Swiss-ness and Christmas - does it get much better than this?

It’s not often that I write about Switzerland, despite the fact that it has a strong influence in my life (thank you Thomas) and I have spent quite a lot of time there during the past three years. This small, successful, overpopulated, central European country has a lot to offer and fulfils, rather effortlessly,  the dreamy stereotype it tends to have. Swiss chocolate: to die for, Swiss watches: top notch, Swiss army knives: a practical essential, Swiss cheese: delicious, Swiss cows with bells on: easy to see why the cheese is amazing! Let’s not forget the Swiss Alps: WOW, and Kambly biscuits: if you don’t know what they are you’re missing out on something!

Pic: My fave Kambly biscuits

All of these luxuries of course come at a price and Switzerland also manages to live up to its reputation of being incredibly expensive. This, for the most part, is true. However, I’m lucky because having a Swiss boyfriend means I usually don’t need to spend much and he knows all the tricks and tips. We have visited many places in Switzerland together, including Bern of course, Geneva, Zurich, Zermatt (where the Toblerone mountain is in the Alps), Luzern, Murten, Thun, and many more! 

However, until very recently, I had never been to a cinema in Switzerland. This was mainly because it is ridiculously expensive, but we had an excuse to go this time as Tom’s friends invited us and we had free tickets! It was a silly, easy-to-watch movie that I’m glad we didn’t pay for! Nevertheless, it was interesting for me because I found it so strange that in a standard 90 minute movie, they have a break in the middle. Perhaps it’s a good idea during longer movies, like Titanic or Lord of the Rings, but I don’t really find it necessary during a 90 minute movie. It is just convenient for those with weak bladders, hunger or a need to smoke.

Recently, I spent a long weekend in Bern visiting Tom, his family and friends, and playing the tour guide to a friend from Finland, currently living in Zurich as an au pair. Bern is not a typical capital city, mainly because it doesn’t display much of the busy hustle and bustle of big city life. Rather, it oozes charm from the UNESCO World Heritage old town and against the backdrop of the Alps, on a clear day, it sets a stunning scene. Switzerland may seem annoyingly perfect, and in many ways it is, but it doesn’t exist without its own problems, for example, its issues with drugs and overpopulation.

Nevertheless, we spent a lovely Sunday together showing Emmi around the beautiful Bern: We climbed the steps of the highest bell tower in Switzerland, the Münster-Turm, and admired the view; we observed the bears (the bear being the symbol of Bern) in the bear pit, one of which is named Finn because he was born in Helsinki; we caught a special light show at the Government plaza, Bundesplatz, that impressively told a story on the front of the old building; and finally, after a Swiss-filled day, we enjoyed something different in an Ethiopian restaurant, where we simply ate with our hands from a shared basket of our orders, full of flavour and spicy hotness. 

I have spotted a little Swiss-ness here in Vienna, especially at the Christmas markets. The cheese stalls have an area dedicated to Swiss cheese, typically Emmental (yes, that’s Swiss, don’t trust Lidl.) It’s great when they also offer samples and I can have a taste of Switzerland in Austria. It’s a pity they don’t do the same with chocolate.

There is a great variety of Christmas markets here in Vienna, from huge, tourist-filled ones; to cute, cosy, wee Christmas markets. So far, I have been to a mixture of both at the town hall, the Rathaus; an old, traditional, festive market at Freyung; a student-filled market at the university campus that was previously a hospital, the Altes AKH; and in the local Weihnachtsmarkt in my district, set in the lovely surroundings of a park with ponds and fountains, the Türkenschantzpark. There are countless Christmas markets here and I would still like to see a few more of the main ones at Karlsplatz, Spittelberg and Schönbrunn. I’m glad there are still a few weeks to conquer them! Each of them have something unique to offer and there are many varieties of Punsch on offer (a rum-based punch with different flavours to choose from, such as orange, Bailey’s or raspberry), as well as Glühwein, which is a kind of mulled wine.

Such festive markets create a wonderful atmosphere where I feel Christmas can really be enjoyed with people and laughter. Of course, the real Christmas joy is evident in very excitable children and the kids at the school where I’m working provide no exception. As Advent approaches, everything is almost revolving around Christmas and the Weihnachtsfeier evenings when they will perform in front of their parents. I’m involved in several of these as well, as the teachers are eager for the children to recite a poem or sing a song in English. I’m also quite excited to see how they turn out.