Singing Christmas trees and Santa's evil sidekick!

Just me in day to day attire!

I currently feel like I am living in a Christmas card. All I need is a little Robin Red Breast to be following me around, sitting on snow filled tree branches. There is a certain romance attached to snow Decembers, and I must say that in Zurich, the snow has made it beautiful.

Unlike the UK, the snow has not caused too much trouble. One or two trains have been delayed a little, but the busses, trams and cars are still flying around the city. The drivers here seem to have not noticed the snow at all, zooming around, accelerating around corners, breaking hard at Zebra crossings. (Not quite Ghana driving, but it doesn't fill me with the upmost of confidence!) (Although, I am yet to start an accident count here!)

The last few weeks has been quite nice. I have been attempting to learn German. I am in a German class surrounded by Spanish speakers. (and one Turkish speaker) An interesting group of international people, in Switzerland with their spouses, or looking for work. I have joined the ranks of job searchers here, looking for something to tide me over whilst marketing Yevu Volunteers. (Still looking for writing jobs, so if you need something written, definitely contact me!) (www.yevuvolunteers.com if you want to volunteer)

Me and SamiChlaus

With Christmas on the horizon, I have had a chance to sample a few different traditions here. On the 6th of December, it is St Nicholas day. This is the day where Swiss people attempt to mentally scar their children for the rest of their lives. They invite a guy called Schmutzli (a friend of Santa Clause (or Samichlaus)) into their houses. He has a list, given to him by Santa, of bad things the children have done over the year. The child must greet Schmutzli politely, say a poem to him, and then hope that he doesn't pack them away in his sack. If they are lucky and not taken away in his large sack, they may receive a gift. If I ever have a child, I must scare him (or her) in this manner. I must also be prepared that I may be paying for psychological care for that child for some time after. (see below for a picture of Schmutzli and Samichlaus)

I met Samichlaus and Schmutzli in the city just before seeing a Christmas tree stage filled up with a church choir. The snow was falling whilst the choir serenaded us. Unfortunately, the robin was no where to be seen, or else it could have been the perfect winter moment.

The snow also enables other kinds of fun. From eating hot soup (homemade and not Heinz!) on the balcony to hurtling down a mountain/hill on a sledge. It may seem like pure joyful fun, (and it is fun) but it is certainly not always joyful. With two on a wooden sledge, when you hit the icy patches you scorch down the curvy (sometimes perilous) track, at a considerable speed. The only thing to stop you smashing into other sledders (many of them kids) is your feet. Either by digging them into the ice to change direction, or slamming them into the back of whoever is in your way. (The second method is far easier!) I came out of it safely though, with only a bruised bottom for my troubles. A small price to pay, for a lot of fun!

Me and a usually blacked up Schmutzli!

A singing Christmas tree, of course!

Bouncing from Ghana, to the UK, to Switzerland is not a smooth ride. There are certain culture shocks that hit you every time. Whilst moving back to the UK came with certain difficulties, spending time in Zurich has not always been smooth riding either. I am the uncouth Englishman here, with slightly worse eating habits, and bathroom habits that the Swiss appear to turn their nose up at. (so to speak!) I am getting to grips with the culture, (although something will definitely not change) and through my German lessons, I hope to be in a position to one day apply for the job of Santa's scary arse helper Schmutzli!

Yevu in Ghana in Zurich

I am back in Zurich after 9 months away. The last time I was here it was cold and snowy, this time the sun has yet to fly away and only a little rain has graced the city. This time I had to find my way across the city alone. As a professional at getting lost, this was rather daunting, but I only spent 10 minutes confused. (fortunately!) I really like this city, of course the company has helped extraordinarily (reunited with my estranged girlfriend!) (it is time this estranged girl of mine recieves a blog name, she is Christened Baked Beans!) (this may change after she reads this!) but the atmosphere here is also great.

People seem a little more open here than the UK. It is no where near as open as Ghana, but a polite Gruezi (hello) is often offered and the checkout people in the supermarkets are always extremely polite and courteous. One thing that is apparent is that a lot of people here can speak English. It is rather embarrassing to be a classic British language snob. At school I took both French and German classes, but if you ask me to get by in either languages I am going to have a problem. Like a true language snob, I thought the best way to combat this language issue is to avoid all possible situations of conversations! (This is not as easy as I thought)

Hunger struck, and it was time to go to the supermarket. I decided on a simple tomato and sausage sandwich. I went and picked up the ingredients (bread, tomato and sausage!) and head to the checkout, confident that I would only need to say hello and thank you! (Wrong! of course!) I said hello, all was going well, the bread and the sausage went through smoothly. But then, the tomatoes! The young lady turned and spoke to me...I stood speechless and clueless...I told her i don't understand (in English). She then replied (in perfect English) that I had forgotten to weight the tomatoes! Damn it! Not only had I failed in my conversation-less mission but I had stood and looked like a typical Brit! (incidentally, the Tomato and sausage sandwich was very nice! but I forgot to buy butter!)

I continued with my mission of avoiding conversation, but on a stroll into the city centre it seemed that I was a magnet for potential conversationalists! I was just walking, minding my own business but I was apprehended by a middle age lady pushing a pram. Of course I had to just throw my hands up and apologise for my lack of German. She chuckled and continued on her way! Whilst waiting at the mainstation I was then approached by an old man and beggar both expecting me to understand them. I seem to be a beacon for German speakers to ask questions. I was finally approached by a lady who asked me if I spoke English...I enthusiastically told her "yes!" but then realised this meant I had to answer tourist questions! I pretended I knew where she should go and directed her to what I thought was main shopping street. I am pretty sure she didn`t trust my advice! All in all this trip has been a disaster where language is involved!

Sitting on trams and standing waiting for an occassionally late Baked Beans (someone jumped infront of a train:good excuse) has given me a great opportunity to people watch. I have seen some spamish people arguing at the back of a tram (Rodrigeuz seemed to have committed an offence!) A girl (who would have been quite attractive) who seemed to have made herself up to look like a doll and a road cleaner who was using what can only be described as a witches broom! (I was half expecting him to fly off) I have no idea if a witches broom is the infashion tool of a road sweeper but I hope it is! I also had the privilege of seeing an invention worthy of the Dragons Den. The suitcase scooter! (Does exactly what it says on the tin!)

I was fortunate enough to join Baked Beans to a press conference of an Eastern European short film festival. I was interested to see the conference, but was pretty sure I may be bamboozled by language again. The first 20 minutes was rather bamboozling, but then we were able to watch the movies. I must admit, I really enjoyed them all. I have never really indulged in short films or other alternative arts.(Zurich is really shoing up my cultural inadequacies) The movies covered so many topics, from the war in Kosovo, the helplessness of homelessness to the social status of workers. Really thought provoking!

PS- Any typing errors are due to this Geman Keyboard (language foils me again!)

So far it has been great here. Baked Beans housemates have been extremely welcoming and it is a pleasure to finally spend some quality time with Baked Beans! (Not on a baked potato with cheese!) I have a flight booked to fly back to the UK which I am not tempted by at all. Will I be late to that flight? Quite possibly!