Amusing Things About Switzerland: Part I

Small things please small minds. That's the saying. But when you arrive somewhere you've never been before, it is all of these small differences that you notice and either find interesting or extremely frustrating. Here is my list after my first two weeks in Switzerland:

1. Plug Outlets.

Switzerland has their own style of plug outlet. Three prongs, all the same size, with the middle one (if there is a middle one) offset. Although I knew this before from some research, I still couldn't find an adapter that accepted grounded NA plugs and converted to grounded CH plugs. Tip: Don't listen to anyone in airport shops about which one to buy. I didn't and it saved me $30.

The coolest thing about this type of plug is the arrangement of sockets for a multiple wall socket:


I think it looks very cool and makes so much spatial sense (as opposed to NA sockets). Also, they are usually recessed into the wall, so any adpaters don't work anyway.

2. Light Switches

I use the word switch loosely, because they aren't switches at all, but buttons that you push on and off. They work rather effortlessly and if the light is on you know you have to push the button to turn it off. I'm not sure which has more moving parts, but I thought the buttons were pretty cool.


3. Medians/Cross-Walk Signals/Drivers/Public Transit

I couldn't think of a category to encompass these, but they are all related. You never have to cross an entire busy/main street at once. They use medians extremely well here. I still haven't a clue how the traffic patterns are set (Few if any intersections are only 4 ways and there are lots of traffic circles). The standard walk, don't walk signage has been replaced with pedestrian traffic lights, three men, a red, a yellow and a green. They flash the yellow just prior to both the red and the green. The drivers stop for you at every single crosswalk, even if it means braking extremely hard. Amazing. Public transit here is awesome. I'm sure this is similar to what it is like in all of Europe, but the sheer density of routes (including: buses, tolleys, trams, and trains) is austounding. And, they are always on time, to the minute. That, might just be Switzerland.

4. Scooters

Apparently the fad isn't over, or perhaps has just begun here. I see them everywhere. From younger kids to businessmen. Perhaps it is the price of bikes, but for me, once I tried to scooter from our Paul Anka/Uplands place to the O-Train, my scooter experiences were finished.

5. Proximity

Of everything! It's totally different than home. Here I can be in Germany in 30 minutes, Italy in 2 hours and France in 3. Crazy! I've only made it to Germany so far (went to the Black Forest - Schwarzweld, remember the w's are pronouced as v's!, which didn't really live up to expectations) and I have already found that everything is cheaper outside of Switzerland.

I'm sure this isn't exhaustive, but I'll try to come up with more items as time passes.