A Humorous Guide to Switzerland

Airplane - H.D.Volz  / pixelio.de The summer months are approaching quickly and with them coming closer Swiss citizens are getting ready for their yearly summer vacation. Many Swiss families make use of the relatively long summer school break to visit a sunnier and warmer country like Italy, Greece or Spain. However, quite a few Swiss people actually prefer to stay at home during their vacation or to travel and hike somewhere in Switzerland . Swiss German Vocabulary for Travelers Whatever your preferences for this summer, I thought you might wanted to polish your travel vocabulary in Swiss German. This (non conclusive) list of travel terms in Swiss German which I like to call Swiss German Travel Dictionary will provide you with a good start into this venture. If you believe some words or expressions are missing let me know so I can add them! Enjoy! Swiss German Travel Dictionary aacho (to arrive) Aakunft (arrival) abflüge (to takeoff) Abflug (takeoff) Abreise (depar...

No Thieves in Switzerland - Dieter Schütz  / pixelio.de Switzerland recently has had the honors to be included in the top 10 of world's safest travel destinations by Travelers Digest (the site has gone inactive in 2015) . Although it is definitely nice living in a safe country where street crime is almost non-existent, I was a bit bummed that Switzerland didn't make any of the more attractive top 10 lists. I mean who wouldn't want his country to feature one of the Top 10 Adventures for Thrill Seekers Top 10 Best Airports of the world Top 10 Best Cities to Live In Top 10 Best City Skylines Top 10 Best Places to Watch Sunsets Top 10 Best Wildlife Viewing Top 10 Countries with the Most Beautiful Women The alps, great paragliding locations, bobsledding, snowboarding or river rafting in Switzerland are not considered thrilling enough I guess. I would claim though that Zurich Airport is one of the nicest and most organized airports in Europe. It's tough to...

Its been a bit of a cloudy and rainy weekend. Not exactly the weather to go outside and take a trip somewhere. Instead, I went on a trip through my collection of pictures and discovered this beautiful photo of the Rheinfall (the Rhine Falls). Rhine Falls The biggest waterfall in Europe is very impressive and definitely worth a visit if you are in the area! It is part of the Rhine river and is located between the Swiss cantons of Zurich and Schaffhausen. They are 150m wide and 23 high  but the size isn't the most impressive part of it all. What gives the Rhine Falls an aura of grandeur is the sheer amount of water falling down over the rocks: about 250 m3/s in winter and more than 600m3/s in the summer months with peaks almost double that. In the middle of the falls there is the now iconic rock of the Rhine Falls. It seems to withstand the masses of water rushing by its side without a problem. You can get there by boat and climb up the steep stairs to the top. It's a...

Swiss Tilting Train Switzerland is known for its well-developed and very punctual system of public transportation . I must admit that I got so used to its punctuality that a delay of 5 minutes is irritating to me . I am sure that in other countries a 5 minute delay would be considered leaving on time.  However, I don't want to talk about time tables today but about a special kind of train the SBB (Swiss federal railway company) is using on some of its longer routes: the Tilting Train . I remember when I first rode the tilting train about 10 years ago. Everyone kept telling me that the tilting will make me sick (which I'm glad to tell you it didn't) but that overall it was quite a neat train - also because it was brand new. I was heading to the French part of Switzerland with a friend for a weekend and after the first tilts on the train we got used to it and the excitement was over. Actually, we found that the tilting was quite enjoyable. Last weekend I rode the ...

Of all places and mountains in Switzerland, Mount Pilatus is one of my favorites. Pilatus is located conveniently in the center of Switzerland, about an hour's drive from Zurich, right at the foot of the Central Swiss Alps. There are hiking trails, restaurants and lots of other activities on the mountain. The best about it all is that from the top of the mountain you have a great view of the Alps and Lake Lucern. In order to get up to the top you officially have two options: 1) Take a cable car from Kriens to Frakmüntegg and then up to the summit of Pilatus 2) Take worlds steepest cog rail train from Alpnachstad straight up to the summit Although these two options are quite interesting and certainly enjoyable, I recommend you visit Mount Pilatus off the beaten path and take a bit more adventurous way. Not to mention that the hidden or alternative way up Mount Pilatus is also quite a bit cheaper. The alternative Way up Mount Pilatus If you are up for the challenge and...