Old town of Rapperswil, August 5, 2002

The fishermen have gone a long time ago from the paved area between Station Square and Lake Wharf. The fishmarket square belongs to the tourists now. The taste of a soft ice's artificial vanilla on the tongue combined with the smell of a light lake breeze in the nose, generates an atmosphere of vacation. Ahead, at the lake's shoreline, the shades of the trees are cast from the harbor mole to the docks, where the tied-up boats move gently up and down.

We dive into the shady alleys of Rapperswil's old town. Ancient but carefully made up walls greet the visitor. Street cafes, small businesses and studios with their abundant range of goods invite to stay or buy. "Marktgasse", "Metzgergasse", "Webergasse", "Mühlgasse" or "Schmidgasse" are street names remembering the past time of trade. The idea that in the very same streets the Swiss ladies will win (or lose) gold in the sprint event one year from now, seems quite bizarre.

Above all earthly and daily hecticness the Capuchin monastery powers proudly - a fairy castle and the church. Close to the sky, rosaries were and still are prayed behind humid walls. Turtledoves and the smell of roses excite the senses. Here on top, the first part of the sprint area offers quite a contrast to the view on the area south of the railway tracks: the new square-shaped buildings of the technical college, the colored mosaic of the children's zoo and, far behind, the gray roof of the ice stadium Lido, where the first world champions are supposed to arrive in late afternoon.