A Humorous Guide to Switzerland

Another year is over and Christmas is just around the corner. The streets and stores are filled with lights and glittering decorations. It's the time of the year you  drink hot wine with spices  and eat home made cookies.  In Switzerland another Christmas tradition  will be starting soon, the tradition of  Christmas calendars . Advent is the season of waiting and preparation  before the actual Christmas on December 25th. As in many parts of Europe, people in Switzerland enjoy the tradition of counting the days until Christmas eve. This is usually done with an Advent Calendar, also called a  Christmas Calendar,  which counts the 24 days from December 1st o 24th or an Advent Wreath  that counts the last four Sundays before Christmas.  What are Swiss Christmas Calendars?  In Switzerland, Christmas calendars are used during the Christmas season starting from December 1st until December 24th. It's the children who enjoy them most althou...

"O du fröhliche, o du selige Gnadenbringende Weihnachtszeit!  Welt ging verloren  Christ ist geboren  Freue, freue dich, o Christenheit!" As I'm listening to this famous German Christmas Carol  which talks of Christ's birth, I remember the Christmasses of my childhood. Beautifully decorated houses with advent wreaths and Christmas trees and the smell of Christmas cookies baking in the oven. If we were lucky - and many times we were! - it would snow on the days leading up to Christmas and we could build snowmen and use our sleds to slide down the local sledding hill.  Another thing that was a constant companion of those Christmas days were the different advent calendars that we had in our home. My mother hung up a beautiful nativity scene where the stars were put up one by one as the days went by. 23 stars and one special one in the form of a shooting star. We also had a classic calendar with 24 numbered small bags with treats inside. And, of course, we all had...

For most people the end of November marks the starting point of their Christmas shopping and December is when they finish buying their Christmas presents. These days gifts can be bought already wrapped or you can have them wrapped in the store for a little extra cash. If you're like me, you'll know that big part of the joy of giving comes with carefully wrapping the presents and writing just the right words in the little card attached to them.  Many stores here in Switzerland, too, have a gift wrapping service and while it may be very convenient to buy your gift ready and wrapped, so to speak, I think that is rather boring. I mean, if you found an amazing gift for your husband or best friend why would you want to waste it with average wrapping? Exactly! Especially, if your gift has vintage character or is home made I would advise you to give it the wrapping it deserves! However, it turns out I can't always find wrapping paper that is to my liking. I want to thank my f...

It's been a beautiful fall this year so far with lots of sun and colours. Now however, most leaves have fallen from the trees and the days are getting even shorter and quite a bit colder. It's once more the season of cozy evenings by the fire or a cup of hot punch on the ice skating rink. It's not quite Christmas yet but we're starting to feel the need for pretty lights and warmth in those first wintery days. A Surprising Winter Tradition Traditionally, these first days of winter mark the beginning of the Christmas season in Switzerland . While it's too early still to start opening your Christmas Calendar  or light the candles on your Advent Wreath , you can definitely start getting them ready and you probably can also sign up for a place in your local Advent Windows  activity already. Starting with Christmas shopping might be a good idea as well. So, while this pre-Christmas season is mainly marked with preparations for the 'real thing', it is also the tim...

At the moment, most of the world's population is under obligations to stay home as much as possible. Some countries (try to) enforce very strict rules that include complete lockdown on certain days and hours (e.g. Peru, Italy) - other countries don't want to give up on the last bit of freedom for their citizens and still allow people to go for a walk or run if they adhere to social distancing rules (e.g. Switzerland).  Now, while the second approach seems to be the more humane and probably one that can be endured better for a long period of time - we're speaking of months now - there are countries that argue they cannot go this path. One, their health systems would be overwhelmed and two, their cities are extremely crowded and population generally don't adhere to rules so social distancing in practice wouldn't be applied thoroughly enough. Peru is one of those countries with strict rules, lots of detentions for breaking them and is only just now entering th...

fruit attracts fruit flies Who doesn't know them, the small but annoying fruit flies that seem to appear out of nowhere and take over your fruit plate?  Thanks to their ability to track down fermenting fruit and their super fast life cycle , they multiply quickly once they found your fruit supply. The best way to get rid of these buggers would be to store all fruit (and vegetable) in the fridge but many people (including myself) think that fruit loses some of it's flavor when you keep it refrigerated. Another popular answer to the fruit fly problem are vinegar traps. A combination of water, vinegar and dishwasher soap is put in a small bowl and the fruit flies are supposed to land in there and drown. This has never really worked for me so I was looking for another way to get rid of fruit flies. Fruit Fly Trap that works! Building a Working Fruit Fly Trap I've always thought it strange that fruit flies would prefer vinegar over fruit (which they didn't!) ...

It finally arrived! When the Big Swiss Coloring Book came out last year I knew I wanted to have it! Drawing has always been a great way for me to relax and focus on something entirely different for a while but lately I haven't had the time to start a project of my own (except for drawing animals for my son). A coloring book seemed like a great alternative, especially a coloring book full of drawings from my home country Switzerland that after all I do miss sometimes here in Peru. When my mother booked flight tickets to come visit here, I just had to add this book to her shopping list and so it arrived here in Cocachimba , in the north of Peru, last week. The variety of drawings in it is even greater than what I've thought. Despite not having much free time these days I reserved some time to start coloring - just to see how it goes. I started with the very first picture, the hot air balloons . Other Swiss inspired drawings are also available on the web (e.g....

Pocket Böögg - www.pocket-böögg.ch This coming weekend Zurich will celebrate Sechseläuten , the annual spring festival.  The highlight of the festivities comes at the very end: a giant snowman called "Böögg" is burnt on a stake in the very center of the city. The longer it takes for the Bööggs head to explode (it's got large firecrackers in there), the colder and wetter the summer will be. For those who would like some Sechseläuten atmosphere at home as well, there is now the Pocket Böögg . It is a small version of the real Böögg or better: a do-it-yourself Böögg since it arrives unassembled in a box. There are two available sizes: original (34cm) and mini (21cm). Both Pocket Böögg sets include firecrackers for the Bööggs head (so it'll actually explode with a bang) and a small stake. The idea of a miniature Böögg is interesting. What makes this project even better is the fact that all Pocket Böögg are produced by mentally handicapped people in the workshops ...

The shortest day of the year is approaching fast. This not only means that the days are getting shorter and the nights longer but - at least in the northern hemisphere - the temperatures are dropping quickly. Thus, it's nice to stay inside in the evenings and enjoy a cup of hot tea possibly accompanied by a nice warm fire in your fireplace or oven. It's also a season where people enjoy lighting a few candles and enjoy their warm shine. They simply make your home more cozy!  Wax Paper Lanterns to Light your Home Usually, candles are put on a candleholder or in a glass - for decoration and for safety! Another option to light your home with a subtle light are little wax paper lanterns . Of course, you can also buy a lantern made from glass and metal that looks just perfect but - and that is the better option in my opinion - you can also make a simple lantern yourself.   The main thing with lanterns is that they need to be made from heat-resistant material . For...

In earlier posts, I've already introduced the Adventskranz (Advent Wreath) and the Adventskalender (Advent or Christmas Calendar) - two Swiss Christmas traditions that accompany us through advent by counting the days or weeks that are left until Christmas eve. Another Swiss Christmas Tradition Now, there is a third tradition during the Christmas season which includes the counting of the 24 first days of December: the Adventsfenster (Advent Windows). In contrary to the Advent Wreath and the Christmas Calendar which are family traditions and take place at home, this tradition takes place outside and is more of a communal tradition. Adventsfenster -  Babajezas Wundertüte Advent Windows - What are they? The tradition of  Adventsfenster is common mainly in smaller towns and villages of Switzerland, with maybe a few city neighbourhoods joining in. The idea is that all over the village or neighbourhood there are 24 people - mostly families and schools but also coup...

The Christmas season is upon us and Christmas lights light up the streets of towns and cities in Switzerland during the long and dark nights of early winter. Soon, most kids (and many adults) in Switzerland will start counting the days until Christmas with their Christmas calendars . The Adventskranz Another way Swiss people count the days to December 24th and the big celebration is the Adventskranz ( advent wreath ). An Adventskranz is usually a decorated circular wreath made of fir branches with four large candles fastened on it. As opposed to Christmas calendars that start counting the days until Christmas on December 1st, advent wreaths count the last four weeks before Christmas eve. The first candle is lit on the Sunday four weeks before Christmas eve and then every week an additional candle is lit. You can buy an Adventskranz at most supermarkets in Switzerland. However, I find it much more exciting to create your very own. My mom used to buy a styrofoam ring to create a wr...

As in most countries of the world, birthdays are important social events in Switzerland. Usually, there is a big or small get-together where the birthday boy or girl (or man or woman) is celebrated and receives gifts. Depending on the creativity of your friends and family birthday gifts can range from awesome and useful to strange but nice to definitely-heading-straight-to-the-trash-can. But what would birthday gifts be without a birthday card? A friend has a birthday coming up and I already have a great gift ready. The only thing missing is a matching birthday card . I browsed through the cards they sell at the major retail stores like Migros , Coop and Manor. Nothing exciting to be found there. True, there are some nice cards and some are even classy but they all lacked a personal note. Preprinted birthday wishes are not exactly what I had in mind. Thus, I decided to dust off my crafting skills and make a nice birthday card myself. Armed with paper, scissors, pencils, glu...

Several of my friends have recently bought an apartment or are currently renovating their house. As we talk about furniture, appliances and other equipment for the interior, I start wondering what I would put into my house if I ever own one. Large windows that let in a lot of light are definitely a must. A modern kitchen, preferably with a cooking island, would be nice. And the bathroom. Well, I always thought I wanted a jacuzzi kind of bath tub and some modern shower. I changed my mind. At work I received the task of looking through tons of websites for research purposes and that's what made me stumble upon this jewel carpentry somewhere between Bern and Geneva. What makes them special is that they make bathroom furniture from wood . Yes, bath tubs, sinks, shelves - it's all made from quality wood. And look at the shape of these things: round or oval bath tubs and rectangular sinks with hidden drains. Beautiful! I imagine these wooden bath tubs could be beautiful fo...