I know it may not be the best idea to start a blog with a post on Red Light District, but I don't believe in bad PR, so here is a snapshot of Zürich famous Langstrasse:
There are all kinds of tours in Zurich these days: art, winery, cheese, ethnic shop tours, Zurich airport tours and even Ghost walk with tales of historic executions and tragic suicides in the city. But I’ve never been on a guided (and I don’t mean guarded) tour along the notorious Langstrasse.
The group I am joining is organized by the English Speaking Club in Zurich and the tour starts from the Hauptbahnhof, the heart of Switzerland's banking capital, that divides the city into two very different worlds. It is like walking a high wire with the inclination to head south toward the glam shops of one of the most expensive boulevards in the world of vanity or to surrender to a spontaneous impulse for an edgier insight into the “other side of the tracks”.
Tonight we are heading exactly to this area, known as Zurich-West centers, starting from the public space of the train station, where the Tourist Information Office is. I’ve passed many farmers’ markets on this public terrain, but I never knew how much actually people actually pay to rent this space. The cost per day is 50 000 CHF.
Our first stop on the other side of the tracks is the Sihl Post, which is the city’s main post office, built on 2900 square meters and opened for the first time in 1930. We are in Aussersihl or District 4 starting in the area between the traintracks and the Sihl River. The city of Zurich used to be behind the river toward Bahnhofstrasse and the water was used as a natural border and protection of the city. That explains the name of the river, based on the Celtic goddess Sila, a guardian of the gates of life and death. The Swiss, though, didn’t put all their eggs into one basket and, to support the Gods, they built a military indoor riding arena and stables along the Sihl river. That was back in 1858 and today the buildings are used as an improvised venue for theater guest performances. The alley along the river is called Gassner Allee.
Our first stop on the other side of the tracks is the Sihl Post, which is the city’s main post office, built on 2900 square meters and opened for the first time in 1930. We are in Aussersihl or District 4 starting in the area between the traintracks and the Sihl River. The city of Zurich used to be behind the river toward Bahnhofstrasse and the water was used as a natural border and protection of the city. That explains the name of the river, based on the Celtic goddess Sila, a guardian of the gates of life and death. The Swiss, though, didn’t put all their eggs into one basket and, to support the Gods, they built a military indoor riding arena and stables along the Sihl river. That was back in 1858 and today the buildings are used as an improvised venue for theater guest performances. The alley along the river is called Gassner Allee.
Because of the presence of the military forces in this area in the past many brothels and pubs appeared and Aussersihl quickly grew into a town which exploded in population later during the industrialization. This is when the city of Zurich decided to move all its industry outside the city and the area became flooded with migrant workers from Spain and Portugal. The municipality could not cope with its rapid growth and social challenges and it soon went bankrupt, which is why in 1893 it was incorporated into the Zurich municipality together with Wiedikon as Stadtkreis III. In 1913 there was a new separation, which is still used today as the current districts 3, 4 and 5. In fifty years though, after many factories were forced to close due to financial difficulties, the vacuum between the district and the city was filled by the emerging Red Light District. Our guide says that today the second biggest problem for the city of Zurich, after the lack of accommodation, is prostitution. There are between 4000 and 5000 official prostitutes in Zurich, but the unofficial number is 12 000.
In addition the police closed the Latten railway station or the so-called “needle park” in 1992 and this moved the drug scene to the red light district as well. Today Langstrasse is a melting pot of more than 140 nationalities with a high crime rate, prostitution and drug dealing. Part of the police efforts to deal with the every day problems of this district is the Langstrasse PLUS project, which is about keeping the area cleaner, building boxes for accommodating homeless people and prostitutes, reducing crime and keeping the area under control.
On our way in the small streets, crossing Langstrasse we see two schools, where drug dealers recruiting small kids for 5 CHF to become part of the drug trade used to be a problem; police had to escort children on their way to school in order to prevent such crimes.
Later we witness of a group of teenagers, obviously from different cultures, gliding and slashing on their skateboards, just hanging out together without any tension or fights. Nearby is the Qwartir Centrum, which on the outside looks just like every other restaurant in the park, but only when you approach the tables do you notice the kind of people who frequent it and realize that this place provides cheap food for people with very low income.
The other memorable stops we make are:
The Women’s Labyrinth, a project created by the women living in the area behind the armories, who are taking care of public space, turning it into a beautiful romantic garden where there are regular performances and integration events. The interesting thing is that for years nothing has been destroyed in this small area, regardless of the fact that, according to official statistics, there are 42% foreign residents in that same neighbourhood.
Restaurant Sonne – a notorious meeting point of prostitutes and drug dealers, where the famous Hans Peter Brunner, the King of the Red Light District used to live in the 90s and later shot himself in 2005.
The first Peep show bar in Zurich – the first peep show was opened in 1977 and was called Stützli Sex of Mr. Gotthard (Called Gody) Müller. 30 seconds through the peephole cost 1 Stutz at that time and Gody became a rich man, earning almost 20 000 per day in coins. However the bar was closed 6 years later and the owner was broke soon as it turned out he didn’t pay his taxes.
Fabric Frontline – Almost at the end of our trip we walk into a hidden small corridor decorated with lush green vegetation leading us into a hidden courtyard, where we find the discreet and elegant showroom of the world famous Fabric Frontline silk-clan from Zurich. In the fashion world everybody knows that a fabric can sell a whole outfit and in fact Fabric Frontline has a dazzling assortment of colors and prints easily seen in the season collections of designers like Vivienne Westwood, Nina Ricci and Helmut Lang. In fact in May 2011, when Michelle Obama was accompanying her husband on his first UK state visit, the president’s wife was wearing a pink fabric bolero by Barbara T’Fank and the fabric was Fabric Frontline.
Despite the high-profile friends and celebrities Fabric Frontline manages a very somber and discreet look. Their fabrics may travel to the most exclusive trade shows around the world, which is where the elite designers tend to shop, but Fabric Frontline is open for everyone who can afford their silks. The highly exclusive fabric may cost you up to 590 CHF per square meter.
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