We only went to Zurich to meet one of Mandeep's old house mates - Ignas, but we ended up becoming really intrigued by the place itself. This was unexpected - we never like big cities - but this felt different to any other big city we've been to. With a population of 400,000 it's really small for a big city. It has all the tall buildings and commercial centres of a big city, but none of the overcrowding. The transport system is the most efficient and extensive we've encountered. Trams, trains, buses and boats all linked with the same ticketing system. It doesn't feel polluted either as everything runs on electric. Most cars are under 5 years old as the majority of people acquire them on lease, so emissions are low. The clean alpine air seems to channel into the valley where Zurich lies, unlike Athens where the surrounding hills give it a stifling feel. There is perhaps the highest degree of civility among people - no one litters, no one shouts in public, there is no petty crime etc. This tends to correlate with higher financial equality in a society and such is the case for Zurich and Switzerland as a whole - they don't have a 'lower class'. The minimum wage although unofficial is around 40,000 Swiss francs - about 26,000 pounds. Everyone is well paid.
Socially unacceptable behaviour is rigorously enforced by an intrinsic desire among the people to follow law and procedure, even down to things we would consider unnecessary. We were told by our host how they were once told off by their neighbour for using an unofficial bag to throw away their rubbish (they have official bags). Beyond that, should you ever get into trouble with police, fines are very high. For example, we were told about a person who was drunk and found by the police one morning, taken to hospital, checked for ailments, then taken to the station until he sobered up. He was fined 6000 CF for the whole thing, every stage of his recovery needing payment from him. That was probably the last time he drank too much!
It's true, things are expensive here, but not too bad if you don't eat out. Everyday items are a little more expensive than the UK, but eating out is way more. Me and Mandeep easily spent 35 pounds on lunch, another instance me, Mandeep and Ignas spent nearly 50 pounds on 3 portions of spaghetti! It is normal for the locals, the system is such that everyone has a lot of disposable income. No-one has any real assets - 80% of the population rent their homes and most cars are leased. Tax is only 8%. Most of the properties in Zurich are owned by the bank Credit Suisse and rental prices are fixed according to the strength of the economy. Sometimes the rent automatically reduces!
We met a lot of people who work in banks - banks are everywhere. I remember reading 12% of the workforce is in banking (very high compared to other countries). Several people told us about the stress levels being almost unbearable at work, but the benefits of living in Zurich enough to keep them there. Should you become unemployed in Zurich, don't worry. The benefits system pays you 70% of the wage of your last job and helps you to find work suitable to your skills. Unemployment virtually doesn't exist, except for voluntary unemployment.
Switzerland has very strict immigration laws, you can't just turn up and stay. You need to be able to contribute to the economy before being allowed in the country - you need to have a job lined up. Anyone who turns up uninvited is simply ejected from the country. To become a citizen, you need to have worked in Switzerland for 12 years, be fluent in one of the official languages, not have a criminal record and be of sound character. Even then there 3 levels of citizenship!, each giving increased rights. To buy property in the country besides a LOT of money you need a permit (if you're a foreigner), and there's a quota system - so if the quota has been filled you could be a billionaire but that won't get you Swiss real estate.
After learning these things, me and Mandeep couldn't help but ask... how on Earth did Switzerland get so rich? Fortunately, Zurich has a fantastic museum - the Swiss National Museum - so we spent a day there quenching our thirst for Swiss related knowledge.
Due to it's location in Europe, what is now Switzerland has been conquered by many peoples throughout history. Since the bronze age the Celts had it for a while, Romans have had it, Alamanni tribes had a piece, then in became a Frankish kingdom and the Ottomans had controlled it too. With the Christianisation of Switzerland by the Romans from 300 - 600AD, many Benedictine monasteries were established which the museum cites as a source of Swiss punctuality and diligence. The Protestant reformer Martin Luther died in Geneva, so Switzerland was strongly affected by the reformation. The massive influx of printed material in the 18th century was cited as a reason for the secularisation of Switzerland. All this was interesting from a cultural point of view, but we'd arrived at 1850 on the timeline and Switzerland was still a very poor country. It was after this that wealth really started to increase in the land.
Becoming a federal state in 1848 was the first step. The rest of Europe was dominated by monarchies, so the Swiss were ahead of the game. It wasn't banks that gave the Swiss their initial boost of wealth - it was textiles. They were the biggest world exporters of textiles by the late 19th century. With textiles they were manufacturing machines (for production) and chemicals (for dyes). Alongside textiles, the watch industry took off. The economic boom provided by the textile and watch industry, combined with the stable politics of federal state, meant that Swiss banks became an attractive place to keep wealth. From the earliest days the Swiss have provided banking secrecy and legal security to their clients. Politically, they remained neutral throughout both world wars. While the world was in chaos this small nation surrounded by mountains was quietly doing business... lots of business... and that's how they became so rich.
Their wealth was not formed by trading slaves, nor by looting conquered nations, nor by oppression. Yes, I have issues with the global banking system but in a 'lesser of the two evils' sense I must concede that I really like Zurich. It is safe, secure and efficient and if we were to live in a big city, we would rather live in a place like Zurich.
Mandeep cooked for 6 people one night
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