A Humorous Guide to Switzerland

Imagine a weather forecast for Switzerland that predicts it's gonna be cold. Very cold. Real freezing. So cold that eventually not only the small ponds and waters but even the big lakes in Switzerland will freeze over. I know, that would be hard to believe when all you get are mild winters? But remember, it hasn't always been this way. Switzerland has seen it's share of very cold winters not so long ago.  The 1962/1963 Seegfrörni in Zurich During the winter of 1962/1963 it was so cold in Switzerland that Lake Zurich froze over! In Swiss German this phenomenon is called ' Seegfrörni ' which simply means 'freezing over of a lake'. For a lake as big as Lake Zurich (about 88  km 2  large and 136m deep) that's pretty impressive. My mom was actually living in the Zurich area in those years and the frozen lake is one of the most vivid and fondest memories of her childhood.  Frozen Lake Zurich - Archive of Stadt Zürich Just imagine, instead of taking ...

Summer has arrived and the weather is warm enough to make Swiss people flock to the various rivers and lakes for a refreshing swim. Swimming in lakes and rivers is one of most popular (and definitely cheapest) pastimes here in Switzerland. Swiss swimmers can choose between ice cold mountain lakes, several bigger rivers, some creeks, and quite a number of large lakes (e.g. Lake Zurich, Lake Geneva, Lake Constance). Switzerland has no sea coast but in my opinion the lakes definitely make up for it. And fresh water is so much more refreshing than salt water! Swiss Paradise - daniel stricker  / pixelio.de Here in Switzerland, old and young swim in rivers and lakes. It's simply part of growing up and living here. There are also several public swimming events on Swiss lakes. The most famous is probably the crossing of Lake Zurich that takes place every year where hundreds of people swim together across the lake. This years event will take place on July 3rd 2019. So, if you are...

We have a saying that goes 'April, April, macht was er will' which basically means 'April, April, does how he pleases'. This popular saying pretty much summarizes the sudden changes in weather conditions in Switzerland that can take place in April . Indeed, April has had its moods also this year. It's the Easter weekend and most everyone hoped for good weather. These hopes were not unjustified since this spring has been amazingly sunny with record hours of sunshine in March. However, the Easter weekend had its own mind. Instead of sun and warmth we got rain, fog, clouds and SNOW. Snow covered rose - Sabine Ullmann  / pixelio.de The Ice Saints As a rule of thumb snow and frost in most parts of Switzerland are possible till the end of April or beginning of May. The so-called Ice Saints or Frost Saints ('Eisheiligen' in German) are five saints days in the middle of May that - according to popular belief and tradition - have an increased likelihood of...

Spring has finally arrived in Switzerland . The last few days have been warm and sunny and nature has quickly reacted to the change in weather. In spring time , the leaves on trees are springing and early flowers blooming. On a stroll around town I stumbled upon some of the most common Swiss spring flowers and captured them with my camera. Enjoy! "Primel" aka Primroses "Blaue Krokus" aka Blue Crocus "Gelbe Krokus" aka Yellow Crocus "Gänseblümchen" aka Daisy © 2012 IRENE WYRSCH "A HUMOROUS GUIDE TO SWITZERLAND" ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

The sled is waiting - tokamuwi  / pixelio.de Temperatures have been below zero for almost a week now and -5 C surprisingly feels quite warm.  If you don't consider the freezing temperatures, the weather has actually been quite good here in Switzerland. Most days have been dry and sunny with some light snow in between. This means, if you wrap yourself in warm clothes, cover head, hands and face, you can actually have some great fun outside. A Visit from Friends & a Day of Sledding When some friends from abroad came to visit me last week, I was worried they would suffer terribly from the cold. Surprisingly, they handled it quite well and so I decided to take them up on a Swiss mountain and go sledding with them. Since there is no sledding slope on Mount Pilatus  I took them up another mountain in central Switzerland: Mount Rigi. The Queen of the Mountains, as Rigi is also called, is 1797m high and a popular destination for tourists and locals and only abou...

November is almost here and fall is slowly but surely giving way to more wintery days. Clocks have been set on winter standard time and the leaves that are still on the trees are definitely more brown than colorful by now. The fog has arrived in Switzerland and it is foggy almost every morning. Sometimes the sun doesn't come out till noon if it does at all. Fog has been part of Swiss falls and winters for as long as I can remember. Especially in the flat part of Switzerland - an area that is also called ' Unterland ' which literally means 'Underland' - the fog is known to appear almost daily. Two Types of Fog There are basically two kinds of fog here in Switzerland: Regular fog , that "sits" on the ground and bothers you while driving because you can't see far anymore ' High fog'  or 'Hochnebel' in German. This fog is more a like a solid cloud sitting a few hundred meters above the ground, preventing the sun from shining in the ...