A Humorous Guide to Switzerland

Skyline of Berne - mafa / pixelio.de A friend visiting Switzerland once joked that in Switzerland all cities are on a lake or river and have their medieval castle nearby. While that is certainly not true for ALL cities here, it is true for many. Considering that many of the Swiss cities have their origins in medieval times it is easily understood why they were built near the water: it offered water for drinking  and transportation . After all, goods needed to be transported and there were nor railways, trucks or airplanes to ship them around. Plus, there are simply a lot of rivers and lakes all over Switzerland which makes the chances of settling near one of them pretty high. Like Zurich , Geneva and Basel , the capital city of Switzerland Berne also lies on the shores of a river, in this case the Aare river. It not only houses the building of the Swiss parliament and government but also features a lovely old city that invites people for a stroll. There is also a good number of mu...

Switzerland's national holiday the 1st of August is approaching soon and the weather forecast couldn't be better! This year I'll probably be celebrating on the beautiful shores of Lake Neuchatel and watching the fireworks from Estavayer-le-lac, enjoying the Estivale festival and some barbecued meat and cold beer. Where to go and what to do on 1st of August in Switzerland Almost every larger town or village in Switzerland organizes some event on 1st of August - usually a traditional 1st of August brunch , a concert (mostly with traditional Swiss music) and of course the obligatory firework . I investigated and found other (possibly more interesting and exciting ways) to spend 1st of August. Zurich region: spend 1st of August on a boat on Lake Zurich  either enjoying a good brunch or an evening meal enjoy a BBQ or a fine dinner at the Uto Kulm restaurant on Üetliberg swim in Lake Zurich and have a cool beer afterwards Basel region: visit the 1st of Augus...