A clash of cultures

I love this discussion! Lived in Zurich for 3 years. Am British, so fairly liberal, tolerant and open. Swiss, sadly, are not. Therefore clash of cultures. This is the major problem in Shitzerland. It isn't the surface chocolate box nice and clean as portrayed externally. And, of course, you never know this until you live here for over a year.

Negatives: cold, uncaring people (especially in the apartments); ridiculous, archaic rules on things like shared washrooms; stupid customs in/out to Austria; police state; disguised parking attendant pretending to be housewife; expectations of young people to be paid stupid amounts of money, even with lack of education; patronising Post office workers; horrid loud and proud SVA advertisements; intolerance for the positives of what non-Swiss people bring; and general double-standards (because when you are not looking, they do break their precious rules!).

You maybe a Swissie reading this - I'm sorry, this is how people perceive your culture. And indeed, you would be the poor man of Europe without the support of foreign labour since the Italians and Portuguese in the '50s. And no, you have not brought anything new into the world apart from inventing the zipper - you just perfect what was already invented. I also understand that Swiss cannot live in any other country since they are unable to be flexible in their mentality. Oh yes, it's nice to live where the streets are clean, seemingly no crime, all in order - but look at the cost to the human-side of the people. They travel but always come back to live in anality.

On the other side, I fear for the UK where it's over-tolerance has increased loss of respect for authority. Yet do I want Britain to become a police state like Switzerland and lose its personality and character? An extreme to mine?

It's not the money here (yet this buys some people) nor the elusive permits (you must come from a really horrid town to be so desperate to want to stay since you will eventually have to marry to stay here forever!) It is just hard on an intrinsic emotional level to live here with daily unfriendliness and a feeling that even if you are white, middle-class, educated, self-sufficient, worldly-wise, super clean and respectable, open and a good ambassador for your country, a Swissie will generally look down on you like a piece of shit.

Still, there is revolution in the air! The last invasion is a quiet one. Slowly stealing their way in, for cheaper pay yet with all the ticks in the right boxes. Swissies! Beware the Germans!!! This is where you need to be careful - it's not non-German speakers at all! Ha!! The irony of the Swiss uber-Deutsch!!

Wendy 16 Aug 2008, 12:35 - Report