When I first learned I would be moving to Switzerland, like most of us expats, I quickly went online and began bouncing around German-way.com and its many message boards, trying to find out more about the country and its people. During my years as an expat I have come to realize though that what is said in message boards must be taken with a grain of salt; not every generalization about a culture should be applied to every individual, of course. But after moving to Rapperswil, in the Lake Zurich region, I quickly learned that one particular characteristic I had read about regarding the Swiss people, was in fact very true.
Posts tagged Switzerland
When the Swiss Invite You to a “Panorama”
Having grown up on the flat Canadian prairies, not a clear and sunny day goes by that I don’t step out onto my balcony here in Switzerland, look over the bright blue Zurich Sea, toward the glowing green foothills of the Alps, and say out loud, “Wow!” Brandon, my fiance, often asks, “Will it ever get old?” My answer is always the same: “Not even close”. So when some new Swiss friends asked if they could take us up those hills for lunch at a traditional Swiss panorama restaurant, of course I was very excited.
It was an unseasonably hot Sunday in March. It was so warm I decided to wear my new sleeveless dress and some sparkly ballet flats. Brandon put on his Sunday best, a short sleeve collared shirt and dress shoes. We were picked up at 12:30 and as we departed, one friend, Sara, pointed to a lone tree atop a huge foothill and in her best English effort said, “You see this tree? This is where we are going.” I was bursting! After spending so much time staring up at those hills in awe, wondering what the world would look like from up there, I was finally going to find out. Her boyfriend Patrick, in a less successful attempt at English, mentioned that he had made the reservation for 2 pm. Hmmm, that’s strange, I thought, the drive couldn’t possibly take an hour and a half. Perhaps he just has the English numbers mixed up. We drove for a half hour, up through the forested winding roads, getting higher and higher. We stopped and parked at a restaurant. It was 1 pm, and I didn’t see the tree. We were told we would have to walk a little to get there. READ MORE »
Gambling and other sins
When I first moved to Nevada (the year shall remain vague) the Silver State still had pretty much of a gambling and quickie divorce monopoly – and a reputation as a rather sinful place. Today almost every US state has casinos and/or a lottery. Getting a divorce has become so easy these days, there’s really no need for a Reno or Las Vegas divorce. “Sin City” is now about as sinful as Disneyland.
Nevadans were once proud of their “sinful” status, but now about the only exclusive “sinful” thing Nevada has left is legal prostitution. Even that may be doomed if US Senator Harry Reid has his way (although one Nevada lawmaker has proposed a new tax on prostitution to help solve the state’s budget crisis). Of course the fact that prostitution is illegal in the other 49 states doesn’t mean there’s no prostitution there.
Yes, I DO have a Germany-related point here.
I recently wrote an article about casinos and gambling in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Among other things I learned in my research: Switzerland didn’t even have casinos until after 2000; while most European countries have gambling casinos, the real money (for the tax man) comes from lotteries. READ MORE »
A Hockey Wife in German-Speaking Europe
Most would imagine that being the partner of a professional athlete would be quite glamorous. Some imagine it as a life full of designer handbags, contract bonuses, nannies, and lots and lots of leisure time. But as the fiancée of a professional hockey player here in Europe, I have to tell you, my life looks quite different.
People back in Canada often ask me, “Wow, how did you end up in Germany? Was Brandon not quite good enough for the NHL?” The reality is, he was in the NHL, and their farm league, the AHL. But like so many players in the same position, being sent up and down between leagues, never knowing where you will live next week, or what your paycheck will look like at the end of the month, they are now figuring out that European hockey leagues have a lot to offer. The German Elite League, or the DEL, offers READ MORE »
Gesundheit!
Sitting at the pediatrician at the hour-and-forty-five minute mark with my kids to get a flu shot this past week I thought back to what my mom said a few months back. It was June and my family was in the midst of yet another move, this time across the great big pond from Zürich to Toronto doing a repatriating of sorts after 10 years abroad. I had called my mom, feeling ill from the onslaught of summer flu and telling her that the family doctor had come by the house earlier to see me after he had closed his practice as I was too weak to drive and my husband was not home. So the doctor came by, confirmed my suspicions, ordered me to rest (as much as possible), take some medicine and Tami-Flu. Did I mention he brought all of my medicine? Yes, he did. I did as told and was able to “recover” enough to fly two days later to Toronto for some house hunting with my husband. My mother’s words are still ringing in my ears: “Well, you can kiss that kind of service good-bye in Canada, I think.” Oh, how right she was. Just finding a pediatrician has taken me two months, as not every pediatrician is accepting new patients here in Oakville. READ MORE »
The downside of English as the universal language
Why is it that many Anglophones seriously consider going to Germany to work when they have zero German skills? A German would never for an instant think that he/she could go to Britain or the United States to work without knowing English well. So why would it be OK for English-speakers to live and work in Germany with minimal German skills?
Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it? After all, isn’t English the universal language? Don’t many global companies in Germany use English as their “official” language? Everyone in Germany speaks English, right? — Well, the answer is a definite jein (German for “maybe” or “yes and no”).
If you don’t know that English has become the de facto universal language (Weltsprache in German), what cave have you been living in? English dominates academia and the world of international business, especially in Europe. A 2008 survey found that 90 percent of European students study English at some stage of their education. (“Study” does not always mean “learn.” French and German are the most popular but distant runners-up.) A recent article in The Economist states that about 60 percent of young Europeans speak English “well” or “very well.” (Note that it does not say 60 percent of “all” Europeans, just those in the 15-24 range, and even that figure should be taken with a grain of salt, since it includes young native speakers of English.) Even in China, nearly 60 percent of primary school children now get English lessons!
The Economist article also mentions that READ MORE »
Teaching English in German-Speaking Europe
So you think you want to teach English in Germany (or Austria, Switzerland)… Well, you’re certainly not the first American (or Brit, etc.) to come up with that idea. The good news: There is a demand for qualified native speakers of English to teach the language in German-speaking countries. The bad news: The pay and working conditions are often poor. Do you know the questions you should be asking (and answering) before you accept a job teaching English in Germany?
November: The mourning month
All Souls Day and Mainz’s Newweling candles
Today, November 2, is All Souls Day (Allerseelen). In Germany, most of Europe, and all over the world where the western Christian church is dominant, this is a day devoted to remembering and praying for the “faithful departed.” Indeed, the Latin (Roman Catholic) name for this day is In Commemoratione Omnium Fidelium Defunctorum (“commemoration of all the faithful departed”).
As history (and two world wars) would have it, November in the western world has become a month for commemorating the dead — whether fallen in war or otherwise. Since the 14th century, the Roman Catholic church has dedicated the month of November to the dead, and in the United States, November 11 is Veterans Day, a time to remember and honor those who fought and died, originally in the Great War ended by the armistice that took effect at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, on November 11, 1918. (In fact, the date was known as Armistice Day prior to World War II.) This day, known as Remembrance Day or Poppy Day in some other Allied nations, is also a holiday in France and Belgium. READ MORE »
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