3 years without getting any is a loooon time - no wonder you are grumpy!

It does seem that many similar comments and complaints come certain parts of CH and not others.

You say you didn't choose to come and live here - but you did, really. It must have been a joint decision of sorts. So have a good moan if it makes you feel better- akunamatata - but somehow you have to find a way to make it work for you - the rest of your life is a very loooooooooooong time to 'not get it' and be miserable. Bonne chance, Merry Christmas and a Great New 2012- hope you get it then - or its time for Plan B

And this differs from the youth in Britain, USA, France how?

Anyway I think your observation about the youth in general is incorrect.
As far as disaffected youth go in developed nations, I have been told by a colleague who studied at ETH Zuerich, that he could always tell a Swiss from a non-Swiss by the time it takes them to answer the question: "So what is your dream?". According to him, the Swiss were much faster than their peers to answer in some way to change the world for the better. Whereas others gave some variation of "I don't know, be rich"

Hey George, this is the reason you should leave the country. Its a sad place to be. Besides that, even if you are European, they consider themselves superior and you will never find decent people to hang out with. Its not in their nature. Swiss is good for people who have nothing to loose and marry a Swiss or to hide money not to live.

I don't think this is true IMO. It's a different country, that one can like or not. It is not the most creative, innovative, or individualistic place, and for this I've had my share of hard times, but I think that sadness comes from inside, not outside.

I am European and have not experienced that, not once.

I don't want to assume, but surely you are hanging out in the wrong places. I can point you to more than a few cool Swiss to hang out with, both in the EF and outside. For every cool person, there is an equivalent a$$hole, but that's life, not Switzerland.

None of the above. Next generalization, bitte?

Have a great weekend!

I know you are collecting groans so you're not getting any from me.

Ha!

maybe you should ask yourself what you contribute to that boredom...am a native Swiss and I can assure you that we are not boring at all...but of course, if I meet up with a person who is boring and constantly complaining about how horrible Switzerland is, then I can turn into a big bore too to get out of this situation...

Your statement is based on a verbal assesment of a friend...which is, in my opinion somewhat biased. Fact is, Swiss youths don't dream about achieving anything other than maybe finding a apprenticeship. I don't know how it is in France or the UK...but I can speak of North America, where there is a system and infrstructure in place to basically become whatever you aspire to become. You talk to North American youths today..and a great many of them have a vision of what they want to achieve. Junior highschool, highschools and colleges tend to provide a platform for which striving students can excel. There are assements being done on any possible scholastic level to show where a student is in terms of what he/she wants to achieve. In Switzerland this is different, there are almost no inter-scholastic tournaments be it for sports, music or achademics...and this hinders somebody with great capabilities to strive at what they're good at. In Switzerland, if a kid has bad grades, he will most likely end up at a lower school grade (Oberschule) and there, he's options are further limited by the system...and with that, his/her whole life is somewhat pre-determined (bad grades -> bad school -> bad apprenticeship -> bad job -> low income with no way out...but pity though, he/she could have been a tremendous violinist if options were provided to him/her)

The friend is a South African who did his Ph.D. in Electronic Engineering at ETH Zuerich. He has been all over in Europe, and has friends from everywhere. He has no axe to grind with any country, and is living happily in SA. For these reasons, I tend to trust his judgement.


That's BS.

I never knew the American school system is in such good shape. Makes me wonder why so many in America thinks it is in a shambles and standards are slipping.

alternatively you fly to Sofia for a long weekend no boredom there! cheers

That's your prerogative.

If you consider, that the greatest athletes, muscians, innovators, visionaries, inventors etc. all come from the US, then it is pretty easy to understand the real value of the American educational system.

Hey guys!

Oh gosh, this is just too much. Some comments in this thread are kind of hilarious, others really sad.
Anyway, to get back to the topic: I am not Swiss myself and discovered similar problems as I lived in the Bernese Oberland for 7 months in 2010. At work I met a great Swiss lady, we are still in touch, but the only fact why I considered her to be that open-minded is that she is having a German boyfriend. All the other Swiss ladies where kind of distanced & reserved. At work (as we never went out for drinks) they were always nice and polite, that is for sure, but superficial.
I moved back to Switzerland (Basel) one month ago and am very excited how everything will work out with Swiss people this time. I will keep you posted ; )
Anyway, if anybody wants to meet for a drink or a laugh in the streets ; ), I would be up for it.

Cheers!

You guys are absolutely right. I've been here for nearly 5 yrs and I find very difficult to form formidable friendships. Even with colleagues, after you stop working for the same company, you never see them again. Spontaneity died long time ago in this country. Since when you need to plan 2-3 weeks ahead to go have a beer with a buddy?

You are Swiss, so of course you don't find the Swiss activities and way of interacting boring. Many foreigners are simply just used to something different (and to us, less boring). I also find it quite boring here and do not find the same things "fun" that majority of the Swiss people I know find fun. But I believe that's largely because people here just like to do different things than people from home. Instead I try to organise things I find fun and invite people to join me.

The really gifted ones always make it, no matter what the education system is like. And Einstein, as far as I remember, just as Mark Twain, did very poor in school.

Not necessarily. How does one know whether he/she is gifted, if there aren't any opportunities to explore ones capabilities and compete against likeminded people?

Maybe we should start a new thread about it?

As for the op I think life is as boring as you make it.

I would disagree...but a new thread on the subject will definitely be interesting.

Totally agree and great point,no education system is perfect , its only as good as the kids are willing to learn.. At least inthe US Anyone has the opportunity and possibllity of going to college and doing whatever they want.. Its not a determination made when you are a clueless 15 year old.. I think that a life that is planned out like that could be causing the angst in the youth that was mentioned earlier.. Maybe this is why the swiss stick to their normal boring routines and social circles.. Why be open to something new if from a young age youre made to narrow your worldview to one possibility..
Trying to return on topic so i dont get yelled at..

The greatest athletes, muscians, innovators, visionaries, inventors etc. all come from the US? I like the etc. LOL... That's possibly the most arrogant uninformed statement I have ever read.

What did they brainwash you with during your scholarship in America?

Without dipping too much into the x vs y is better routine which always tends to polarize a conversation...I will say that here it would seem that the definition of standards is much more rigid. I have a 5yo who, though I don't know if she is 'gifted', she's ahead of the rest of the class in terms of drawing as well as knowing how to read and write but, she also happens to be incredibly strong-willed which means I get a look and a chat nearly every afternoon about how my child has disrupted the class. I'm actually starting to worry she's going to get sent down.... anyway, yes, I can see how being bright and not part of the mainstream obedient students won't really win you much here. In the US, at least in the better school systems, they usually have staff in the school to help with behavioral issues and bright kids and it doesn't appear to be very common here. That may be a function of size or ...something I'm not aware of.