Capital: Zurich … 8,420,000 People … 41,285 km²
The Country
Known for Swiss Army Knives, Swiss Chocolate, and the Swiss Alps, Switzerland is a country that has provided the world with many inventions and delicacies. Switzerland has stayed neutral in foreign military conflicts for over 200 years, even though military service is still compulsory for men. Switzerland is also known for luxury and banking, manufacturing many of the worlds most expensive watch brands including Rolex, Jaeger-LeCoultre, and Omega. Switzerland also has more banks than dentists, and has adhered to strict bank-client confidentiality since 1713.
Fun Facts:
If you have a “social pet” (such as a ferret, guinea pig, canary, etc) it is illegal to only own one. They need a friend!
Switzerland has enough fallout shelters to house their entire population if there is a nuclear war.
There is a Swiss political party called the “Anti-PowerPoint Party”, aiming to reduce presentation software.
My Experience
I went to Switzerland with two friends as part of a multiple country road trip. We were staying in Northern Italy, and we wanted to go to Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Austria before heading back to Italy in the same day. Suffice to say, we were not in Switzerland for long, but we had a great experience.
We started by driving around up Lake Maggiore to visit the town of Locarno, a town with palm trees, sandy beaches, and right at the base of the alps. We went to pay for parking, but it was at this point we realized that Switzerland was not in the Eurozone, and we’d have to get our hands on some Swiss Francs… or not pay for parking. What we did will forever be a mystery.
We continued driving for a few hours, eventually reaching Lucerne, a beautiful city near Zurich. By pure chance, we walked into Lozärner Määs, Lucerne’s Autumn Fair. Filled with rides, games, and plenty of food, we only stayed a while before continuing on the road. We would have stayed longer, but daylight was fading and we still had two more countries to visit. Also, after seeing prices, we realized that as poor university students, we would never be able to fit in.
To save on some money, we went to a market in Italy before we left to get some food. Well equipped with red wine, cheese, meat, and grapes, we drove to the municipality of Meggen to enjoy our homemade charcuterie board. I took this opportunity to take some drone photos Lake Lucerne while we were relaxing by the water. We had a few more hours of sunlight left, so we packed our things and made our way to Liechtenstein.
Photos of Switzerland