According to the Worldwide Cost of Living 2015 survey published by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), one kilogram of bread in Geneva costs US$ 7.48. This is the third most expensive of the world’s top ten most expensive cities. Only Paris and Seoul have more expensive bread, costing US$ 8.83 and US$ 13.91 per kilogram respectively. After looking […]
Archives for 2015
Lift off – Solar impulse is on its way around the world
Abu Dhabi, UAE – March 9, 2015: The Solar Impulse team in Abu Dhabi guided by Mission Control in Monaco, saw Solar Impulse 2 take-off this morning. André Borschberg flew the first stage of the round-the-world flight to Muscat in Oman. Piccard will take the reins in Oman and continue onward to Ahmedabad (India). Co-pilots Piccard and […]
Swiss eco tax and child benefit tax exemption votes rejected
Both of these votes delivered firm “No” results. Child benefit tax exemption Only 24.6% voted “Yes” for the proposed tax exemption for child benefit payments. The voting difference between the city and the countryside was low with around 3% more rural “Yes” voters. French speaking “Yes” voters were only 7% ahead of voters in the Swiss German […]
Take our Lavaux wine quiz and win wine
How Lavaux wine smart are you? Answer the questions below before Tuesday 31st March. If you get all of them correct you will receive a gift voucher by email to go along to Terres de Lavaux in Lutry to try a selection of 3 glasses of their fine wines and receive a 10% discount on […]
Geneva-based author Paulo Coelho slams Swisscom on Facebook
What can you do when you have a nasty experience with a phone company and can’t get things fixed? If you are the world famous Geneva-based Brazilian author Paulo Coelho with over 26 million Facebook followers you can do quite a lot! Early this morning he took to Facebook to vent his frustration at the […]
Discover the mysteries of the Humagne rouge grape
The Humagne red grape variety is believed to have come from Val d’Aosta in Italy. Although its exact origins are still not yet fully known. What we do know is that it is widely planted in Valais, it is a late ripener, has soft subtle tannin a type of savage wildness about it and is […]
Swiss landlords stop smoking at home
In Switzerland the communal areas of most apartment buildings were declared smoke-free about five years ago, so the present debate has moved to the inconvenient ‘neighbourhood effects’ of cigarette smoke from those who puff away on thier balconies or at an open window. Since the prohibition on smoking in public places, more and more smokers […]
No French please. We’re Swiss…..
Two recent stories are reminders of the cultural and political importance of language in Switzerland. Choosing to learn English as a second language makes sound practical sense in an increasingly global world, however in Switzerland it is not that simple. Switzerland, a country with four national languages (German, French, Italian and Romanche), has to juggle […]
#sweaselpecker?
A scene captured by photographer Martin Le-May in a London park has taken off on the internet (#weaselpecker) at a rate much faster than any woodpecker with a weasel on its back ever could. The world soon started photoshopping all kinds on things onto the woodpecker’s back. John Travolta, Madonna, My Ray Cyrus, even a […]
The most popular men’s make-up
Johnny Depp, Pete Wentz, Russell Brand and Adam Lambert are all known for wearing heavy make-up on the red carpet. But don’t be fooled. These are far from the only Hollywood men who get a little help in the looks department before appearing in public. You may not be able to spot it, but virtually […]
