlemange after his horse bowed down on the spot marking the graves of three early Christian martyrs. From the north tower we could see the entire city and other churches, like the Framunster, across the river. The Grossmunster also has the largest crypt in Switzerland with three aisles. A crypt is a stone vault beneath a church, usually containing coffins or relics. Kaitlyn is definitely the loudest out of all of us, and every time words came out of her mouth, a loud echo would vibrate the walls.

After this fun-filled day of exploring an ancient church, we went back to Mr. Carter's house on the train and ate dinner there around six. We are so sad tomorrow will be our last official day to explore Switzerland.