Floating through the city

After two years of cancellation, Zurich’s annual Limmat River Swim was finally able to take place yesterday. The weather was gloriously sunny, making us oh-so-excited to jump in the cool water for a leisurely float through the city.

The event was extremely well organized (as we should have expected). We purchased our 27-franc tickets near the start and then went to the Frauenbad to get ready to go. We placed all of our clothes and other belongings into numbered plastic bags; these bags went onto a boat that beat us to the finish line, meaning our things were conveniently waiting for us on arrival. We were also given numbered wristbands (so we could retrieve the correct bags) and round floaty things to take with us on our swim.

There was an MC broadcasting over a loud speaker system, narrating exciting stuff such as ‘the next group is getting ready to go’ and interviewing participants about whether it was their first time ‘dabii’. When it was time for our group to start, we took our floaty things and jumped in. The river gently carried us in the right direction, and we were left to enjoy the effort-free ride.

Several spectators looked on from the river banks and bridges in places, but mostly it was a quiet, tranquil journey through the heart of the city. We floated peacefully past the Grossmunster, the Hauptbahnhof, and all of Zurich’s other landmarks. It was a lot of fun to see the city from a new angle (unfortunately we don’t own a waterproof camera, so no swimmer’s-eye-view pics).

At the end (which came all too soon), we collected our things and changed out of our bathing suits in the makeshift changing rooms (public buses with the windows covered over). Then we went to find out what free stuff was waiting for us – a souvenir glass, a bottle of Rivella, and a veggie burger (or sausage). And as if that wasn’t enough, we got to keep our floaty things, too.

All in all it was a really nice way to spend a sunny afternoon (and I’m not just saying that because there was free stuff). It’s definitely something I’d do again.