Canada? A vast, cultureless desert of snow and tundra, famous only for third rate doughnuts, melted cheese on chips and the folly of permitting the continued existence of a colony of Frenchmen in their midst, compared with a venerable and comfortable republic in the heart of the most civilised continent on Earth, where one can eat a sausage at the top of every mountain, ride a boat across every lake and live on chocolate for breakfast, lunch and dinner?
I'd choose - did choose - Switzerland.
In fact, I dislike Canada so much, I haven't even been there.
I am pretty sure that most foreigners are here for the money and some other practicalities (healthcare, cleanliness, scenery, central location, firearms...) . Most dont seem to live in Switzerland because they actually like the country or its people...
(probably going to get groaned at for this, but this is my observation).
Well, I'm in the minority then because there was no financial advantage to my moving here, I just love the place!
Tom
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If you live in Haiti right now I think you would be in shock when you come here. I know Haiti isnt as safe as 90% of any other place in the world, so any place you go will likely be a step up in that respect. But Switzerland is like stepping into scalding hot water for most people coming from the Western Hemisphere.
Ive lived in several places here in Europe and I would probably be more inclined to tell you to start in France, or even Spain. Spain has a very high quality of living, MUCH better climate, friendlier people (like what youre used to in Haiti), and cheaper everything (you can rent an 8 bedroom 500m from the beach for Euro1,300 per month).
Switzerland is a great place. But if you enjoy nice weather, people waiting an extra half second to open the door for you, and a cheap quick meal every now and then, you will resent this place unless you have an income that allows you to live very comfortably.
And the name of both country start with the letter "S"
Last time I came back from DRC I had a severe strain of E.Coli..... The Swiss hospitals all begged me to return to the States because they had no clue what I had.
After two weeks of agony I flew to the US. Was diagnosed in less than 24 hrs and was better in 3 days. My Swiss bill was CHF3,700. My US Bill was $250......
So I dont think the Swiss system is good nor cheap.
Definitely depends. I worked for an academic hospital in the US, but I think the standard of care is better here in a similar setting. My husband was treated for eye issues here and in the US. Better treatment here and less expensive. I 've been treated here for breast cancer, and the standard treatment here is better than what a lot of women get in the US, and chemo was less expensive than in the US. But I think we can make counter arguments for everything. Prescription drugs cost about the same in both cases, although here you pay a flat 10% versus variable copays.
As a Taiwanese, no problems whatsoever. Just annoying when I meet strangers they always use English with me right away, even when I can speak German. That's a general complaint and not really a problem.
Otherwise, I find the Swiss are generally receptive of Asians in the cities.
hey neighbor! i'm from the philippines. what brought you to switzerland? i think it's the case with us asians, people will generally, by default speak english with us. i find it nice though for them to do that. the down side is that it's hard to practice another language.
hi!
i've been stalking the forum for sometime now and i've been searching for jobs in switzerland for a few months. i just noticed that it's not very easy to get in switzerland and get settled.
but my question is (especially to those who lived there for a long time) is life there worth the difficulty to get into switzerland?
or should i look in other places in europe?
i'm head graphic designer of a marketing communications agency.
i just want to live where it's safe, organized and close to nature. i'm single 26 years old.
please share your thoughts, experiences and daily life. i'm aching for a new country and i'm very ready for change. i'm currently in haiti.
As Ayn Rand said, "One can ignore reality, but one cannot ignore the consequences of ignoring reality."
IMO some good reasons (among many for me) are as follows:
The world we live in is, in my opinion, facing a major paradigm shift.
In many places in the world, Greece, Egypt, Libya, Lebanon, Israel etc. etc. even recently London and other UK cities there have been massive disturbances. YouTube has been forced to censor protest videos in many countries... http://www.prisonplanet.com/governme...st-videos.html
The US economy has virtually come to a standstill and many parts of Europe are having economic problems (Euro crisis).
With all this going on and IMO getting worse Switzerland is maybe a good place to be. Here things are well organised, the country has much wealth and the population is well armed... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nf1OgV449g
Well, maybe this list could be added to but off the top of my head it enumerates a few good reasons that others have not mentioned to feel happy here.
I have lived in switzerland ten years back..then i went back to canada(vancouver) where i grew up as a child.in my view has lost its charm for me and the lifestyle i think has deteriorated.canadian cities have swiss expenses but not swiss expenses.distances to say get out of town on a weekend can be tremendous.traveling from vancouver say to mexico is usually much higher than traveling from calgary or toronto...i guess it depends what your looking for...in my eyes..switzerland has so much to offer ..i have a four year old and the close proximity to her school and the safety here is comforting to me...in vancouver.you don't lose site of your children..hey..vancouver is a nice city..but to me it has lost its charm..many people migrate to canada thinking it is the promise land...well..it has some good qualities..but lots of negative....i will give you a place that i think is one of the best places..that is whitehorse in the yukon....great nature,small place,good salaries,but one big problem-affordable housing or available housing. I am happy to here..to me canada has loss alot of what once made me proud...thanks for letting me vent..
not a problem. still, many filipinos go there to canada.. as you said, they think it's the promised land. but i also feel the same, i think switzerland has more to offer. espcially in terms of safety and being organized.
As Ayn Rand said, "One can ignore reality, but one cannot ignore the consequences of ignoring reality."
IMO some good reasons (among many for me) are as follows:
The world we live in is, in my opinion, facing a major paradigm shift.
In many places in the world, Greece, Egypt, Libya, Lebanon, Israel etc. etc. even recently London and other UK cities there have been massive disturbances. YouTube has been forced to censor protest videos in many countries... http://www.prisonplanet.com/governme...st-videos.html
The US economy has virtually come to a standstill and many parts of Europe are having economic problems (Euro crisis).
With all this going on and IMO getting worse Switzerland is maybe a good place to be. Here things are well organised, the country has much wealth and the population is well armed...
Well, maybe this list could be added to but off the top of my head it enumerates a few good reasons that others have not mentioned to feel happy here.
people were telling me go back to asia, the western world is in crisis and work somewhere in the ASEAN, it'll be a lot easier and it's picking up in that side of the world. but i say, which country isn't in trouble? the answer, aside from singapore... switzerland!
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I don't mind all the "difficulty" that is associated with living in Switzerland because I feel it serves a purpose & it does make your life better. The systems in place are not meant to be cheated & I am to proud to live in a country that expects more out of it's citizens/residents.
Definitely depends. I worked for an academic hospital in the US, but I think the standard of care is better here in a similar setting. My husband was treated for eye issues here and in the US. Better treatment here and less expensive. I 've been treated here for breast cancer, and the standard treatment here is better than what a lot of women get in the US, and chemo was less expensive than in the US. But I think we can make counter arguments for everything. Prescription drugs cost about the same in both cases, although here you pay a flat 10% versus variable copays.
Agree on one level. But I went to 3 hospitals in CH. E.Coli isnt exactly hard to find nor treat. The Swiss only deal with "local kinds of diseases"... Every doctor told me they didnt have the facilities to deal with my "unknown diseases".... The doctors office that cured me was in a shit-hole in Detroit that only treats the poor.
Agree on one level. But I went to 3 hospitals in CH. E.Coli isnt exactly hard to find nor treat. The Swiss only deal with "local kinds of diseases"... Every doctor told me they didnt have the facilities to deal with my "unknown diseases".... The doctors office that cured me was in a shit-hole in Detroit that only treats the poor.
sometimes the bacteria could only be identified in hospitals that has dealt with it before. each strain is different. it's like a friend of mine who got sick here in haiti and went to the US, but the hospital said to go back to haiti because they would know the bacteria here and treat it accordingly.
There is another very important reason for me liking living in Switzerland that I left out of my previous message...
Here in Switzerland when you pay your taxes you are not subsidising the illegal wars of warmongering governments of nations such as the UK, the US and nowadays also parts of the EU.
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There is another very important reason for me liking living in Switzerland that I left out of my previous message...
Here in Switzerland when you pay your taxes you are not subsidising the illegal wars of warmongering governments of nations such as the UK, the US and nowadays also parts of the EU.
yeah, it's another important thing, switzerland is a neutral country. in my opinion that is another point in favor of switzerland.
There is another very important reason for me liking living in Switzerland that I left out of my previous message...
Here in Switzerland when you pay your taxes you are not subsidising the illegal wars of warmongering governments of nations such as the UK, the US and nowadays also parts of the EU.
If those warmongering country would not exist ,you capital city would be Berlin ,not Bern .What the hell both cites start with the letter "B"
ok. so far let me summarize the impressions i get from the replies from this thread.
PROs:
1. better healthcare and social system.
2. clean and organized.
3. safe <--very important!
4. good food. (according to tom)
5. close to nature.
6. close to other countries, easier for travelling.
7. pay is better (swiss francs).
8. the system in place is not meant to cheat people.
9. it's a beautiful country.
10. it's a neutral country.
11. the cities seem to be "asian-friendly" according to the kebab restos and people suddenly shifting to english when you're asian.
CONs
1. expensive. (from meat, transportation to rent and everything else in between)
2. not fun / not very social. (dry and cold society according to salsa lover)
3. few high-paid jobs.
4. not very easy to enter.
5. it's not a very good place for the design industry.
Not sure if PROs or CONs:
1. swiss households are armed with assault riffles.
2. you should be career oriented.
but the real odd thing is that there are more negative replies from people saying it's not good but continues to stay in switzerland without any prospects of leaving anytime soon... wonder why??
I think the most important way to view this is that the Swiss expect everybody that comes and lives here to contribute something valuable to the society. People can see that in different ways but there is no free ride here.
This user would like to thank colinwheeler for this useful post:
I think the most important way to view this is that the Swiss expect everybody that comes and lives here to contribute something valuable to the society. People can see that in different ways but there is no free ride here.
as it should everywhere else. each individual is expected to contribute something to society and to fend for yourself and your family.
What the hell both cites start with the letter "B"
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