Looking for Jason Bourne

One of my main goals in Switzerland was to feel like I was in a Jason Bourne movie. I wanted to hear those famous European police sirens, see fake passports from all different countries, and witness crazy car chases as I moved throughout Zurich. Unfortunately, real life isn't quite as exciting as Hollywood makes it out to be. Zurich is a beautiful city with typical Swiss charm but there isn't really much action, especially on a Sunday. The city is relatively quiet with people strolling through or riding their bikes across many of the bridges that line the city. I was able to hear the police sirens and did get really excited until I realized it was just an ambulance slowly driving through the city. Also, no Matt Damon, Franka Potente, or Clive Owen to be found.

The US News just released a report on the most expensive cities in the world. To my surprise, we're hitting 5 of the top 7 on our trip (Singapore, Zurich, Hong Kong, New York, and London). Singapore didn't feel that expensive to me because it reached its ranking from its exorbitant costs to own a car. Hong Kong was expensive but could be done for cheap with relative ease. London makes the list because of its crazy housing prices (same with New York). Zurich? Well they make the list because of the price of their everyday items, and that really hurts when you're traveling. Food prices are regularly about 30-50% above where you expect them to be. For example, an extra value meal at Burger King (or whatever it's called now) costs $16. 2 salads at a normal, run of the mill lunch spot cost $50. Even the kebab joints were charging $14 for chicken fingers and fries. No shortage of sticker shock in this city.

Other random observations from Zurich:

- The people here are really tall. Or maybe we're just used to the short people in Asia - I'm not sure.

- German is the common tongue here but just about everyone speaks English. It's pretty easy to get around.

- Why do European men (and Rickie Fowler) like those pants with the scrunchy elastic material around the ankles? I don't get it.

- While on the topic of fashion, Swiss people LOVE jorts. There is no shortage of denim that ends above the knee. 

- Swiss chocolate really is that good.

- Ronaldo is the biggest drama queen I've ever seen. No NBA or NFL player ever gets carried off the court/field on a stretcher after he was running around for the prior 5 minutes. It hurt me to see him win.

- Swiss public transport is amazing. Everything runs on time, the train stations are gorgeous, and Zurich has a badass tram system that was very pleasant to ride.

All in all, Zurich was really nice but didn't blow me away. I much preferred Lucerne and the incredible region at the base of the Alps.

Portugal is up next (after a 4.5 hour flight delay!)

Jeff