Expat Life: Things About Switzerland That Have Surprised Me

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few days ago marked 6 months that we’ve lived in Switzerland!  And while every day hasn’t been perfect, it has been a good time so far.  Living in another country has it’s fair share of ups and downs and there are several of moments of “culture shock,” of course. One thing that’s different than I expected this year has been the weather this winter.  Although it’s snowing today as I write this, the winter has been quite mild so far.  We’ve even had a few days up in the 60s, which is crazy! I admit, I expected it is be much colder with tons of snow all winter here.

I feel like when we moved here we given a ton of information about the cultural differences and what to expect, especially about the prices of everything! But, of course there’s no way to be 100% prepared and know how your day to day life will be different.  Even some of the things we were warned about still come as a shock (like the price of chicken!).  Here are a few things that stood out to me as being different than I expected!


1. Smoking. I really had no expectations going in about smoking, but I was nonetheless shocked at how many people smoke here! It seems way more common than in the United States.  It’s just odd to me, that as many people here are into hiking and being outdoors and eating bio food (organic) that so many people still do such an unhealthy habit as smoking cigarettes.

2. Graffiti. Graffiti here is all over the place and to me, it just looks dirty. In the US graffiti is often associated with gang activity (“tagging”) and similar, so to me it makes it look like you are in a “bad area” of town when you see it. But, I see it all over here, and it seems to be just commonplace.

3. Litter. Before we moved here we heard a lot about how clean it is in Switzerland. I read so many articles talking about how obsessively clean everything is, that you could eat off the sidewalk! I thought wow, it must be really super clean for people to write that. In Zurich though, not so much. I see litter all the time, cigarette butts, food wrappers and even dog poo! Now of course it’s not to the level of say, Philadelphia litter, but still, it is present and this was totally unexpected to me!

4. Expensive. This one really wasn’t unexpected, but it still comes as a shock whenever I go to pay for something. Certain things are especially more expensive here such as meat, clothes, rent and certain other groceries.  Going out to eat can be pricey too, as there aren’t many cheaper options for restaurants, and soda or water can cost as much as a beer. Like I said, this wasn’t unexpected but it’s still a surprise when you see the price tags for things you expect to be a certain (much cheaper) price! On the other hand, there are a few things that are definitely cheaper such as certain kinds of cheese, and in season fruits!

5. No checkbooks. Bank accounts and the system for paying bills is much different here and they do not use or know what checks are! We had a bit of an issue trying to get money from our US account to pay our rental deposit as the bank was super confused with what to do with our American check and how to deal with it. You also pay bills differently, which no one really explains, but thankfully after I figured out what the red and orange slips are for, it’s quite easy to do!


6. Opening times. There are very specific opening times for many places that are way different than the US. For example, the grocery stores often close at 8pm, and there are basically no 24/7 shops. This is usually fine, except if you have an emergency and need medicine for your child at 10pm! A lot of places also close for lunch, so if you arrive during that time you can be prepared to wait outside until 1:30 or 2:00. Last, all the shopping is closed on Sunday, so everyone needs to get their shopping done on Saturday. I have learned that there are grocery shops in the airport and main train station that are open Sundays, but basically everything else is closed. Even gas stations are closed, although you can pay with your card at the pump on Sundays!

Of course, these are just my observations and opinions, your experiences may differ from mine and I’d love to hear about them in the comments!  Just because things are different, doesn’t necessarily make them bad, just different than I am used to!

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