Well, we are now in the Swissair lounge in Zurich awaiting our flight to Israel; then back to Toronto.
We enjoyed our hotel in See which is another picturesque town in the mountains.
Today, we left See and headed toward Zurich Airport with a side stop at Schaffhausen(about 30 minutes north of Zurich) which is a beautifully preserved medieval town (the best example of medieval architechture in Europe, we are told).
It was also the first town in Switzerland which banned automobile traffic on all its inner city streets; you basically park your car at one of the many city parking lots that surround the city and walk thru town...it is well worth the walk. The reason why Schaffhausen is such a popular place is that the Rhine river runs thru it and about one mile from town you have the largest waterfall in Europe where the "Rhinefall" as they call it tumbles down a wide area of the river.
It is very picturesque (not as big or mighty as Niagara, but awesome nevertheless). They even have their version of the Maid of the Mist which actually deposits tourists on an island smack in the middle of the falls so that you can experience the falls up close!
On the way back into town, we had one of the most interesting and delicious encounters with a frum Jew that we have ever had. We were walking thru the town and I was speaking on our cell phone to Zvi in Toronto. Fran tugged at my sleeve and said "look over there...there is a guy with a kippah"! When I looked over, I saw a man working in a restaurant and he was wearing a kippah. There are very few Jews in Schaffhausen (about 25) and even fewer that are religious. It turns out that Ladd and Caroline own the Cafe Vordergasse and live above the store. They also operate a B & B there. They are frum and sell the store every Friday and go to Zurich for Shabbat. The restaurant/cafe is dairy; non chalav - Yisrael with no hashgacha, mainly because there are few if any Jewish clientele. Ladd was most welcoming to us and even gave us a gift of Chalav Yisrael local cheese with the hashgacha of a dayan from England.
When I asked him about anti semitism in Switzerland and how he goes around with a kippah (we were warned by everyone not to wear a kippah in Switzerland or Austria; I ignored the warnings as I have done in most locales in the world and did not experience any overt expressions of anti semitism at all), he replied that those who find it offensive would not be welcome in his restaurant anyway. Most however, have no idea what it is that he is wearing on his head!
What an amazing experience.
Back to Toronto to plan the next fascinating trip!
When I asked him about anti semitism in Switzerland and how he goes around with a kippah (we were warned by everyone not to wear a kippah in Switzerland or Austria; I ignored the warnings as I have done in most locales in the world and did not experience any overt expressions of anti semitism at all), he replied that those who find it offensive would not be welcome in his restaurant anyway. Most however, have no idea what it is that he is wearing on his head!
What an amazing experience.
Back to Toronto to plan the next fascinating trip!
Best regards
Fran and David
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