Now that's a farmer's market!

Look at the size of the gladiolas compared to the bike!

Bürkliplatz at the tip of Bahnhofstrasse is everything I thought the Oerlikon market would be.  I was shy about taking pictures, but I won't be the next time I go.  I really want to go with Rose someday before school.  There was every type of fresh vegetable and fruit.  We got reine claude plums, mini cucumbers, little strawberries (T's only request) and little buns in the shape of hedgehogs for our picnic. The flowers at the market were incredible.  They had the biggest gladiolas I had ever seen, every type of sunflower imaginable, and dahlias everywhere.  The prices for arrangements were absolutely reasonable and I saw many people leaving with just armfuls of flowers.  There were also bakers, cheese stands, Italian charcuterie. Persian dried fruits, and a trout van.  I am bringing the good camera next time and just making a trip of it rather than a quick stop. T was incredibly impatient the whole time we were there since I had promised him a tram ride.  He was only quiet when he was getting his freebie "prizes" from the vendors: a bread heel, dried apples, and a big carrot.



We did take the tram, as promised down to the Zurichhorn park.  It was too cold to go to the lido, but we did play in the playground there.  It is a huge sand pit with slides, hammocks, swings, and some climbing bits.  Everything was too big for L, but she kept trying, so we were forced to leave earlier than we might have.  There was also a very long climbing wall, but that was too much for T, and he was too cold to go in the water area.  So we went and had a picnic by the lake and then, for a change, rode the ferry back to Burkliplatz.

Part of our picnic

Strawberries were T's special request. Both littles are crazy for little cucumbers.

Back in town we visited the swans and walked through old town (the parts that weren't too steep for a ten pound stroller with fifty-five pounds of kids inside and me wearing a laden backpack, too.) We stopped at Schwarzenbach.  It is an adorable old fashioned shop selling tea and dried fruits.  All sorts of dried fruits in a glass case.  It was hard not to buy everything.  They had plums the color of red wine in sunlight and papayas the color of fire. I bought kumquats as a surprise for E and cantalope for T since he has been obsessed with it lately.  I also got a mix so I would know what to get next time.  It had just a couple of everything except all the berries.  It didn't help me narrow down my choices, since we loved almost everything.  We were surprised by the tiny wild figs, and even more surprised by the coquitos, which are just like tiny coconuts the size of your thumb nail.

Guess who took this picture all by himself!

On the way home we dropped into Coop city, the grocery store where the kids from R's school often go to grab some lunch, or drinks to supplement lunch somewhere else.  I had hoped I might catch R in action, but you almost never run into someone when you want to.  Coop city reminded me of mono prix in France.  I hope R will be willing to swing by for groceries once in a while when the weather gets bad. Also, after a few days in school she can tell me now that it is not pronounced co-op. It is something closer to a two syllable "cope" that she laughs when I try to say.