SWISS CULTURE SHOCK I A Franco American’s first reactions in Switzerland!
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- Опубліковано 21 тра 2022
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Salut! This weeks video is a little different because we aren’t just comparing French vs American Culture shocks, but comparing culture shocks with Switzerland too! I got to visit Switzerland for the first time and it was so fun to have some new culture shock experiences as a foreigner in another country. I had really no expectations when visiting Switzerland about Swiss culture, Swiss lifestyle, Swiss society nothing. We were visiting family so I was just super excited to see them. So it made my reactions to things in Switzerland really spontaneous. So I hope you guys life this weeks film, a little version of France vs USA vs Switzerland vs Paris :) Enjoy!
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Check out some of my other culture shock videos!
USA Culture Shocks: • USA CULTURE SHOCKS | W...
The French Do It Better: • REVERSE CULTURE SHOCKS...
French Culture Shocks: • FRENCH CULTURE SHOCKS ...
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✌ Salut! Can't wait to hear from some of you Swiss experts what the big culture differences are for you? I still can't get over the rule following! It was soooo impressive compared to "the rules" in France :)
Switzerland is so much more focused on "good quality standards" than France. I could not say for kids, but my sister lives there, and I noticed everything is very organized and convenient for transports and housing. I feel that they value having a good quality of life.
americans life to work we work to life little but huge difference
I lived in Switzerland, Geneva a total of nine years and there are so many good things to say about the country. The food, the produce even in grocery stores was superior to the finest health food stores in the U.S. Farmers markets nearly every day of the week. My friends were mostly expats and what an amazing group of people! The Swiss friends I did meet were so generous and kind. Yes It takes time but it is worth it. When they would go away on vacation they would usually bring me something from the place they went to. That kind of thing.Just to take a train ride into the mountains did not cost that much 7 years ago but the trains are so nice and the scenery so breathtaking...it seemed like a tour but it was a regular train! they go nearly everywhere. So different from the DC area where I live now. It is like a 3rd world country. You would never think it was the nation's capital. The bus stations and metro stations are dismal and dirty. What a culture shock. There are plenty of playgrounds, I will say that. The Swiss value children very much. I raised a child there so i know from experience! What is a public child care center is like a private one . Same with the swimming pool centers!
I studied for two years Anthroposophical Studies in English at the Goetheanum, Dornach, Switzerland (outside Basel). As a Californian, I was amazed at the Swiss' elevated lifestyle, emphasis on family, and appreciation of nature. My good fortune!
Emphasis on family is so nice! What a great experience to study there!
The reason why there are almost no elevators in France is very simple : the buildings were built a long time ago and they weren't originally designed to accomodate an alevator. Same for the parisian subway, whose oldest stations were built in the 19's century. Adding elevators to theses old buildings would cost a fortune, but if you visit newest métros, like the one in Lille, you will of course see lifts in each station.
I totally understand that it costs a lot of money to install elevators in old buildings and so you won't have them everywhere. There are so many apartment buildings for example in Paris that just can't accomodate elevators. But I really think that when we talk about public transportation, it should be accessible to all. Meaning elevators everywhere and if it costs a fortune, at some point, it's the cost of modernizing and making something for the public, useable by all. But yeah to new metros like Lille with lifts. it's a lifesaver when you have a stroller!
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified I totally agree that accessibility must be a priority. And in fact it is as installing accessibility equipment is a legal obligation in France in every public building or transportation service for many years. Unfortunately, métro of Paris benefits from a exemption or postponed schedule due to technical. impossibility in many places. And I undeetand it's a real problem for parisians.
So what happens to people with disabilities? If you're in a wheelchair? Do they not exist in Paris?
@@pandainpearls They do exist of course. Alternative solutions have been developed, such as buses, which are accessible to the disabled. But it's actually less practical.
@@pandainpearls There are buses and tramways
As a Swiss, I never heard about someone getting a fine for a stroller on an escalator. I'm not even sure if you technically could get one and by whom. They probably would ask you not to do it and can send you from the premise if you don't comply.
Here in Switzerland it's not unusual for people to have a beer or a glass of wine at lunch
We also regularly have aperos in the office with wine and snacks
I was really excited for this topic, because I used to live in Switzerland :) but I lived in the French part, and I would say 100% everyone is very on time. But I also found making friends there easy, or at least being social was easy. But it is a bit trickier to have a longer lasting friendship. However, I still have 3 really good friends there, even though I haven't worked there in nearly a decade!
I'm an American living in Zurich. The rule following is REAL. No crossing the street when red, no recycling or loud activities (i.e. vacuuming and laundry, in some apartments) on Sundays, wait for people to exit transport before getting on, everything is timely (bus, tram, train) and if it's late like you said, they will give you a head's up. There is the notion that everything works and runs efficiently and safely because people follow the rules and it's up to each person as an individual to abide by the norms to keep society functioning.
Making friends is quite difficult, especially with the locals. It seems like people's lives are booked for weeks and months, and from what I have experienced, there isn't much time or room for spontaneity, like getting a casual drink after work. I have only expat friends, some who have lived in Zurich/Switzerland for years and they don't have Swiss friends. Of course this is a generalization, but they seem to keep to their own.
One of the biggest things that shocked me as an American was how safe it is here. I think this goes along with the strict adherence to rules. I feel safe hiking in the mountains alone, walking at night or taking the public transport at night, etc. I absolutely would never have done this in the US. It is normal and actually encouraged for children to walk or take public transport by themselves to and from school. They can play in the forest without supervision.
Hey, I hope you don’t mind me asking you this question,
Do you think the Swiss are less aggressive and less hateful than Germans and Austrians?
That’s interesting about the train delay notifications because one time I took the train in Switzerland, it was delayed. It got delayed while we were on it. There was no announcement or anything on the train. Eventually, I got tired of wondering why we weren’t moving after 10 minutes, so I looked at the app and learned that we were delayed for traffic. This was in Geneva though, so I’m thinking Zurich is probably better with their metros than the CFF is.
Love hearing your experience! The safety is a really interesting one to bring up. I was so surprised by all the bikes that weren't locked up when we were there. Apparently, people just don't steal stuff and you don't have to worry about your telephone every two seconds like paris. That's a huge difference for me!
@@folk2630 The Swiss mostly the german speaking ones are more aggressive and hateful. Speaking from experience.
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified I left my cellphone once on a park bench, and realized it 5 minutes later. My friend called my number and a lady picked up saying she was about to turn my phone in to the police so that it could be retrieved. In the US, it would have been nabbed immediately!
I was told by a US friend who went to Switzerland for work for almost a year that everyone there makes their friends when they're growing up in school and they don't move far from wherever they grew up and just stay friends with the same people for their whole lives. They don't let new people break in.
Yea, i think that's spot on. It's hard to make friends with people who already have enough friends as it is. I think it's generally harder as an adult to make new friends than when we were younger or students.
Thats also the reason we do not change our homes often. And definitely not to an other area. You will be lonly for years
@@swissarmyknife7670 en même tant vivre en Suisse , vous naissez dans un canton vous y restez toute votre vie , il y a la barrière des langues : alémanique , romane etc.
I love our culture. Iam very happy u visited my country and u are always welcome back
My first experience in Switzerland was in 2000 when I was about 19, me and my mom were visiting my brother in Frankfurt, and then we traveled by car around southern Germany, drove straight through Switzerland with only one stop in like Bern or something, then went to visit family in Annecy. What I remembered was that there were soooooo many dang tunnels or half tunnels to protect the road from snow and avalanches, but you could never see anything of the landscape unless you got off of these tunneled highways. And I also remember how everyone followed the rules, I took off by myself for an hour or 2 in Bern, and since my German was almost, is almost, non-existent, I went to the local McDonalds to get lunch (tried ordering in German and they could tell I was struggling so they easily switched to English, lol. But to get to the Mcdo I had to cross a really large road and there was no light, just a crosswalk, and I saw a km away this sports car barreling down the road, and guess what, it actually stopped for me.............. I was soooo surprised, I wasn't expecting that.
Mis a part l'anglais ? "langue occasionnelle" ? l'allemands (Suisse germanique , le français et l'italien (Suisse romande) et le Romanche parlé par environs 60 000 suisses
Interesting about the tunnels! We didnt do any driving there so i didn't notice that at all. And totally agree that drivers seemed to 100% respect the rules and also pay a lot of attention when kids were around
Concerning France. Since 2009 no alcohol can be sold to all minors. 16 y.o. were able to buy and consume alcohol prior to 2009
Ahh interesting, i thought that it was the exact same rule in France for the 16 year olds buying beer and wine!
i checked the law did change that is so stupid. i am outraged.
Vous êtes allée en Suisse alémanique, dans les autres régions la mentalité est moins "germanique", mais si la rigueur est quasiment la même c'est quand même plus cool dans les cantons francophones et italophones.
N'oubliez pas que la Suisse a un niveau de vie très élevé, plus qu'en France et aux USA, c'est donc logique que les équipements urbains soient meilleurs.
Les suisses respectent les règles ? Oui, en Suisse, mais ailleurs ils se défoulent. J'ai résidé en haute-Savoie, la Suisse est toute proche, on y allait à ski. Savez-vous que les suisses ont une expression quand ils viennent en France, ils "lâchent le cochon". Cela veut dire qu'ils se permettent tout ce qu'ils ne font pas chez eux, particulièrement au volant.
Trop marrant! Je ne connaissais pas l'expression "ils lâchent le cochon" et je savais pas non plus que les suisse aiment bien les règles.... mais que chez eux!
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified Tout comme les allemands et les britanniques sorti de leurs pays ; il n'y plus de règles !
Totalement exact. Ma grand-mère était suisse, une partie de ma famille l'est donc. Et oui, les Suisses sont très "respecteux" chez eux (souvent forcés car la surveillance est très forte et les amendes sont hyper élevées) et dès qu'ils viennent en France ils se lâchent 😏. Quand vous faites vos courses le vendredi ou samedi dans un supermarché français d'une ville frontalière, c'est blindé de Suisses. La vie est si exagérément chère que dès qu'ils peuvent ils viennent acheter en France. Mais surtout vous les voyez déballer par exemple les litres de laits, les yaourts, etc... Et tout jeter par terre. Tu fais ça en Suisse c'est une amende directe, mais ils savent qu'en France non. On leur a fait la remarque une fois, la réponse ? :" c'est bien bon pour des cochons de Français comme vous !" 😄. Tranquille... C'est une mentalité particulière
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified Ce n'est pas le cas de tous les suisses bien évidemment. Je suis Suisse mais je respecte les règles même à l'étranger, du moins, je les respecte de la même façon qu'en Suisse.
Il y a certaines règles que je respecte moins, p.e. traverser la route au rouge, je regarde s'il y a des enfants, s'il n'y en a pas, je passe, sinon j'attends.
I had my family stay and French immersion schooling in Geneva during high school - and have been back to Switzerland🇨🇭twice since. It’s still my favorite country - by far.
I found the lifestyle pleasant, the people friendly but not intrusive, the food divine, the landscape breathtaking and diverse for such a small area, the feeling of safety was nice (seeing a woman leave her purse on her chair to go to the restroom???)… and did I mention the food? I’ll go back certainly… there’s always so much more to eat - I mean - see. 🇨🇭😍
I agree with you concerning food except in the german part of Switzerland. They don’t have lots of good fruits and vegetables. At least in my opinion. But the security feeling you mentioned, I totally agree with! It’s a lot of stress taken off our shoulders! And even more knowing that there’s more weapons per dwellers than in the US! They have really good laws around weapons
6:35 but they make good decorations and it's usually not just the swiss flag but also cantonal flags, city flags, village flags and other flags with a meaning and it feels less like some sort of super patriotic thing
So agree with Swiss assessment. I find Switzerland to be closer to Germany… even the French part. I was an exchange student in Neufchâtel and loved it.
Making friends in Switzerland really depends of your own way of behaving and socializing. (As for everywhere I guess). Heard tons of opposite stories where people enjoy the company of others in Switzerland, make great friendships and have full social lives. Sure, it's not that superficial like in the US where everybody is «friend» in 2 secondes and you really have to keep up with your friend and show them you have interest and you are sincere (at least that's what we asked for friendship) but you get your friends and you make friends in Switzerland.
If Swiss-Germans told you they have no friend, maybe they should ask themselves why.
Your comment makes no sense other than the fact that it's hard to make friends in Switzerland.
@@mellyklint6199 For normal people, definitely not.
I have never been but really want to go. So glad you had a lovely time stuffing your face with chocolate and fondue!
The fondue WAS SO GOOD.
You went to the German part of Switzerland which is close to the German mentality.
If you go to the french part of Switzerland, the mentality will be a bit different: What will strike you the most is not that they follow the rules but that they really take their time to do things, which for a parisian will be even more striking. The fact they take their time makes them much more precise for everything. It's not a coincidence if they are very good at making watches, which needs to be very precise. In comparision, the french always seem to be in a rush.
Something very special in Switzerland also is that they are obliged to vote about every little decision (the construction of a school...), otherwise they can get a fine if they don't vote. The result is they feel concern about every little thing, as in France we tend to hierarchise subjects and we are much more fond on politics that on everyday little life subjects!
Hogwash. Swiss are not forced to vote.
@@mellyklint6199
It depends. In Europe, voting is mandatory in Belgium, Luxembourg, Greece, Denmark, Lichtenstein, Cyprus, Voralberg(Ostereich) and Schaffhouse(Switzerland)!!! In these country, not voting will expose you to financial and administrative sanctions!!! Dissuasive !
No, we don't get a fine if we don't vote ;)
We don't get fined for not Voting lol
@@marylewis9792
Depending on the region and on the country. Where are you from?
Singapore is very much the same as far as following rules are concerned ; ) No swearing, no spitting, no chewing gum, and following all queues etc
As a tourist, traveling in Switzerland with a young child (7 yrs old) was wonderful. Everyone was so kind and happy to accomodate her. The only hard part was finding rooms with beds for 3. Most were rooms with 2 twin beds. This was almost 30 years ago, though. Maybe things have changed.
Non
If you were born in Switzerland, you would have noticed that french people are less active on "rules following". It's simply part of our culture and we live along with this all our entire life. And because of this (and of knowing how the rules should work) we drink wine while doing a pic-nic with our children: we taste the wine or the beer, we don't simply drink it (generally speaking, of course), we like to hike, to walk and, on the other hand, we eat chocolate like sharks. It's normal. Or, maybe, we are really odd 😀
I went to the International School in Bern (a very long time ago). Things must have changed a lot since then because making (forever) friends was easy, or perhaps, easier, back then. The rule thing - LOL! Yeah, I remember an infinite number of rules but I was a teenager so bending and breaking the rules was an amusing pastime. Buying alcohol wasn't any different than what I was used to in Quebec, so there wasn't even the temptation. Flags, yup...even on the cars, certainly on the school and all the buildings too!
Did you take photos? It would be lovely to see some.
Thanks for sharing your experience.
Yes i took some photos and had them on instagram! I tried to incorporate a couple of them in the video. I generally think it's easier to meet friends when we are younger students, because everyone is looking for friends then. But as adults, seems so much harder even in places that are known to be easier to make friends!
International School in Bern ? it was the school where Kim Jong-un studied during years 1996 1998 . Did you know him?
@@claude_1c74 LOL! No. I attended in the 70s (a long time ago)
there is a difference between bern and zürich, bern is known to be very chill
At least, you're back...in YT and from Swiss😉
I'm glad to be back.
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified take care of you 🙂
I lived in France for several years and thought like you, it was 18 to buy alcohol. 16 seems young as being English I’m used to the legal age at 18. Sorry Paris is not baby friendly. Here in Italy at least I can find a high chair. Very difficult to find a changing table though and I’m often changing my son on the floor
Luxembourg is half way between France and Switzerland (for the mindset). It’s nice too.
I am about to spend two months this summer in France working on my dissertation and I NEED HELP! Can you do a video about LIVE MUSIC in France?
I have lots of experience as a performing singer/songwriter (around Austin Texas) and am planning on bringing a small PA and my guitar to play as a way to make extra money. Any advice? What is the story about live music in non-Parisian France, especially at smaller venues, bars and restaurants?
Love the channel! Merci de partager ta sagesse!
But what a curious idea to take the escalator with a stroller !
I do it all the time in Paris! Going up is really easy, going down took so time to feel comfortable doing it by myself. but honestly, i would be hard to get around in Paris without it. You would have to count on people to help you up and down the stairs every time you were by yourself.
You're Swiss ? Awesome. Next video: voting in France vs US vs Switzerland ?
You should do a vidéo with th channel "how to switzerland" the next time you go😀
Good idea!
That was so interesting about the rules and how it was harder to make friends in Switzerland. I think those cultures in general seem to be more regimented and structured.
You'll hear that argument A LOT in Switzerland, and theres some truth to it, but also some nuance. I'm Swiss, in Zürich, and I meet expats all the time. Some do well here and love it, and some don't. I think what most don't get it is that people are busy and have built their lives, friends, family, jobs, hobbies, and they didn't really wait for some random non German speaker to come along to be entertained and take up precious hours that could be spent on existing commitments (and let's face it, 98% of expats in fact speak zero German and make very little if any effort). Biggest issue here is, however, that nearly all expats bounce after a few years, and everyone knows it. Swiss aren't going to invest time and effort into a "friendship" like that. You have to realise that we take it quite seriously, we normally stay friends with people from early school days all throughout life so most friends groups have been rather tight since childhood, you know, 10, 20, 30 years. You can't just show up and get fully integrated, esp. not quickly.
Swiss never (!) stand in straight lines. It's the only thing that I really hate about Switzerland that they cannot stand in line. My question is: In which "Switzerland" have you actually been?
Swiss don't use their flag much; you'd find 1 flag every 5 kilometers. Probably different in very touristy places like Lucerne or Gstaad. I guess that you've been in Switzerland on 1st of August - the Swiss National Day when it's normal to have Swiss flags everywhere.
If you are with a parent you can drink beer and wine at 14. The age of consent is also 14 if your partner is not more than 3 years older than you. Otherwise it's 16.
beer and wine is not „alcohol“, it‘s a beverage for enjoyment (like coffee of juice).
being on time means respecting the other, being late steals time and is rude. meeting at 5 means being ready at 4.55 so you can start at 5.
I would argue your idea that beer is not alcohol. If it's like coffee or juice, why is there any age restriction on it? It's just as easy to enjoy a cocktail or a whiskey on rocks as it is a beer, no?
Yes quite true, but not always for example you arriving later not on your fault but about you don t know the road , traffics, works road., and your gps doesn’t t not also exact about the adresse, in add if the people that gave you an arriving hour but still again to speak with other people before you , and didn’t t open the door , answer etc....it s not the same, it s you that your time is shorten! Wine and beers are unfortunately alcohol , not really the same like juice, ....
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified
red bull is age restricted too. fast food, sugar will be restricted soon too. it‘s not out of the ordinary. restriction doesn‘t mean evil.
beer has alcohol in it, I just wanted to make the point that a small restriction guides/nudges society and is not bad. beer/wine are parts of culture, not drugs.
haha, so rambly, sorry, jet lag.
No it's not.
nonsense
Well I've made three really good friends in the 58 years I've been in this world. I am in friendly contact with 10 other people. These friendships do not depend on where I live and where they live. In the house where I live in Bern, I know all the people personally and I also know some people who live in the surrounding houses very well and we meet, drink a beer or a wine, have a barbecue and talk about God and the world but I wouldn't call these people friends. What we don't like at all are these forced contacts. People you meet in the queue at the cash register and who, without being asked, immediately tell you their CV, health problems and Peggy-Lee's marriage to Billy-Bob.Opening hours are one thing. In principle, the people who work in these shops have a right to a regular life with days off. My colleague's daughter (one of three really close friends) works as a chef de rang in a restaurant and is on duty two Sundays out of four. But all of her friends and family have Sunday off. This is a limitation of the quality of life that we as a society want to keep as small as possible. And it really isn't rocket science to shop for five days and not starve. This criticism surprises me anyway when it comes from Americans. If I've had an experience along these lines, it's that the Americans I know buy in gigantic portions and stock a gigantic refrigerator. And then it suddenly becomes crucial that you can do your weekly shopping at 3:00 a.m. from Sunday to Monday?
Remontada de la France: ua-cam.com/video/RnSKcIVDyt4/v-deo.html
You can't buy alcohol before 21 in the US but at least you can change your gender at almost any age you like 🤦♀ *sarcasm off*
so swiss more rule following than brits?
Of course. Swiss and Germans (maybe even Austrians) follow rules more than Brits do.
I would tend to say yes, but i'm no expert!
but having children in France is way more convenient financially, than Switzerland. No comparison on it....
Are you Franco American ? I thought you were an American expat living in France
I believe she became French also.
@@alexandrelarsac9115 yep.
She probably got French citizenship recently
She grew up in the US and became a naturalized French citizen by marriage a year or 2 ago.
I said Franco-American because I got my nationality a couple of years ago! :)
Listen, i have to marries with you. Because you are a super girl, communicate explaining throughly the Most important thing we need to know and anderstand. All right? That s it.
Thanks!
@@UnintentionallyFrenchified so would you? It would be nice and exiting?
LOL you had me at "we follow rules in the US"...uh not we don't...not compared to Europe. I don't know what state you're from but you're way off.
I'm from the midwest which has a lots of germanic roots and the US there as a whole tends to follow the rules. And I'm usually comparing the US to France or other southern, western European countries, which are way more lax than the US about rules. It obviously always depends on who are comparing with. But if i go farther than my own personal experience, I have done a massive amount of research for this channel and while you can argue everything both ways, the US is considered a culture that follows rules by most anthropologists, so i think "way off" is a bit extreme.