Happy Swiss National Day!
I’ve been in Switzerland for 15 years. I planned on staying two or three. Alas, life happens in unexpected ways. In honor of 15 years in this country, here are 15 things about Switzerland you might not know.
1. It’s Switzerland’s 733 birthday today!
2. Handshaking is VERY SERIOUS BUSINESS here. During the pandemic when we were not allowed to shake hands, it freaked everyone out. How on earth do you function if you can’t shake hands? There was even a lawsuit about handshaking.
3. There are four official languages: German, French, Italian and Romansh. The latter is spoken by only a few people.
4. If people from different language regions need to communicate, they typically do so in English–especially the younger crowd.
5. They LOVE rules and neatness. But they will just pay people to clean up after them. Swiss people throw cigarettes on the ground just like everyone else.
6. Speaking of rules, you’ll see things saying it’s illegal to flush your toilet after 10:00, but it is not. Your apartment building may have such a rule.
7. But there are many laws about pets. Switzerland has some of the strongest animal protection laws out there.
8. Kindergarten is two years and starts at age four. Swiss kindergarten is the best thing in the whole world. I wish every kid could go through it. They roast hotdogs on sticks, learn to use pocket knives, do a ton of outside play, and don’t spend even five minutes learning to read. Yet, they all learn to read just fine in first grade.
9. Basel (where I live) has a 3-day Fasnacht celebration. This is the Germanic version of Mardi Gras. However, Basel’s Fasnacht is held after Ash Wednesday because it’s a Protestant canton, and 500-plus years ago, the Protestants didn’t want the Catholics to join in the party, so they moved the celebration so it happened during Lent.
10. It’s incredibly expensive here. This is tough for me because all my clients but one are in the United States and pay in US dollars.
11. They are part of the Hague Treaty on International Child Abduction, which is why I still live here. When my husband and I separated, I wanted to take my kids back to the States, but because my ex wanted to stay here, I either had to stay with my kids or go back to the US myself. Obviously, I stayed.
12. The public transportation is amazing. I don’t own a car. I love it.
13. The Swiss don’t believe in air conditioning, especially in private homes.
14. Yes, the chocolate is good, but they don’t believe in chocolate fillings. It’s pretty much chocolate or chocolate with hazelnuts. It’s pretty boring.
15. High German is an official language, but no one speaks it at home. Everyone speaks their local dialect. In Basel, as a general rule, people prefer to speak English over High German. But, you have to pass all your tests in High German to have your residency permits and eventually get a passport.
It’s funny you talk about English. I’ve flown to Switzerland a few times recently on Swiss Air and I’ve noticed that Swiss Air has two languages for announcements and such: That of where you are flying to or from (IE, French if Geneva, German if Zurich) and English. They don’t even bother with the other Swiss languages.
Your kids are getting an amazing experience growing up there. It should serve them well in their lives.