Hello all,

I am very new and i wanted to ask a few questions about switzerland and the people. I am from Dublin in Ireland. I was wondering what you felt the differance between the French, German and Italian Swiss was or if there was any?

One thing i found very different from Ireland is that social activities seem to be very organised and not really spontaneous. Is it just the people i have met or is this a general rule?

Plus i have been erm... becoming friendly with a French Swiss guy he is lovely but very different from Irish or English guys i was wondering what the girls thought and how Swiss guys are different?

Any girls out there with Swiss boyfriends?

Swiss guys are ok, whether they are from the German, Italian or French part.

But they are not a patch on the guys working in switzerland who live in the UK and have Irish parents

Hi Tim Yes You Anglo Irish Dudes are quite sexy with your British accents and Irish rogue ways.

Best of both worlds.

I don't know much about life with swiss men from a female perspective, but switzerland is as boring as hell compared with Dublin - and it's not because of the weather!

When I lived in Geneva three years ago, I shared a flat with a french swiss guy, and we went out to bars and clubs most days. His attitude was that he'd just work and save up till he could go on holiday - and then enjoy himself!

Swiss men are still men, unfortunately. Can't live with em, can't live without em. An international problem I would say.

Shall we start a thread about men?

Lisa

We've already got one:

http://www.englishforum.ch/jokes-fun...ens-stuff.html

I can only recommend Swiss-French men really...

Well either you are a Swiss french guy or a really happy lady i am sesing you are a really happy lady congrats!

Swiss men in general are good but i have met some who are just too anal!!!... but as Aussie Lisa says 'swiss men are still men'.

my man is swiss german... most part he's great but he has his 'swiss' moments and i just tell him to chill. Being an aussie girl myself, it takes getting use to. i do know a swiss french and he's quite devine... a typical charming french boy and much more relaxed than the swiss germans.

but i do know what you mean about socialising being so organised...

Wrong, I'm a Swiss-French chap

It's my English wife who's the happy lady

FYI - I am an American who is very much in love with the single most, incredible, most beautiful, most thoughtful Swiss German ever - and now that I have made you all ill, I will tell you he has a wonderful family who have been very kind and who make me feel as though I have known them my entire life. I guess I lucked out or the Swiss are actually really cool! He has some pretty decent friends as well, all Swiss German - hey, lucky me...now if I could only find a job here...

Hello Jackeen,

Well I'd say you'll have it made, my Swiss male colleagues love female Irish social skills, compared to a shyer Swiss style.
I'm coming from the opposite side trying to help the ladies out of their shell.

You'll just have to train "yer man" when you find him.

Slàinte,
MF

Thanks i am actually not over there yet still in Dublin but i have met a lot of swiss people here through the arts (i am involved in theatre and music) and a lot of them were telling me to head over as there is a lot of places for live music and i thought i could do a language course too.

But Switzerland seems so rigid and i like the friends i have made but they do seem anal sometimes, i also have a few close Irish friends in Switzerland and they told me that if i came over they would look after me but warned me it is different but the concensus was that it is mainly in the german part.

But as i ahve said i have been getting friendly with this Swiss French guy and he is a little difficult to gage sometimes although the other Swiss girls (they are part of a group) have siad that i am just misreading him.

I was all set to go until i started to get this feedback.

I would love to learn about other cultures and learn a language but if the social life is so organised i cannot see what i do via performance going down well in live venues.

But i was so set to go maybe it is just cold feet.

But it was one thing i had noticed Switzerland and the Swiss while being lovely are very well organized.

But i was told there was a vibrant arts scene too maybe that is just organised.

I was wondering if the Italian parts or French parts are a little more lively i was told by swiss friends that they were but they said that the cultures dont interact much at all.

Maybe it is just the swiss i have met and i should just go ahead with my plans.

Or maybe i am mad.

Most of the Swiss men I know are ones I work with. They are all chemists, not necessarily known for being the most social of people. Well, I guess their social but in an awkward kind of way. Definitely different than Irish men, or at least my experience with them. I've spent a bit of time in Dublin and basically every time I went out I was approached by some guy trying to 'chat me up.' Even been asked out of the blue if I wanted to snog a couple of times by someone I'd known for about 30 minutes. That never happens here, well at least not to me. I think that is mainly in part due to the level of drunkeness obtained on your average weekend night out between the Swiss and the Irish.

In my experience the Swiss tend to go out to hang out with their friends and have a few beers not to necessarily get their swerve on and meet other people.

Lou

I think life is what you make it wherever you are. And the opportunities to make something out of you life here are as abundant if not more so than they are anywhere else.

My time here's coming to an end. I used to come over on two or three week stints while working in London and didn't really take to the place. But actually working over here and then moving into an apartment as opposed to a hotel has really opened me up to how good things are here.

I'm really gonna miss it when I go. I'd say to you "seize the moment". Don't worry about what people might or might not be like and worry about how that will influence you. You go and influence them

God, there's probably nothing I want more than to be and live in Dublin... also, apart from many other things, because of the men.

So I guess we'll just have to switch countries

From what I've heard, it's extremely hard to be in an "artsy" job (like theater or music) and if you're not earning a hell of a lot of money (or are an incredibly talented musician) or speak no German you will have a difficult time staying out of financial troubles. Many of my friends are leaving after their Matura (final degree, similar to the German Abitur) to live in Berlin - if you want a vibrant art scene, it's probably there. Switzerland is incredibly limited.

Oh, and concerning men: My mother just told me that Swiss men are considered the most boring in the world... well, might actually be true (sorry guys...)
I fear I just made bad experiences. You will very, very rarely be chatted up in a bar/pub, it's even unlikely to be flirted with when you're in a club - and when, it's quite often a drunken greaseball. Also, in my opinion, there are lots of very good-looking women in Switzerland (or, well, Zurich in my case), most of them are far thinner than in other countries (and way thinner than in Dublin), so if your self-esteem is not terribly high you could end up being a bit intimidated.

Although - I'm probably not the best person to ask about this. It's just that I spent two days in Dublin (of two weeks in Ireland total) and for the first time in my entire life I actually felt at home, and I felt as if I could finally relax a bit (as opposed to being in Zurich).

Sorry if I took away some hopes, I'm sure there is somebody who can give a slightly more positive comment on this whole thing

Several years ago when I lived in Geneva I went out with my swiss-french flat mate to an Irish pub. We met a couple of finnish girls, chatted - and ended up in their flats. Next day, my mate, who's lived almost his entire life in Geneva - said: "This was not normal - this never, ever happens in Switzerland!"

So, yes, it's nothing like Dublin - or Vienna or Madrid or London, where guys and girls go out expecting to meet someone, and are disappointed if they don't!

That is an incredibly nice thing to say thank you.

Hmm you may be right about the Berlin thing

Christ, there are some strange opinions knocking around...
As far as I know the art scene is excellent, varied and has a decent reputation amongst those who look beyond the usual cliches. I've seen nothing comparable where I live now and the other large cities of the North-West, all of them considerably bigger than my hometown(Geneva).
Obviously, places like Berlin or London will have more to offer due to size and what they are.

I'll pass on the the more bizarre comments, too early to get annoyed