Switzerland (Die Schweiz, Helvetica, Helvetsi, whatever you want to call it) is not in Europe. It is Europe, to an extent, but it is not in Europe. You know how I was saying that food in Europe is incredibly cheap compared to Australia? That doesn't apply to Switzerland. Pretty much anything I've previously said about Europe doesn't apply to Switzerland.
I can't quite work out how a country in the middle of Europe manages to be so different to everywhere else. It's completely different to Germany, even though there are German speaking bits. It's completely different to Italy, even though there are Italian speaking bits. I can't compare it with France, but a member of my group who lives in Paris says it was different to France as well - even though there are French speaking bits.
It's like it stole parts of the neighbouring countries' languages and cultures, and then shouted "sucked in, losers!" and did its own thing.
It's keeping itself out of the Eurozone, too. I wonder how long it will take before we can stop calling the currency "Swiss Francs" and just call it "Francs". It's not like anyone else is using Francs in Europe at present.
At the moment, the CH Franc is roughly on par to the Australian dollar, but things that would cost $15 in Australia cost something like 22CHF in Switzerland. I spent one night wandering around Lugano aimlessly searching for something to eat that I thought would be worth the price they were asking. Several times I walked into the Burger King, determined to eat something relatively cheap, and then walked out again, determined to not eat "Hungry Jacks" in Switzerland. That's just wrong. I ended up paying just under 20 bucks for a slice of pizza, a piece of cake and a bottle of water - and I didn't even want to eat pizza that night.
It was certainly a contrast to the meal I bought in Tallinn one night that was a huge club sandwich, a bottle of juice and a bottle of water (for later) for just over 5 Euro - and I couldn't even finish the sandwich.
It's beautiful, though. The country is breath-takingly gorgeous. We had a few "comfort stops" at alpine passes that are popular amongst hikers, and I managed to follow a couple of trails for a few short walks. Absolutely stunning. I've resolved to come back and walk large parts of the country at some point. I'm also thinking seriously about a walking tour of the Pyrenees I saw while researching the two tours I'm doing this year. If the Pyrenees are anywhere near as pretty as the Alps, it will be worth it.
As for the tour? Exhausting. It was leisurely in that we weren't travelling horrendous distances every day, but because we were in different hotels every night and only stopping for half-hour stretches along the way, it often felt as if we were constantly being bundled back into the coach. I did enjoy it - although we hardly saw any of Liechtenstein (which was one of the main reasons I took this tour).
The people were great. I really enjoyed meeting the other members of the group, and it was nice to have some new friends to share the experience with - it was also nice to be taken places I wouldn't have thought of going to myself. It was one of the things I enjoyed most about the bike tour I did in 2009...
But the bus was taxing. By the end of every afternoon I was dying to get off the bus and go for a walk or a run. I wouldn't want to do a longer tour, and I wouldn't want to do one of those tours that hit multiple countries in a couple of weeks.
Oh, and I have to admit I finally did a "proper" girlie thing. On a whim I spent $200 and bought a pretty dress in Switzerland. Switzerland seems to be completely over run with shops selling designer labels, and after days walking past Louis Vuitton, Dolce & Gabbana and all those other shops, I finally saw a dress I just couldn't walk past. I had to try it on, and once I tried it on I just had to buy it:
One word: awesome.
Would it be too dorky to point out that it has pockets?
That is beyond awesome. I love that dress and the fact it has pockets can only improve its awesomeness. Ps, I think you are a fashion blogger now.....
ReplyDeleteAwesome! you look like Maria in the Sound of Music
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