The winter swimmer.
Intro
Antonia Spillmann loves living in the city. She lives beside the lake and goes swimming there every day. This is not her only tip for keeping fit in older age.
Zug.
The city of Zug, well-known for its low taxes and because it is the seat of numerous companies, was founded by the Kyburgers. Zyt Tower, which offers a magnificent view of the Old Town, the Zug Mountain and Lake Zug, is the city's landmark.
Hint
It's dawning in Zug. The lakeside city is slowly waking up. The lights are on in a few apartments, a pair of ducks are quacking and the gentle silhouette of the snow-capped Rigi forms behind the houses.
It's cold.
Nevertheless, 73-year old Antonia Spillmann is wearing her bathrobe and walking towards Lake Zug.
Without batting an eye, she takes off her bathrobe and glides into the lake. The temperature is just above zero. The water in the lake is still and mirror-like. Other than the tiny waves caused by Antonia Spillmann's strokes, there is silence all around. The pensioner swims in the early morning hour, with the mountains in front of her and the town behind her.
“While some people have a shower in the morning, I go swimming in the lake – 365 days a year.” Antonia Spillmann
“Yes, it's cold in winter,“ says the Zug resident after her ritual swim. Yet she's in good health, she says, and is never ill. “While some people have a shower in the morning, I go swimming in the lake – 365 days a year.”
Besides the lake, Antonia Spillmann also appreciates the short distances in Zug. The butcher, lovely restaurants, the vegetable store; everything is nearby. When she goes shopping in the old town, she greets virtually everyone she comes across. “We know each other, we say hello, and this is something that is really special to me at my age.”
Breathe deeply on the local mountain.
She takes the bus to the railway valley station on the Zugerberg. It takes her almost 15 minutes to travel up to the local mountain by public transport.
From the mountain peak, not only can she admire a breath-taking panorama of the lake and the town, she can also enjoy the wonderful winter fairy tale landscape.
Like everywhere in Switzerland, city dwellers love nature – and it's never far away.
Antonia Spillmann walks through the snow-covered forest. “Up here, just a stone's throw from my apartment I can really breathe, and this is important to me.”
She's not alone: children are sledging, cross-country skiers are circling along the trails and the ski school has opened.