A Humorous Guide to Switzerland

Switzerland is famous for its mountains, chocolate, watches and cheeses but have you ever wondered if there are any famous Swiss people? In sports Roger Federer is well known and loved all around the globe, Henry Dunant founded the Red Cross and had great impact on world health, Julius Maggi changed the kitchens of the world with his Maggi sauce, and Sepp Blatter was the (very controversial) head of FIFA. There are more Swiss people, e.g. scientists and scholars, who have or are well known for their achievements. However, I believe the most famous Swiss person has never actually lived but rather leads a fictional life in many books and television series all over the world: Heidi . The Creation of Heidi Heidi was created by Swiss author Johanna Spyri  and two books covering her adventures and life in Switzerland were first published in 1880 . As a young orphan Heidi is sent to live with her grandfather, the Alp-Öhi, who after some initial resentment takes to the girl and gr...

Yesterday, I stumbled upon a youtube video of two Swiss comedians the 'Schmirinkis'. Even though they ended their career as comedians, Stefan Schmidlin and Rene Rindlisbacher are still two of the most popular comedians in Switzerland. Whereas Schmidlin has pulled back from the public, Rindlisbacher was hosting a game show on Swiss television called "The Million Trap" (Die Millionenfalle) for a while. If you're not from Switzerland, chances are you have never heard of the Schmirinskis. Much like the Swiss tv series 'Fascht e Familie ', they were and are popular almost exclusively in Switzerland and its Swiss German speaking audiences. Who were the Schmirinkis? The name "Schmirinskis" is made up of the first few letters of the two comedian's last names  Schmi dlin and  Rin dlisbacher.  Schmirisnkis are famous for getting into staged fights while performing. The fight usually starts when they start discussing which of them the better com...

The US and Britain have successfully produced and aired several sitcoms and soap operas such as Friends, Desperate Housewives or Seinfeld. Compared to the huge success of those shows, the Swiss equivalent " Fascht e Familie " is practically unknown outside Switzerland. Nevertheless, it is dearly loved by many Swiss - including myself! And it did run for many years on Swiss television - a feat many newer programs have failed to complete. Cast of 'Fascht e Familie' "Fascht e Familie" means 'Almost a Family' and the series shows episodes of the lives of four very different roommates who rent a room in Tante Martha's house. It is not clear in which Swiss city the characters live but my guess would be Zurich. The main characters are the following: the waiter Hans Meier who is also a passionate (but not very talented) actor the esoteric fanatic Tante Martha who owns the house everyone lives in the bank employee Vreni Hubacher who falls i...