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Snow, a frozen lake and beautiful mountains: there aren't many more things you need to complete the perfect Swiss winter destination. When we headed to St. Moritz in January 2022 we had high expectations for this famous ski resort with a glitzy reputation. And it absolutely lived up to them! With breathtaking winter scenery and vintage Winter Olympics sights, there is lots to do here even if you're not skiing. 

Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland

• Reasons to go (there's more to see than the ski slopes!)
• How to get there
• Where to stay
• What to do while you're there

Learning Swiss German

This episode's word is: Iischzapfä. Hint: you'll see a lot of these in Switzerland in the winter!

Don't forget to visit our website for photos.

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What is it really like to move to Switzerland? In the second of two episodes looking back at when Jo first relocated from the UK, we delve into some of the unexpected sides to setting up a new life among the Swiss. In this episode we cover:

• Differences in lifestyle between England and Switzerland
• The surprises that come with renting a flat
• Working in Switzerland and finding a job

Previous episodes we refer to in the show:

• How to find an apartment in Switzerland as an expat
• How to find a job in Switzerland as an expat

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Jo moved to Switzerland just over a decade ago, so it seemed to be about time to talk about her experience, the highlights, and what she would do differently if she would do it all over again.

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If you have a British-Swiss child and live in Switzerland, like we do, how do you go about getting their first passports? In this episode we'll explain everything from organising all of the documents to taking a suitable picture of your little one. 

Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland

• Organising the Swiss passport: where to get it, what you need and how to take a picture.
• The British passport: The long list of documents, how to organise them and roughly how long it takes. Start with the online form.

Learning Swiss German

This week's word is: 'Schoggijob'

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It's the big moment in the Swiss citizenship process: finally you will meet someone face-to-face who will decide whether all the paperwork you have collected, all the forms you have filled out and all the studying you have done is enough to make you a viable candidate for becoming Swiss.

My moment finally came when I was invited to the office that handles citizenship applications in Bern. I've read so many reports in the media about the difficult questions posed at these interviews and heard numerous horror stories about people being grilled on matters of Swiss society and history, or being asked highly personal questions. What actually happened was something quite different.

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Vines, food and splendid views: if you're looking for a short and easy walk to do by yourself or when you have visitors in town, this is an episode for you! We talk about a scenic, circular walk in canton Bern that will take you from the village of Twann to Ligerz, via the vineyards and back along the lakeside to Twann. 
To get to Twann, you can go by train or park your car at the train station.

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Once you have fulfilled all of the criteria to apply to become Swiss (take a look at our previous episodes in this mini-series if want to know more about this), you will be faced with filling out "the form". This is where you provide all of your personal details including your entire education history and certificates, Swiss employment history, references and more. In this episode, I explain exactly which documents I had to gather as part of the more than 50 pages I had to put together.

Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland

• How long is the form?
• Where do you get the form from?
• What kind of information do you need to fill in?
• Who can be a reference?
• Do you need to order extra documents or certificates?
• What else is important to remember when filling out the form?
• How long does it take and when can you start?
• What happens when you have finished the form?

Learning Swiss German

This episode's word is: Häbel. We explain what it means, its other forms and when to use it.

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Before or instead of a dinner, at a garden party, a wedding, an office function or even a funeral, it‘s always the right time and place to join or organise a classic Swiss apéro. But what is expected at this typically Swiss get-together? We talk you through the food and drinks, the preparation, and, as always, the subtleties of navigating a Swiss event.

What is a Swiss apero?

The classic Swiss apéro involves nibbles and drinks and is suitable for any occasion.

The food usually consists of cold meats and cheese, crackers and/or (Zweifel) crisps. It can be a little fancier with small pizzas, mini croissants, or anything you find in the kitchen to serve and eat by hand or from small plates.

For drinks, you‘ll find white wine and mineral water and most of the time, orange juice. But also here - from tea to beer - nothing is a must, most things go.

That‘s it food- and drink-wise, but it can also be much more elaborate of course.

The occasion can be anything. It can be a big celebration, for a wedding for example, but it can also be without any major occasion at all if friends walk by and you invite them to your home for an apéro if the time feels right.

What do you do at a Swiss apéro?

You meet, greet and chat. It's a great opportunity to get to know people better and talk to them. And that's it!

All the in-betweens, what you can expect, what the atmosphere's like, and the do‘s and don‘ts are all discussed in this episode of the Swiss

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There have been a few long breaks between our last podcast episodes, but we had a good reason: we have a new person in our family! Please welcome Maeve, our beautiful baby girl, who you may now hear in the background of some of our recordings.

She was born in early 2021 and our lives became a whirlwind of excitement. Now that the chaos has calmed down we wanted to give you an update and share Jo's thoughts on how pregnancy and having a baby in Switzerland is different to the UK.

We've also introduced a new regular slot in our show to help you learn Swiss German! In every episode we'll talk about one typical Swiss tradition, event, word or saying you need to know.

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Setting foot into another country can mean a significant change of your lifestyle and sometimes a culture shock. We asked in our Facebook group about your weirdest thing you’ve experienced when you moved to Switzerland and got loads of fun and interesting comments as well aas interesting discussions started. Thanks a lot for that!

In this episode we talk about a few of them and Jo will tell you about her personal story when she moved to Switzerland.

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