With Christmas just around the corner, why not take a quick trip outside of Switzerland and visit a less obvious but enchanting winter destination? Where? Hamburg, Germany. St. Michael’s: Considered by many to be one of the finest Hanseatic baroque churches, its spire is covered in copper and rises 132 meters serving as a key […]
See what is coming to the 85th Geneva Motor Show
Automakers around the world are preparing for the 85th Geneva Motor Show, which counts itself as one of the “top six” global motor shows. The show is open to the press from 3-4 March and the public from 5-15 March at the Palexpo Arena. 10,000 journalists from 103 countries and 670,000 people are expected to […]
Wikipedia to hold Swiss fundraiser throughout December
Every time you access Wikipedia from a computer in Switzerland during the month of December you can expect to see a banner asking you to help fund projects in Switzerland. The online fundraising campaign aims to raise $50 million worldwide primarily from individual readers. Last year, Swiss donors gave an average of CHF 43. Wikipedia […]
Coloured gems smash records at Geneva auctions
Rubies. Sapphires. Diamonds. Pearls. It seems as though a new record was set every time the gavel came down at Geneva-based auctions held earlier this week by Christie’s and Sotheby’s. At the Christie’s auction, 346 items were sold on Tuesday for a total of CHF 147.2 million, a sum exceeding that of Elizabeth Taylor’s jewel […]
Swiss don’t speak English very well according to new study
How well do the Swiss speak English? Not as well as most of their counterparts in other European countries according to a study released Wednesday by EF Education First. The 4th edition of the EF English Proficiency Index ranked the English skills of 750,000 non-native speakers around the world. Switzerland placed 18th out of 63 […]
German Community celebrates St. Martin’s Day in Geneva on Saturday 15 November
Imagine small children bundled up in winter clothing carrying homemade lanterns and munching on pretzels. They sing in unison well-known songs like “Ich geh’ mit meiner Laterne” and “Abends, wenn es dunkel wird” (see performances on Youtube) as they follow a man riding a horse through the snowy cobbled streets of Geneva’s old town. Eventually […]
Swiss want yodelling on UNESCO heritage list
Argentina has Tango, Portugal has Fado, China has the Beijing Opera, and Austria has Viennese coffeehouse tradition recognized by UNESCO on the Intangible Cultural Heritage List. Switzerland announced last month that it wants the international body to give yodelling protective status as well. Yodelling started as a way of communicating from mountain to mountain, eventually […]
New Ebola vaccine trials begin in Geneva
Geneva University Hospital (HUG) is beginning clinical trials today (10 November 2014) of a new Ebola vaccine (VSV-ZEBOV) after receiving the green light from the Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products (Swissmedic) last Thursday. Ethics committees from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Canton of Geneva have also approved the trials. Two different doses of […]
Where to commemorate Armistice Day in Suisse romande
Roughly 20 million Europeans perished between the years 1914 and 1918. Various commemoration services are being held throughout the region on Tuesday. A service of commemoration will be held on Tuesday, 11 November 2014 at 11:00 at the British & Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, St. Martin’s Church in Vevey. And afterwards, HE the British Ambassador […]
Republicans take control of the Senate in US mid-term elections: Update Thursday 6 November 06h00
Americans in Switzerland woke up on Wednesday morning to news that the GOP had taken back control of the US Senate, gaining a majority for the first time in eight years after grabbing Democratic seats in North Carolina, Colorado, Iowa, West Virginia, Arkansas, Montana and South Dakota. As of Thursday at 06h00, three seats are […]
