Same here.

I miss that warmth. Not a friend of chummy, but good mood, nice spirit, smiles.

I also think it is hard to compare this generic idea of a "friend" here and there since it really does not exist. People are people, different all over.

It depends why we make friends, what our criteria are, too, how intense one wants the friendship to be, etc. If one tries super hard with somebody who at the end of the day isn't a friend at all, one can't just say local friends suck. There are plenty of flaky friends everywhere, and good ones too, one might have to only try harder here to find good ones, for a number of reasons, private culture, language bariere, locals being used to expats taking off after a short stint here, etc.

I remember nagging to my folks years ago, sad that one really can be quite isolated here and was told to quit expecting things instantly. We take decades to carefully apply our sophisticated selection process to find meaningful friendships, things get tested by going through hardships together and time, and now we want find deep friendships uber fast..

It's true. Our desperation to bond fast is sometimes motivated not to discover other human beings but mere survival here. We need the bonds, info. I can see why that might make people here not open up so fast. It's just a thought, though.

__________________
"L'homme ne peut pas remplacer son coeur avec sa tete, ni sa tete avec ses mains." J.H. Pestalozzi

“The only difference between a rut and a grave is a matter of depth.” S.P. Cadman

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." A. Einstein

You're right about the "desperation to bond fast" idea ...

Just reminded me that, if you grow up in a place in which your parents also grew up, you inherit a heap of social contacts from them, which are then built on with your own (childhood) socialisation, and so on ... so you start with a 'foundation' of strong social contacts, then don't feel the rush to add to that ...

This is very true...When you grow up with a circle of wider family around you, not only you have them as "friends" you often feel close to their buddies since you see them often, or more often than random aquitances. I miss that here, but one cannot really super speed this, since really good friends happen over some period of time. It is normal that we get tested, just like the way we forget about testing new friends here, since we are in the "survival" mode, ie as long as we get some human interaction, some bond, practicing local lingo, practical info and kids get to play with kids instead of lego. Laying off a tiny bit is healthy, since one bumps to human beings anyways, and trying to control the air of desperation is good. I have met ton of people through work/hobbies/location, still get sad over expats leaving, but can look back and really see it's a matter of time and being happily independent. I like the difference over friends elsewhere and here. Both quirky and sweet, though.

__________________
"L'homme ne peut pas remplacer son coeur avec sa tete, ni sa tete avec ses mains." J.H. Pestalozzi

“The only difference between a rut and a grave is a matter of depth.” S.P. Cadman

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." A. Einstein

Good for you my friend, Switzerland might be the place to have a baby face for a long time.

Anyway, I dont get bored easily in Zurich :-) And if you enjoy beautiful landscapes and lakes, then Switzerland is the best. People can be a little bit reserve and it takes time till you can really get close to them.

I have been here 3 months, although mostly in a small village near a small town (Chur)and I must say most people here are very friendly and will go out of their way to smile and greet total strangers in the street, forest or mountain. The number of good mornings I get from old , young and children is sharp contrast to some of my colleagues in London who would walk into the office, sit opposite to me, drop their bag and switch on the PC like a total zombie/robot and wouldn't even sometimes notice/respond to my good morning.

Another astonishing experience, the other day my Swiss neighbour who must be in her 70s and doesn't speak a word of English, brought me a box of fresh cherries when she learnt I had just moved in. I never experienced this level of warmth and generosity from a new neighbour in UK or US. May be an exception?

More likely on "action" in the nearby Migros

probably, but still doesn't diminish the gesture in anyway

Oh absolutely

How did you know I live practically next door to Migros lol and I have seen cherris on 'action' every now and then there.
But they tasted good and even after 3 days!

and you get the additional protein from the wriggly things

Spooky......

Knowing how expensive protein/meat is here, I guess that must be the icing on the cake !