switzerland - just my 2 cents

Hi guys! I’ve now lived a big chunk of my life here in Switzerland, close to the lake of Zurich. I came here in 1977 from GB. It can certainly be a very lonely life living here. As discussed earlier in this forum, I’d say it really depends on your choice and how far you’re prepared to accept the swiss mentality or culture. If you are new here as a foreigner you will definitely encounter a huge language barrier. If you speak german you may have it easier with the language itself but it is not easy to understand and speak the dialect, like swiss-german which would make life a hell of a lot easier. To learn swiss-german takes time. Some learn it quicker and some never will. It took me some 6 years before I really started to speak it without being shy. That was when I changed jobs, when I told myself that by hook or by crook I’d speak swiss-german in the new company.

Making friends in Switzerland, well, to some extent is true that your chances are not as good as in Spain or Venezuela but do you speak spanish? In France, you’re better of speaking french. Having said that, I agree that swiss-german is the most unsual language in europe. After living here for over 30 years, I’ve only a few but really good friends and they’re people whom I’ve known, who also speak english, since I came here to live.

Feel free to drop me a line or if you’ve any questions, I may be able to answer them.

cheers!

[email removed]

Colin 29 Dec 2008, 12:52 - Report