Shopping!

Well I survived my first shopping trip in Switzerland! I had some idea of where there was a grocery store so I meandered over there, with a quick stop in at the tourist information center. But I got so many brochures that I had to go home to drop them off. Plus, it started to rain and I wanted my umbrella. Luckily when I was home I thought to bring a bag with me, because it seems like the grocery stores don't just give you bags. That could have been a disaster. The store was nice and I found some things I didn't expect to see, like curry paste and coconut milk, though I didn't buy much. There was also all sorts of produce that I didn't recognize so that should be fun to figure out in the coming weeks! It was crazy busy out today, I guess because everything is closed tomorrow and Monday because of Easter. Here's a shot of the Barfüsserplatz, one of the big shopping areas/intersections:

There were people everywhere. Being in the supermarket was a little intimidating, but luckily everything seems to work the same way and "Visa" is a universally understood word. The one big difference was the huge restaurant areas in the store - there was a sushi place and pizzas and sandwiches and all sorts of stuff.

Here are some pictures of things I saw on the way to the supermarket:

This is the Tinguely fountain, designed by the Swiss artist Jean Tinguely, who is a huge name around here. He's famous for making kinetic sculptures like this. It was pretty cool to see the water spraying everywhere, but a little out of place in the gray, cool weather. I wonder if people play in it when it's warm out?

And here's some church:

This is like the 3rd or 4th church I've come across and not one of them is Catholic. My chance of seeing a High Latin Mass tomorrow seems to be rapidly dwindling...