History
Much history has occurred on the soil of what we know today as Switzerland. According to Annie Kishman, “Switzerland has changed hands many times. Originally, the Celts settled it. Then came the Romans in around 107 BC followed by the Germanic tribes and the Franks in the 5th century.” However, Switzerland only started to develop into what we know today in the year 1291. On August 1st, 1291, the Swiss Confederation was founded. This was developed by three cantons as a defense alliance. Cantons are individual nation states. During the years to follow, many other cantons joined along with the original three to increase the size of the Swiss Confederation. The Confederation in 1499 secured its independence from the Holy Roman Empire. Roughly 350 years later, in 1848 the Confederation formed a constitution which replaced the confederation with a centralized federal government. WWI and WWII came around and Switzerland stayed neutral and avoided getting involved in either war. The neutrality that Switzerland is known for has been a model of theirs for many years. Switzerland became a member of the United Nations in 2002. They are active in many UN and international organizations but retain their model that they have stood on for many years, neutrality.https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sz.html
Geography
The Swiss Alps are what most people think about thinking about geography. The Alps literally surround the whole country and provide for a beautiful scene and pictures. According to Annie Kishman’s blog the mountains cover 70% of the country. As a result, its mountainous terrain is what makes all the extreme sports possible. Jenna Stern’s blog notes that the mountains also harbor glaciers, which provide many waterfalls pouring from the cliffs. She also mentions that there are several roaring rivers that empty in the eastern and western lakes.
As Annie Kishman wrote, Switzerland is not a participant of the European Union. Due to its independence this means that the currency is different than the Euro. Even though the Swiss Frank is less than the Euro, Switzerland is still a very expensive country.
Weather/Climate and Packing Tips
The climate in Switzerland is moderate with temperatures not getting too hot or cold anytime of the year. This is a great aspect to Switzerland because it makes it an ideal place to visit all year round. Many of the people that travelled to Switzerland this summer experienced the not so great weather of Switzerland, rain. http://www.wordtravels.com/Travelguide/Countries/Switzerland/Climate
The temperature in Interlaken is normally on the cooler side with the high temperatures averaging 16.4 degrees Celsius as a high for July. (http://www.about.ch/geography/climate/interlaken.html) This is only 61.5 degrees Fahrenheit, which compared to Ohio weather is freezing for the summer months.
While travelling to a cooler climate destination can be refreshing, it also can be a challenge when deciding what to pack in your backpack for the weekend. I would recommend wearing layers and packing lightly. While staying in Interlaken the dress of the local people is relaxed and more geared for outdoor activities. These are the types of clothes you should bring with you. You might get warm and need to take off a jacket or sweater, so wearing a comfortable t-shirt under is a good idea. While in most countries I worried about being too hot, this is the one place I visited that this was never an issue. If you dress in warm, comfortable clothes and have rain gear packed, you will have a great action filled weekend in Interlaken.
Language
I find Switzerland fascinating in many ways however; I find the fact that they have four official languages to be the most fascinating. Those four languages include German, French, Italian, and Romansch. Not to be surprised after hearing that, the ethnic breakdown in Switzerland is Germans make up 65% of Switzerland’s population, the French 18%, Italians 10%, and the Romansch 1%; others make up 6%. This can be linked back to the history of Switzerland and how Switzerland has been developing and adapting over many years. You probably wouldn’t be surprised at this point to hear that 63.7% of the language spoken in Switzerland is German. As said before German is one of the four “official” languages and the Germans make up 65% of the population. French is spoken 20.4% of the time, Italian 6.5%, and Romansch .5%. Some of the many other languages that are spoken include: Serbo-Croatian (1.5%), Albanian (1.3%), Portuguese (1.2%), Spanish (1.1%), and English (1%).
With this information, we can draw out some key ideas for planning ahead. We know that if we want to communicate well with the people of Switzerland, we should know a few key sayings in German and French for sure. It is always nice and helpful to know the following sayings in whatever language you are going to be traveling in: “Hello”, “Goodbye”, “Please”, “Thank You” along with many others. Below is a table with all of the following words written in these languages. Practice up before you go and you will for sure not only impress the people of Switzerland, but you will make your travel and stay much more fun and exciting.
English | German/French | Pronunciation |
German
Hello | Guten Tag | goo·ten tahk |
Goodbye | Auf Wiedersehen | owf vee·der·zay·en |
Please | Bitte | bi·te |
Thank You | Danke | dang·ke |
You’re welcome | Bitte (sehr) | bi·te (zair) |
Yes | Ja | Yah |
No | Nein | Nain |
Excuse me | Entschuldigung | ent·shul·di·gung |
Sorry! | Entschuldigung | ent·shul·di·gung |
I Don’t Understand | Ich verstehe nicht | ikh fer·shtay·e nikht |
One moment, Please. | Eine Moment, bitte | ai·ne maw·ment bi·te |
Help! | Hilfe! | hil·fe |
French
Hello | Bonjour/Salut | bon·zhoor/sa·lew |
Goodbye | Au revoir | o·rer·vwar |
Please | S’il vous plait | seel voo play |
Thank You | Merci | mair·see |
You’re welcome | Je vous en prie | zher voo zom pree |
Yes | Oui | Wee |
No | Non | Non |
Excuse me | Excusez-moi | ek·skew·zay·mwa |
Sorry! | Pardon | par·don |
I Don’t Understand | Je ne comprends pas | zher ner kom·pron pa |
One moment, Please. | Un moment, s’il vous plait | um mo·mon seel voo play |
Help! | Au secours | o·skoor |
Although these sayings are nice to have (I would recommend printing them off), from my personal experience of traveling in Switzerland most people speak English. We did run into a few people that did not, but it was surprising to see how many people actually spoke English and good English for that matter.
All this information from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sz.html
Food
The food in Switzerland is very diverse and can differ depending on where you are located within the country. They have had influences from Germany, France, and Italy since these are the countries that are surrounding Switzerland. Due to the location of Switzerland these cuisines have been incorporated into their everyday eating habits.
When one thinks of what Switzerland produces they immediately think of cheese. Fondue is one of the more traditional foods that are associated with Swiss cuisine. “Traditionally from the Swiss Alp region, this is a mixture of two to three cheeses, melted together in a pot with white wine, kirsch or cider (depending on the region). Small pieces of bread are dipped into the melted cheese.” (http://geneva.angloinfo.com/countries/switzerland/food.asp) While I was in Switzerland we ate at a fondue restaurant, which I felt was a very unique dining experience and was much different than any other during my trip in Europe. However, we found the restaurant off of Frommer’s website and they had said that it was only a two star restaurant according to price, but this ended up being the most expensive meal of my trip in Europe. While guide books give good suggestions, there opinion of what is inexpensive is not always the same as a college student’s.
Another typical Swiss dish is called raclette and is another melted cheese dish. This dish is made up of a block of raclette cheese being held over an open fire. The melted layers are then peeled off and the cheese is then eaten with potatoes or bread. Swiss chocolate is a whole food industry in itself and is seen by many as the best chocolate in the world. Jenna Stern explains how trying Swiss chocolate was at the top of her list of to-dos in her blog when she says, “Eating Swiss chocolate was accomplished within the first five minutes of stepping off the train…” Not only is Switzerland one of the most beautiful countries to see, the food is also delicious!
While chocolate and cheese is what Switzerland is known for when talking cuisine, the influence of other cultures is very visible throughout Interlaken. There were many different type of restaurants within Interlaken and many of them do not specialize in Swiss cuisine. While I was there we ate at a low-key Thai restaurant that was really good; as well as an Italian place. The best advice I can give is to look at the menu to see if it is in English and to check the prices before sitting down anywhere. The quality of food is good throughout the country and most of the people I encountered were very friendly, but the prices in Switzerland were high and my budget had to be thought of before sitting down for a nice meal.
Places to Stay
There are many ways of finding great places to stay not only in Interlaken, but in every city that you travel to. During my stay in Europe I used www.hostelworld.com very frequently. Some other sites that you can use include: www.hostels.com or www.TFThostels.com. Hostel World is extremely easy to use and will lead you to meaningful information in just a few clicks.
I personally stayed in a hostel named Funny Farm while I was in Interlaken. I was very pleased with my stay and the workers were very friendly. According to Hostel World on June 28th, 2010 Funny Farm had an 85% rating. This hostel has many amenities included within the price and many others that cost an additional fee. A few of the free amenities include: WiFi access in lobby, outdoor swimming pool, pool table, fuss ball table, linens, and 24 hour security. Along with this you can pay an additional fee for a breakfast buffet, dinner in their restaurant, towels, and drinks at their bar. For further information you can go to http://www.hostelworld.com/availability.php/Funny-Farm/Interlaken/2155. This hostel has many styles of room including: twin privates, double bed privates, 4 bed mixed dorms, 6 bed mixed dorms, 6 bed female dorms, 8 bed mixed dorms, and 10 bed mixed dorms. The only downfall to this Hostel is its location. This hostel is located in the East part of Interlaken and most of the nightlife and restaurants are located in the West part of Interlaken. Overall I believe that this hostel is a great choice.
Another great option for lodging is the Happy Inn Lodge which is just a five minute walk to Interlaken West-Station. One of our members, Taylor, stayed here and in his words, “All the people that worked there were really nice, it was clean, however breakfast was expensive and not worth the money.” Some of the amenities included are sheets and free WiFi. This hostel is centrally located with just a 5 minute walk to about everything you can imagine. For more information on this hostel you can visit http://www.hostelworld.com/availability.php/Happy-Inn-Lodge/Interlaken/3463.
The third and final recommendation for lodging in Interlaken is Schutzenbach Retreat which is located in the small town of Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland which is right outside of Interlaken. For more information about this choice for lodging, you can visit http://www.schutzenbach-retreat.ch/sites/index.htm. As Katie Hicks said in her blog, “Staying in Lauterbrunnen gives more of a rustic feel and is a better location to take in the landscape of the Swiss Alps.”
Activities
Interlaken is considered the Mecca of Europe for extreme sports and activities. As Katie Hick’s noted in her blog, it isn’t hard to find a place to sign up because there were posters all over promoting the various activities. Any extreme sport that you can imagine is offered in Interlaken. Annie Kishman recommends the Alpin Raft especially if you have a large group with you. Alpin Raft hosts skydiving, bungee jumping, canyon jumping, paragliding, and canyoning. Additionally they speak very good English and are great at helping those decide which activities to do.
Some of the more popular extreme sports are white water rafting, canyoning, bungee jumping and canyon jumping. White water rafting takes about one hour and a half to complete and costs about 85 US dollars. If you do not like to be cold than this is not for you because the water is about 4 degrees Celsius and even though Alpin Raft provides wetsuits it is still rather chilly. Additionally canyoning is another cold extreme sport and is not for the faint of heart because it includes climbing up and down rocks that are wet and really slippery.
If you are an adrenaline junkie than bungee jumping and canyon jumping are for you. Alpin Raft hosts two types of bungee jumps, one off a gondola and another off a glacial gorge. The gondola jump is 500 feet of free fall while the glacial gorge is 300. The gondola jump is more expensive than the glacial gorge but well worth the money because it is very scenic and world-renowned. The canyon jump is about 400 feet of free fall and instead of being vertical the whole time it is more like a swing that allows you to free fall until it catches you at the bottom and takes you through out the gorge. All of these adventures have optional picture packages with them and are recommended because these are priceless photos that you can show of to friends and family.
Night life
Interlaken isn’t the most famous place to party in Europe, but that does not mean there is a lack of activities at night. The town’s tourism is made up of mostly short-term sightseers that the clientele of any bar or disco can change from week to week. You don’t have to look terribly hard in order to find a bar because Interlaken has one of the highest bars per-capita rates of any towns in Switzerland. As a result it is easy to find a drinking buddy in one of the clubs. Buddy’s Pub, in the Hotel Splendid, Höheweg 33 (tel. 033/822-76-12), reminds me of an upscale version of an Irish pub. If you want to combine dancing and drinking then go to Johnny Carlton’s Club, inside the Hotel Carlton, Höheweg 94 (tel. 033/826-01-60). The High-Life club, Rugenparkstrasse 2 (tel. 079/415-09-07), has been a popular stop for many of the locals; in fact it brings a significant crowd from the surrounding valleys. Normally the clubs in Interlaken cost about 7F or $5.75.
If dancing isn’t your favorite past time there is a casino that you can risk your money and gamble for a night or two. The Casino Kursaal, Höheweg at Strandbadstrasse (tel. 033/827-61-00; www.casino-kursaal.ch) is a good place to spend your night after a day of hiking trails or floating down a river. It is also place for dinner and entertainment, hosting a Swiss Folklore show. The dinner and show is a little pricy, but well worth one’s time.
Other Places to Visit in Switzerland
Interlaken was the most popular city to visit during our stay in Europe; however, there are other cities within Switzerland that are worth visiting. Two other cities that were visited and were given high reviews were Zurich and Lucerne.
Zurich is the highest populated city in Switzerland with around 370,000 inhabitants (http://www.world66.com/europe/switzerland/zurich). The city is located on Lake Zurich, and this lake separates the city into two sections. The Old City, located on the left bank of the lake, is full of cute shops, cafes and antique shops. While on the right side of the lake is where the ‘Bahnhofstrasse' - one of the most beautiful shopping streets in Europe and where the high fashion stores are located; like Gucci, Prada, and Burberry (http://www.world66.com/europe/switzerland/zurich). The city itself is relaxed compared to other large European cities. The people seem to enjoy just walking along the lake, enjoying a dinner in an outdoor café, or strolling through the shops in the Old City or on Bahnhofstrasse. Another unique aspect to Zurich is their public transportation system. There are practically no cars on the street due to the tram system throughout the city. It is definitely a walker’s paradise, being able to cross the street whenever you want; only worrying about a tram passing through. The Landesmuseum, also known as The Swiss National Museum, is also located here and is a place where you can learn a lot about Swiss culture and history. For more information about this museum you can check out this website: http://www.musee-suisse.ch/e/zuerich/index.php.
Lucerne is another beautiful city within Switzerland located approximately, two hours from Interlaken by eurail. It is a small city with only 57,533 people living there (http://www.swissworld.org/en/geography/towns/lucerne/). It is different from Zurich and Interlaken in that it captures both the mountains and a city all in one. In Zurich you get a beautiful city on a lake and in Interlaken there is a town, but the Swiss Alps is what really captures the tourist’s eye. In Lucerne the typical Swiss style architecture along with the Swiss Alps in the distance, truly make it a picturesque city to visit. There are two bridges that connect the two sides of Lucerne together, which are built over the Reuss River that comes out of Lake Lucerne. The main one is a covered wooden bridge and fits perfectly into the architecture of this city in the Swiss Alps. There are again many shops to visit, cafes to dine at, and have excursions which are available nearby that can take you into the Alps. While it does not hold the same adventure that Interlaken offers, Lucerne is still a beautiful Swiss city that is definitely worth visiting.
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