After 3 weeks in Genève I've come to notice a lot of culture differences. Some of them are just because I'm in Western Europe (people ignoring hygiene, being way more fashionable...) and some are just purely Swiss, either way I thought it would make for an interesting blog....
1) I think all of Europe runs on a different "lifestyle" (for a lack of a better word) clock. The first few weeks of being here I have found myself doing things at my "normal" American speed and having my boss and those around me wonder why I'm rushing so much. Even in a big city like Genève, things are at a slower pace. My job is the perfect example, every morning instead of getting to work right at 9, we make coffee or tea and meet in my boss's office to chat about the day ahead, this often takes up to an hour and a half of our morning. Lunch is another difference, while we get the usual hour at work, at the UN they have two hour lunch breaks and Heidi and I often find ourselves done after 40 minutes at the most and waiting to get on with our days, as everyone else is relaxing and taking their time. The Swiss also consider their family time very important, which means on Sundays and everyday after 7pm most everything in the city is closed. Once I get home and make dinner it's well past seven and I find myself trying to figure out ways to occupy myself for the next 4 hours before I go to bed. I came to the conclusion today that "when in Rome, do as the Romans do..." so I'm going to make an effort to enjoy the European lifestyle, take my time when doing things, enjoy moments (and meals) and maybe learn to actually relax, something I think most Americans don't know how to do.
2)I think the thing that I've realized the most about myself since being here is how paranoid I am. I know I'm a little more neurotic than the average American, but I really never noticed how we live lives of constant worry, and why? I can't tell you the amount of times I've seen kids flying around on their scooters (which are still popular here, by the way) without helmets, I'm talking FLYING down huge hills on busy streets with nothing to protect them, and their parents, not worried in the least. Maybe that's not the best example, but it's the first that comes to mind. I think it's very "European" to not worry about things, and deal with situations as they come, and that is just exemplified by the Swiss's sense of trust. Never have I been in a country that trusts people the way the Swiss do, for God's sake, their bus system is all on the HONOR CODE. I think in the US we're so flooded with mass media hysteria, warnings and horror stories that we live in a society of fear. I remember first flying into the Zurich Airport, the woman next to me put her carry on in a seat near the gate and left for about 30 minutes to walk around the airport, trusting her belongings to everyone around. I immediately start thinking there might be a bomb in the bag.... sure enough, no bomb, just a lady who needed to take a walk and a bag that was simply too heavy to bring along. One would think because of all this trust floating around that people would take advantage of the Swiss all the time, but I think just the opposite happens, I have found myself not wanting to scam the bus lines but being more than willing to pay the 45 Franc a month fee for a bus pass, even if no one will ever check it. It really is strange how trust works.
3) The Swiss are some of the most reserved people I've ever encountered. They aren't outgoing, they don't spill their life stories when they meet you and they tend to sit back and take things in, this my friends is the COMPLETE opposite of me. Never have I noticed how aggressive American culture and people are. Walking down the streets everything is very calm and collected until you get a bunch of US/Canadian/where ever tourists who are yelling to each other and tromping around. It's even apparent in the UN meetings, when countries like Egypt, China and the US are spouting their opinions at every chance (and rightfully so) the Swiss will speak very rarely and will often not say things that stir the fondue pot if you will. Everything is always so calm and collective, as an outsider it kind of makes you feel like you're constantly a mess. I guess this is another thing to learn from the Swiss, how to rationally deal with situations.
Overall I think while culturally there aren't HUGE differences between the US and Switzerland, I am really hoping to come home more relaxed and less overwhelmed with things, and I have already been finding myself taking time out of my day to take in a deep breath and enjoy things as they are.
Speaking of enjoying things, tonight Heidi, Alex and I decided to venture out to get dessert, as I said before, everything closes at 7 so we ended up going down to the lac leman (lake leman) and getting an ice cream cone. As the sun was setting Heidi and Alex decided to walk out to the jet d'eau (a GIGANTIC jet of water that comes out of the lake) and see how close they could get, opting to not get wet, I stood on the dock and soaked in something else besides water. The skyline was amazing against the clouds and pink sun setting, and up in old town, looming over the whole city, St. Peter's Basilica's bells were ringing, I couldn't help but thinking of how lucky I was to be where I was at that exact moment. I really think Geneva is a gem of Europe that is looked over so often, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I don't know if it was the chocolate ice cream, the sailboats coming in from the lake, the swans floating in the water or the church bells ringing (grossly perfect right?) but everything seemed, right, and I swear to god, as disgusting as it seems, there was a little Swiss tear in my eye.
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