A Humorous Guide to Switzerland

Don't tell me you haven't noticed. If you're anywhere in or near Switzerland you must have seen at least one ad or commercial for Zalando. Advertisements for Zalando shoes or clothes have been flooding newspapers, television and the internet. A very funny one is the Zalando game show commercial . So what's the big deal? Is Zalando really better or cheaper than other online stores? I asked myself exactly this question when I embarked on my Zalando-testing journey. a selection of Zalando dresses Why I wanted to shop at Zalando Since I've been trying to buy a cute and colorful summer dress without success, I decided to try online clothes shopping for a change. I've ordered stuff online before but mostly books or household items. To order clothes online was gonna be a totally new experience. Little did I know that it can be just as tiring as going shopping in the real world. Where I went online clothes shopping To make things a bit more interestin...

I've been writing about the four official languages of Switzerland , especially Swiss German , quite a bit. It is high time that I introduce the least known language of Switzerland: Rumantsch (ling. "Romansh"). "I speak Rumantsch" (Engadiner Post) Rumantsch is spoken mainly in the Swiss canton of Grisons which is located on the south-eastern side of Switzerland next to Italy and Austria. According to a census taken in 1990, roughly 65'000 people were speaking Rumantsch regularly, of which 40'000 used Rumantsch as their main language of communication. In in 2000 this number shrunk to only 35'000 people. Not much if you consider the 7 million inhabitants of Switzerland.  Despite the small number of native speakers, have the mountainous and secluded areas of Grisons produced several different dialects of Rumantsch: Sursilvan Sutsilvan Surmiran Puter Vallader In the 70ies and 80ies Swiss linguist Heinrich Schmid developed a written...

Are you an expat in Switzerland? Or are you planning to move to Switzerland? If so then make sure to check out expat.com , a web portal for expats by expats. What is expat.com? Expat blog was started in 2005 (as expat-blog.com) and aims to help people living abroad and those  planning and wishing to move abroad, wherever they are from or would like to go. Members share their expat experiences, exchange information and everything else related to expatriation. Compared to other expat web portals, Expat blog is very active and currently has over 400'000 members from over 200 countries (including yours truly). How to use expat.com The platform centers around local communities (usually a country or a region) with discussion forums, guides, photo albums, business directories and classifieds. Of course, an extensive directory of expat blogs is available for visitors and members. Recently, two new features have been added to the Switzerland section: Jobs and Housing secti...

Landsgemeinde Glarus (www.sf.tv) Switzerland is a direct democracy . It is probably one of the best examples of direct democracies all over the world. On the ground, this means the Swiss people can vote directly on any new law rather than having elected representatives vote for them. It also means that in addition to elections which take place every other year (federal and cantonal), the Swiss vote about 3 or 4 times a year on very diverse issues. That's a lot of voting! Direct Democracy par excelence In no other place is this direct democracy more visible than in the public voting of the two Swiss cantons Appenzell Innerrhoden and Glarus . Instead of voting per letter or in polling booths like the rest of Switzerland, these cantons rely on the Landsgemeinde to settle matters. What is the Landsgemeinde? Literally 'Landsgemeinde' means " community of a canton " which is also a good graphic description of what is happening. All inhabitants of a canton who...

Alright. Fondue doesn't seem to be a warm weather dish. In winter it's nice and cozy to have the pot of cheese on your table heating up the room and filling everything with the smell of cheese. However, eating hot sticky cheese on bread may not seem very appealing if its hot outside. At least, that's what you probably think. Why Fondue also works in the Summer There is a small and friendly restaurant in Zurich that might be able to convince you otherwise. The Chäsalp is located on a hill outside of Zurich and its guests sit outside at large wooden tables with a great view of the surrounding hills (and the Mazoala hall of Zurich Zoo amongst other things). Pillows and woolen blankets assure comfort in this rustic Swiss atmosphere. With cowbells sounding in the background one generally has the impression of being near a cottage somewhere in the Alps rather than being 15 minutes outside of Zurich. Chäasalp outside tables 20 Types of Fondue in one Place In consi...

dictionary - Jakub Sproski  / pixelio.de After writing a post about the basics of Swiss German a few months ago, I started realizing more and more how hard it must be for someone moving to Switzerland to pick up the local language. The few words I provided are hardly enough to get an expat or a tourist through a day in Switzerland. When I stumbled upon the twitter account of  @swiss_german , who introduces a new Swiss German word every day, the idea of a Swiss German online dictionary started to develop. A first version of more than 400 Swiss German words and expressions is online now and can be used for learning, consulting and information. I would appreciate feedback, suggestions for new words or any comment on it. I will continue adding words and expressions in Swiss German to the dictionary as possible. Have a look now:  Swiss German Dictionary If you are looking for other free or partly free online resources for learning Swiss German I recommend you have...

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...