Join me on a Monday afternoon #stroll through Zurich's Alstadt (old town) from Lindenhof to Sechseläutenplatz on Sechseläuten as we pass many of the festival participants in their traditional costumes as they prepare for the parade that will take place later in the day.
Sechseläuten (literally "The six o'clock ringing of the bells") is a traditional spring holiday in Zürich, whose origins date back to medieval times when the first day of summer working hours was celebrated in the guildhalls across the city. City ordinances strictly regulated the length of the working day in that era and during the winter semester the workday in all workshops lasted as long as there was daylight, but during the summer semester, the law proclaimed that work must cease when the church bells tolled at six o'clock.
Initially, the holiday was just celebrated with a parade, but the present celebration cumulates with the burning of the Böögg (Swiss German term for "bogey" - scary-looking ragdolls). Burnings of Böögg figures in spring are detailed in various places of the city from the late 18th and early 19th century, without direct connection to the Sechseläuten.
We start our stroll on Lindenhof, looking across the river Limmat to Limmatquai and the old town beyond.
Turning around, we cross Lindenhof and turn right to stroll along Lindenhofstrasse as it descends from the square. Turning right onto Fortunagasse, we stroll down towards the river Limmat. At the junction with Schipfe, we turn left and stroll along Schipfe until we reach Heiristeg.
We follow the Heiristeg pathway along the river's edge and up the steps on to Rudolf-Brun-Brücke. After crossing Rudolf-Brun-Brücke, we turn right onto Limmatquai and stroll towards the lake. As we stroll along Limmatquai, we pass many of the historic guildhalls, which today have the guild members in their costumes outside as they prepare for the Sechseläuten parade.
Eventually, at the end Limmatquai, wepass the Bellevue tram stop and reach the edge of Sechseläutenplatz. We finish our stroll on Sechseläutenplatz, looking across the square towards the Böögg siting atop the tower, awaiting the burning later in the day.
23 апр 2023
