Switzerland, Revealed

After living here for over three years, I have learned many things about the Swiss. As several people still think I live in Sweden and speak Swedish, I thought it might be good to share what I have discovered about this little but unique country. These thoughts are in no particular order...


1) Most children at Swiss public schools don't eat lunch at school. They go home for an hour and a half to two hours. This means a lot of mothers have to stay home too.
2) Many companies give a man a raise when he gets married to take care of his wife. But...
3) If there are 2 salaries in the household, the second one is taxed at a much higher rate
4) Children call their teacher 'maîtresse' (meaning teacher), as well as by their name - but the teacher doesn't seem to mind.
5) All shops are closed on Sundays and any public holidays - you have to stock up before a 3 day weekend! (Some exceptions include shops found in the railways, and you can usually find an open restaurant). Most shops also close by 6 or 7pm, with the exception of Thursday which tends to be the 'late shopping night'. Then stores might be open until 9!
6) Tipping is appreciated, but not to the degree of America - about 10% is considered very generous
7) Everyone goes on walks - with their children, dogs, scooters, grandparents, etc. All the sidewalks by our lake our packed every weekend. Lots of people also use nordic walking poles, even on the flat parts.

8) Public transport is amazing, and you can bring your beer along with you. It's not uncommon to bring a can of beer or bottle of wine on a train or bus. The transportation is fast and reliable. If it says the train is leaving at 12:47, it will. This can be a good thing (you are always on time!) or a bad thing (you have definitely missed that train if it is 12:48!)

9) Most people in Switzerland speak "a little bit of English", this means they speak 100 times more English than you speak French without even blinking an eye.
10) Their idea of breakfast out is a croissant - you won't often find nice cafes with eggs, toast, pancakes, or any thing else delicious... you have to make it at home
11) There are four official languages of Switzerland - Swiss German, French, Italian, and Romance (which no one really speaks). Although most students take both French and German at school (and English!), the people in the German section prefer to speak in English to foreigners that in French.
12) While on the topic of languages... many of the "border towns" where the French meets the German section has 2 names, one in French and one in German.

13) Residents living in Switzerland are REQUIRED to have health insurance. We pay large taxes, but health insurance is not included. Most companies offer the same basic insurance, and cannot deny anyone coverage.
14) Most people rent their homes or apartments their entire life - it is so expensive to buy that no one bothers
15) Swiss are very intense skiers, Many parents joke that their kids can ski before they can walk - it might be true!

16) Switzerland is not part of the EU and uses its own currency called "Swiss Francs" which is abbreviated CHF. Things are so expensive that I usually have a 100 or so in my wallet, and 5CHF is a coin. They don't even bother with anything less than 5 centimes (cents)

17) The Swiss in the French section never seem to be working - from their late start, long lunches, early endings and constant holidays it is a wonder anything ever gets done. 
18) Adding the the 'no work' comment above, the post near us is only open from 8-10am and from 2-4pm during the summer.... what are they doing the rest of the hours?!
19) The Swiss LOVE their vacation time. People working normally get 5 weeks of vacation. Kids in school get two weeks in fall (half term), three weeks at winter, one week at the end of February (ski week), 2 weeks for spring break, 2 months at the summer, and a variety of other one or two day holidays... I'm not complaining!
20) Swiss people are hard to crack. A lot of people see them as 'cold' and 'guarded' which can be true. But there are many other Swiss people who are funny and kind and just take some time to get to know. Just remember if you are coming here for a day or two, you aren't going to make a million friends. Save that hope for when you travel to Italy. 
21) Swiss people LOVE their cows - they have little celebrations when the cows get taken up to the higher pastures in the summer or come down to the lower pastures for winter. They get to wear flower crowns and all the farmers come down in wagons behind them. All cows wear enormous bells that make it easy to find a lost animal.

22) Hikers have right of passage on all private land. This means most hiking trails cut through peoples private farms and pastures. As long as you follow the little yellow walking signs, you're set!
23) Swiss are very particular about their quite time - before 8am and after 10pm (and ALL SUNDAY!) you cannot make any kind of disturbing noise. This supposedly includes taking a shower and using your vacuum. We have heard rumors of the police being called on someone being slightly too loud at 10:01pm. 
24) Every adult male must serve in the Swiss military (unless they are lucky to choose one of the other options because or religious or physical limiting reasons). After training, all adult men between the ages of 18-35 (but in special cases up to 50) are part of the standing military. They are required to keep a firearm in their home and be ready to take action should they be called on.
25) All people are required to have access to a bomb shelter, and the military is there to ensure that there are enough bomb shelters to hold 115% of the Swiss population (our bomb shelter is on the first floor with doors nearly a foot thick!)
26) Switzerland's government is a direct democracy. This can mean 2 things: 1) Your vote really counts because each citizen has their say or 2) nothing ever gets done. As I am not allowed to vote, I don't really know, but this seems to be the consensus from most people.
27) Little yellow pedestrian signs can be found on many intersections, street corners, and mountain roads. They tell you the direction of nearby and major cities, and how long it will take you to get there. The time is measured by how long it would take your grandmother to walk the path. Grandmothers are surprisingly fast!

29) There is a very conservative political group here called the UDC. They put up a ton of controversial posters - take a look! (Have you noticed the "black" vs "white" theme?

30) For some reason I can't understand, the Swiss have completely covered their country with benches. Not that I'm complaining, it's nice always to have somewhere to sit. I just find it hilarious some of the places they put them. 

 

31) The drinking water is free, clean, and always running. You can find it in fountains around the lake, on mountain paths, in cities, etc. Just keep an eye out for the very few fountains that say "Non Potable", which don't occur very often. Just think, free alpine water!

32) Now that we know where people get their water from... how about cows? Most of them get to drink out of old bathtubs. I couldn't stop laughing the first time I saw it, but the Swiss farmlands are covered with old bathtubs filled with drinking water for their animals. It's a good way to recycle!





That's all for now, folks. Thanks to Kathleen for giving me this idea by sharing a blog of a friend of hers that lives in France. It's funny the things you notice after living somewhere for a while. I'm sure there are a million other interesting differences out there, none of which I can currently remember :)

A Storm This Way Comes

Sitting under the steely gray sky
Pregnant clouds hanging heavily in the heavens 
Waves crashing crashing into the shore
A dark horizon - what is coming? The storm, the storm
The sky lights up again and again and again
Zigging zagging streaks bright as fire
Blinding my eyes roaring in my ears CLAP CLAP CLAP
The earth and the sky and the air is pounding shaking flashing
Then....................................................silence.

Just Another Day in Switzerland

My posts have been sporadic at most in the past months and I apologize. I think the problem is that I feel like I need something VERY exciting to write about. The truth is, even though I live in Switzerland (which some people feel is very exciting in itself), I live a pretty normal life. I get up early -too early for my taste - go to work, work all day, come home, work a bit more, maybe run, make dinner, sleep. Repeat over and over again.  Then again there are the weekends, which can be a bit more exciting. A few weekends ago, Paul and I decided to go to Interlaken and Gimmelwald for our four day weekend. Here is a short recap if you missed it:

We arrived in Interlaken Wednesday evening without a problem. The train connections in Switzerland are amazing and I love being able to travel everywhere in the country in a reasonable amount of time. In just about 2 hours, we pulled into Interlaken West and jumped off the train. We ambled down the streets until we found the hostel. It turns out it was the same one we stayed in the last time we were in Interlaken together! It was a good night because the hostel is just above a lovely pub.

The next morning we set out for adventure. I really wanted to ride around a lake, so we found a bike rental place, and decided to ride an electric tandem. Although it took us a while to get used to it, we decided to give it a go. After taking an initial wrong turn and having to backtrack, we began our ride. The first hill was unbelievably hard, even with full assist. After a little break, we continued on and enjoyed the flat street and the beautiful views. An hour or so in, we passed a lovely restaurant and pulled in for lunch and a well earned beer (or two). After lunch we were too full to move, so we walked across the street to a little park on the lake and took a nap.



 

So after our little nap, we got back on our bike and kept going. There was a lot of up and down, with a nice stop at a beautiful waterfall.

 

This is the best part of vacation - you can do whatever you want!  Before we knew it, we had finished our ride. If you have never ridden on the back of a tandem, you should know it is a pretty fun experience. You don't have any control, which means you don't watch the road, change gears, or use the brakes. It also means you have to trust the person in front of you, and use good communication, especially with starting and stopping. Overall, our trip was great fun, but it was definitely a bit exhausting!

After returning the bike we headed to a Mexican restaurant that had been recommended in Interlaken West. It had delicious margaritas and great food, which is difficult to find in Switzerland. We headed back to the hostel for a well earned sleep. The next day, we packed up and did a bit of shopping in Interlaken and wandering around. We found many beautiful bridges, a big market, and of course, benches galore. We found a cozy bench and snuggled up to read and enjoy the nice weather for a while before heading up to Gimmelwald. The trip there took about an hour and included a train, a bus, and a gondola. From there it was minutes to the next hostel. We checked into the "Lovers Dorm" and ordered a few beers on the beautiful balcony. It was a nice rest before our hike the next day.

As a former girl scout, I firmly believe in being prepared. Unfortunately, on this hike, I was not living by my motto. I left with a lot of water but no first aid kit, and only my little Vibrams on my feet. It all started out well, thinking we were going for a little, 30 minute hike. After climbing over a few piles of snow, we were worried early on but kept going. We visited the beautiful valley I had seen in the previous summer, and it was not nearly as beautiful but still unique in its own way. We backtracked a bit and started on a different path up to a restaurant that looked quite close by. The several fallen trees in our path should have been a warning for us to stop and go back, but we didn't listen.

The path continued to get worse and worse as we got higher and higher. In places the path was completely washed out, and we had to hike across terrible icy avalanche areas. On the last traverse, I was fairly sure I was going to die, digging out footholds, and only holding on to the edge of a cliff with two sharp rocks. Paul and I are lucky we made it past that, and wanted to be back home immediately. Unfortunately, we had another 2 hours ahead of us. Oh, and did I mention that Paul broke his toe? By the time we arrived back at the hostel we were dirty and exhausted. We showered and joined some of the other hikers for beers and dinner. By 10pm I was too tired to keep my eyes open and I went straight to sleep.

 

Our next day was slated to be a hiking day, but with Paul's broken toe, and all of our muscles ached more than they had in a long time. So instead of hiking, we found a nice cafe in the town one gondola ride away. We settled in for a good day, with beer on tap, a gorgeous view, and interesting books. Time creeped by as we enjoyed each others company and relaxed in our last day of vacation. Finally, we decided it was time to make our journey home. We picked up our suitcases and caught the gondola, bus, and two trains and another bus home. Finally I was home sweet home.


Since then I have been enjoying quiet weekends, with a week of being sick in between. I loved the Caves Ouvert Saturday where all the wineries were giving samples for $12! This weekend has been a quiet weekend with Paul. Like I said, there is not much to tell in my boring, day-to-day life.