Spring Treasure Hunt at the Easter Market in Greifensee

A little Swiss-German tip: Add “-li” at the end of a noun to describe an object or a person which/who is small, cute, lovely, sweet, cuddly, etc.

All those little adjectives that make you feel tender attachment to it/her/him… You will know why the Old Town of Greifensee is called Städtli when you walk on cobblestones along its town hall, small flower garden, the goldsmith, gift shops, lake-side park under the Schloss (a medieval stone castle) and kiosk café with boat rental.

The wooden deck underneath the tall, gentle willow tree is perfect for couples to enjoy breathtaking sunset views, while children feed swans, ducks, and Taucherli (a little black “diving bird” with a white beak and “forehead”).

In fact, Städtli Greifensee is so lovely that even my Swiss in-laws have agreed – with unexpectedly dreamy eyes – as we all wondered around this tiny but charming square.

My personal favorite is the oddly shaped church with a crooked wall and a screwed clock tower (it reminds me of Dr. Sue’s world).

Under the church’s golden clock, the Gemeinde (town hall) orchestrates its garden with seasonal flowers in different hues. Last summer, the garden was just gorgeous, filled with tall dahlias in red-hot-chili, raspberry-red, egg-yolk-yellow, baby pink, purple with white stripes, rusty-nail-brown, and more!

Now, the garden is hurrying to catch up with this year’s warm spring. Blue hyacinth, staring narcissus, ballooning crocus, and little-eyed pansies are getting ready to welcome you to the Easter market this weekend!

This Saturday and Sunday (April 4th and 5th, 2014), Städtli Greifensee will have an Ostermärt with 35 stands of handmade treasures and Easter deco.

For early Easter egg hunters and collectors, the Schloss opens its heavy wooden door to the 15th International Easter Exhibition.

More than 40 artists carefully applied their unique techniques to eggs in different sizes (and materials) to celebrate the joy of spring.

 
 
 
Its gäggaligäl (Dimitri’s Swiss-German spelling to describe the yellow, bold as a typical raincoat for a kid) flyer lists 5 Francs for adults, and free admission for children. Last year, all four floors were packed with people of all ages, but egg hunting in the medieval castle is definitely worth a Newly Swissed experience!

The 2014 Greifensee Easter Market is coming up on April 5!

If you know of any other Easter markets coming up, please share it with us in the comments!