Living in Switzerland, a whole new perspective

Sometimes in life we do the right thing, and let logic and reason work out what is the best way to go. But if we always followed our mind, we would never leave room for risk, or adventure. I guess that's why I decided to move to Switzerland, not for money, or for a career changing job, but to follow my heart. Plus as a country, Switzerland isn't half bad, and I can think of worse places to move to.

So although I have been to this country countless times before, I believe this time will merit some blog posts, because living in a place is very different from visiting as a tourist. What little I know about Swiss life and culture will hopefully be expanded upon, which I hope to share with you, dear reader, as I au pair in a Swiss family and make new Swiss friends. Wish me luck!

Oslo in the summertime

There are some things in life that shape how we understand things: the media, books, friends and family....how we view the world can be shaped by outside sources and can be formed in really warped ways. I for instance, had always associated Sweden with ABBA....my image of the country was based on what I knew, thanks to Ikea, ABBA, and ....Ikea.

Although it's very important, in my opinion, to push these preconceived misconceptions asside, I have to admit it can be really difficult. As little as I knew about Oslo, or Norway for that matter, there was always one thing that shaped the city in my mind, and it all came back to my college days, where I spent many a evening in the library attempting to study as I listened to music. One song often came on my iPod, because it was a monotonous, heavy rythm, which fit in perfectly with my political science readings. A song titled, "Oslo in the Summertime," written by the lead singer of one of my alltime favorite eccentric bands, Of Montreal. His image of his time spent in this city was placed in the lyrics of the song, talking of the hot, slow summer days where the sun never sets and everyone "is away on holiday." I wondered what kind of place this Oslo would truly be.

Oslo turned out to be a new and improved city from whatever it was before. As evidence from the construction sites scattered across the city, the new architecture wowed everyone of us, especially the architecture student in our group. We were all glued to the extremely reflective and enticing Opera house, a completely glass structure overlooking the sea with a modern style that made it scream out "photograph me, I'm gorgeous!" The sunshine along with 5 marching bands outside made it even better, with light being bounced from the building to the brass instruments, blinding everyone in sight. I suppose the Norwegians had to invest all of their money somewhere.

The city itself was much nicer than everyone claimed it would be, and the gardens were spacious with plenty of interesting stone sculptures to check out. With such nice weather, we were tripping over tourists right and left, but it didn't matter too much, because we had some locals, friends from Fredi's travels, showing us around their favorite haunts, and explaining the sights. As we wandered across the wealthy "Beverly Hills" of Oslo, we became even more aware of how well off Norway seemed to be. "It hasn't always been this way," explained our guide Julia, "Norway had its tough times too. But now that we have all of that oil, we are doing quite well."

Fortunately the splendors appear to be shared with everyone, unlike many oil countries, where only a few benefit. Julia and Ingvild explained that every student in Norway is given a stipend to help them pay for their living expenses as they study. In other words, they get paid to go to college. "I think in a way that makes us more independent from our parents," explained Ingvild. "We don't have to live at home, and we don't have to ask them for money. We can take care of ourselves much earlier." An interesting concept, which would seem bizarre in many countries, especially in Europe. And no student loans? That would make almost any American student crazy with jealousy.

It was important for us to spend some time in the capitol, and ask our questions to the locals. A burning question that had been on the tip of my tongue was finally answered. The difference between Norwegians and Swedes? According to many of my sources, the stereotype goes, that Norwegians are more connected to nature, and are more down to earth. This is probably due to their significantly smaller population, and smaller cities. I could definitely believe it when I looked at my friends, who although seemed very stylish, I could imagine them backpacking their way through a forest, enjoying the dirt and bugs and all. And of course, they had, and enjoyed every moment of it, something in their looks far off in the distance, away from their trendy and modern Oslo.

In the breadbasket of Norway

One of the best aspects of being a traveler is that you can make friendships just about anywhere. It's easy to make friends with a big smile and open heart, and even easier to keep in touch with them these days, thanks to skype and facebook. I tend to keep contact information for everyone I meet if I can, because you never know when it might come in handy. Like one day, when I searched through my contacts, looking for a friend to visit in Oslo, Norway. I came across two very unlikely candidates: an old classmate from elementary school, and a Polish friend of mine that I hosted in Budapest, over a year ago. I immediately contacted both of them, and was fortunate in that they both positively responded, Kramar taking it even a step further, inviting my 3 friends and I to stay on his farm for 2 nights.

I felt extremely fortunate the night that we all came together with our friends in Oslo, catching up on old times, and recounting new adventures. Kramar drove us all back to his farm (well, his collective housing that was a farm in the recent past) and we began a new adventure in the only aerable part of Norway, with rolling hayfields and corn rows. During the next few days he had us exploring the countryside, as well as the island fortress where he worked.

We learned that Norway didn't grow just any corn: the corn we picked was so delicious, we swore we'd never tasted anything so sweet. As we cooked, cleaned, and meandered around Kramar's house, we experienced the simple joys of living in the countryside: picking our own vegetables, grilling them over a barbecue as Kramar played the guitar and we sat outside watching the stars slowly appear in the sky. It was an exciting moment for all of us, Kramar included, since we were all foreigners, appreciating a new lifestyle in a new land. It seemed silly, but at that moment, we were all so happy to see time pass us by, without caring to measure it. All we needed was each other and a little bit of conversation to make the moment worthwhile. And I thank my lucky stars every day that I have friends like Kramar, that after one selfless act on my part, will always return the favor, years later.

Gothenburg, the proud, and the lipstick

During our travels up north in Lapland, we came across a lone Austrian traveler, on an adventure. His mission was to travel to every capitol city in Europe (except for Moscow and Minsk, of course, because why would anyone want to go there?). At first everyone seemed rather impressed at this feat, accomplished by car, over a period of a few months.

I'll admit I was of another opinion, considering the capitols I've visited over the years. As impressive as these cities can be, they tend to be very false representatives of the countries themselves. Considering how different Moscow is from Russia, among other examples, it made me wonder: how can we truly appreciate a country for what it is? Do we need to run off to the countryside and speak with farmers, or is it the metropolitan area where we mingle with the city dwellers, understanding the nightlife and vibe of a place? or perhaps a little bit of both?

I still stand by my opinion that it is impossible to comprehend a nation while traveling on a holiday, and perhaps as a foreigner it's difficult in general to totally understand what it is that makes a country. Yet, in this writer's humble opinion, there are efficient ways to better understand a place, while avoiding the crowd of tourists. First, go to city number two, or a somewhat smaller city in the country you are visiting; and secondly, seek out the locals.

We were extremely lucky in that Fredi's family happened to live near Gothenburg, the second largest city in Sweden. Not only did they let us stay with them, but we got some quality family time and delicious moosemeat out of the deal. It was our chance to learn about Sweden, from the locals, and appreciate what life was like there.

Finally, we went into the city, to check it out, and what a pleasant surprise it was. Neat and tidy, with a cute old city center, this city was also more of a practical, liveable city, compared to Stockholm. As we toured by boat, ducking under the bridges, since the water level was incredibly high, our guide pointed out interesting sites. The port was sizeable, and well used for sure, but the more interesting landmark was of course the volvo headquarters skyscraper, fondly known as "the Lipstick." Like the Volvo itself, "the Lipstick" was not the most fashionable of buildings, or the prettiest, but one could definitely call it memorable. It's a city like Gothenburg, with its unique and memorable places, as simple and nontouristic as can be, that give you the true feeling of being there, in the moment.

Kiruna, gateway to the north

The thing I love most about Californian history, is how quickly it became a state, full of glistening cities and people everywhere. In 1849 when some lucky miner found gold, everyone ran to Cali, hoping for similar luck, bringing with them hope, strength, and determination. Despite the tough weather conditions at times, the miners were determined, and when many of them failed in their conquest, they abandoned the towns that were only called home for a short time. Now these mining towns are unihabited, and slightly haunting, with only the memories remaining.

When we arrived in Kiruna, the story was similar: a mining town, created only at the beginning of the 20th century, once the mining was deemed feasible. However, with such harsh conditions, it's impressive all the same how those determined miners decided to establish themselves in Sweden's northernmost city. Of course when compared with the Sami people who had been living there for 6000 years, I suppose it's not as amazing.

The city itself, however, is not abandoned. Although small, it is rather cheery in those dreary rainy days, with adorable little shops, and a delicious cafe. We were surprised when we went out on a Saturday night, and the "city" was buzzing with life, all of the bars filled to the max with locals catching up with a beer or drink. It was surprising to see so much life, so many concerts and bars for such a seemingly small mining town. However that was Saturday. The next day, when we awoke, we saw the other side to Kiruna. In desperate search of a late breakfast, we came across the supermarket, the only open source of food on that desolate Sunday. The streets seemed vacant, as the bars cleaned up the rest of the festivities from the night before. And all was silent, as if it were a ghost town, silently waiting for Saturday to arrive once more.

Northern Scandinavia - Lapland, the Arctic Circle

I've not so secretly always wanted to go to the Arctic Circle. There's something quite strange, or eerie about a place that can be so far north, the trees are stunted and the land is a rocky place with few plants growing. This has been a year of extremes for me: living in one of the coldest countries, traveling the longest by land, going the furthest east...And then a final superlative for my students: to travel to the furthest north in Europe: Nordkapp. Now that's extreme.

As we drove our rental car (once we found it, which is another adventure you can ask me about), one desire came to my mind, stronger than any other. "Hey Fredi," I called out, "When are we going to see a reindeer?" It didn't take long for him to find not only one, but 12! reindeer. The rest of us were so in awe that we stopped the car just to take photos of the nonchalant animals. Little did we realize that it was only the beginning. After the 100th we stopped paying attention. Although there were reindeer and some trees, it was hard to picture Santa setting up shop there, in that sparsely treed place. Santa would need some special importing power to get a good Christmas tree up and running.

The thing that struck us the most at Nordkapp though, was the incredible colors. If ever there were a place to see bright blue sea, spongy green moss, and the clearest sky ever seen, it would be here. As we woke up one morning at 6 AM (the sun was already well overhead, and blinding of course), we hiked to the true point and looked out over the sea. Never will I forget how clear and how crisp every inch of the landscape was, so bright that you truly had to shield your eyes. And the water, though calm and clear, was still ominously mysterious, with its seaweed slowly lapping against the cliffs. As we looked off to the distance it was as if we had found the edge of the world. the Edge of Europe at least.