After a somewhat uneventful first day in Zurich, we were ready to get out of the city and head over to St. Gallen. We woke up at 7am, had a quick breakfast in the hotel lobby, then headed off to Zurich HB, where we would be taking the train over to St. Gallen, which was an hour away. We were lucky we bought the majority of our train, admission and excursion tickets in advance, so we didn’t have to wait in line to purchase anything.

Since it was a Sunday, we headed to the Abbey first as there was service happening inside the cathedral. Our tickets included entry to the library, vaulted cellar and exhibition space. The library does have a strict baggage policy, so we had to stow our bags in the lockers which were provided free of charge. In addition, prior to entering the library we had to put on slippers, which are worn overtop your shoes, before we were allowed inside. 

I don’t think pictures do justice in showing how beautiful the interior is. It’s absolutely breathtaking inside the library, as everything is kept in such pristine condition. Apparently the library collection is the oldest in Switzerland and is one of the earliest and most important monastic libraries in the world. We definitely took a fair share of photos. While I wouldn’t say it was crowded inside as they limit the amount of people entering, you were for sure getting photos with other people in the background. 

After the library, we went to the vaulted cellar and the exhibition space. I think I enjoyed the exhibition space more as there were quite a lot of artifacts on display, plus it was more interactive. It also houses the Plan of St Gall, which is one of the most important architectural drawings from the Middles Ages. We actually had to sit through an entire video presentation before the plan appears from the display case for a few seconds, as they have to limit its exposure to light.

From there we backtracked to the cathedral, then headed over to McDonald’s for lunch. I tried their paprika chicken sandwich and got their 2 for 5 CHF deal, ordering their fries and nuggets (hot devil sauce!). We browsed around St. Gallen before heading back to Zurich. I did like how St. Gallen seemed a lot more chill than Zurich, although there wasn’t much to do since most shops were closed on Sunday.

After arriving back in Zurich I really wanted to grab dinner to make up for the horrible fondue on the first night. This was also my only night to eat out, as we would be heading to the alps the following day, and I had the concert the night after. We headed over to Swiss Chuchi, which was another restaurant I had looked at when I was doing my fondue research, so I knew they had other specialties I could try. However, maybe because it was a Sunday night, the lineup to get in without reservations was down the street. After confirming it would be about an hour wait, neither of my friends wanted to stay in line. However, I was insistent on getting dinner for myself, so I stayed while they headed back to the hotel.

One of the things I found out on this trip was that not everyone prioritizes food as much as I do lol. I’m that person who always wants to try new things and needs to have meals at proper times. Or as my friend puts it, “Jenny needs to be fed at regular intervals like a tamagotchi”. Another thing I found is that I can fall asleep pretty much on any moving vehicle as long as I’m on it for more than 15 minutes. I mean, I knew that already, I just didn’t know it was a skill not many others have. =P

Anyway I was glad I made the decision to have dinner by myself, cause the Zurich style veal with rösti was actually very good. I felt like it redeemed my impression of Zurich cuisine and I’m glad I was able to end the night taking in all the scenery from the Limmat River as I traveled back to the hotel.