Living in Lucerne, Switzerland has opened a Pandora's box of experiences for Xiaolu, a Chinese-American woman. Among the things she talks about here are how she and her boyfriend came to move to Switzerland, her job, and the cost of living there. Sure, there are downsides to living in Switzerland; nevertheless, she is so happy that they moved there.	Xiaolu Zhang

-Where were you born?
Changchun, Jilin Province, People’s Republic of China, but lived in Springfield, Missouri, USA most of my life.

-In which country and city are you living now?
Lucerne, Switzerland

-Are you living alone or with your family?
I live with my Dutch hetero-lifemate, also known as boyfriend, and my adorable son, Julian.

-How long have you been living in Switzerland?
We have lived in Switzerland for about 7 months now.

-What is your age?
I am 27, my boyfriend is 26, and our son is 13 months old.

-When did you come up with the idea of living in Switzerland?
Before living in Switzerland, I was working as an attorney in DC, while my boyfriend, having just graduated from law school, was watching our son all day long (what a great guy, huh?). We both found this situation unsatisfactory. Also, daycare? In DC? We could barely afford rent. My boyfriend told me one day that he applied for a job in Switzerland and I have to say I barely blinked an eye. He had been applying heavily for jobs in several places, so the idea of him actually getting that job didn’t register. The interview/job offer took place within the span of one week, so it was a bit of a whirlwind. We are so incredibly happy that we moved here. Our son is happy (and we can afford daycare!), and we have so many opportunities.

-Was it hard to get a visa or a working permit?
We have a bit of a unique situation. My boyfriend is an EU citizen, so it was a bit easier to get a work permit for him. Normally, you can get a separate work/residence permit for your unmarried partner if you have lived together for more than 5 years. We have not been together that long, but we have a son, so that made it possible for me to get a work permit as well. This came in handy later when I was offered a job.

-Was it difficult for you to get medical insurance before you went there or when you first arrived?
Medical insurance was probably the biggest worry on our minds upon arrival. We have a young son and at that age, children have to go to the doctor’s office for numerous checkups and other medical emergencies. We went to www.comparis.ch to find a good quote for health insurance. Once they sent us an offer in the mail, we accepted it. We have wonderful care and although the premiums are rather high, we get to pick which ever doctor we want, and we can go as often as we need. My boyfriend had major surgery a few months ago and we only paid 240 CHF for the operation. It was also for something related to a pre-existing condition and they still covered it. Given my experience with healthcare in the United States, I was pretty astounded. They even covered the costs from a hospital visit that occurred before we even accepted the offer, because they have to cover you from the time you first entered Switzerland.

-How do you make your living in Switzerland? Do you have any type of income generated?
I work at the University as an instructor and teaching assistant. We make a fairly good living with our combined incomes with enough to save every month. I received the job from the same person who employs my boyfriend, so I was very lucky in that respect. I did not have a job lined up before I came here and as far as I can tell, it is not easy to find a job in the legal field here unless you are in academics or can speak Swiss German.

-Do you speak the local language and do you think it's important to speak the local language?
I believe it is important to speak the local language from a cultural standpoint. Practically, you can get a lot done with just English as many people here can speak it. However, it is possible to feel like a real outsider sometimes when you keep having to ask someone to speak in English, or in High German. We’re in that phase where we still feel like we don’t belong in this country, and I think that eventually becomes a hindrance. I don’t want to leave the country feeling like I learned nothing or that this country didn’t belong to me in some way. I’ve lived in so many places and I’ve always felt like I got something special out of it, but that was because I tried to live like the locals do: speak the language, sample the food, make friends. But I am convinced it will come eventually. Unfortunately, Swiss German is a bit of a tricky language to learn because it’s not the same as High German, which I know a little, so I have a hard time. Right now I’m focusing on improving my German, and that is really the best thing I can do at this point.

-Do you miss home and family sometimes?
I miss my family very much, all of the time. When I was young, I traveled a lot and I never got homesick. I think this was because I always felt like I would come back. Actually settling in somewhere far away makes you understand the true distance between where you live and where your family is. Also, having a family yourself makes you understand the value of having people around who love you. I visit the United States when I can, and usually spend most of the time eating all the bad food that isn’t available in Switzerland.

-Do you have other plans for the future?
We have several trips that we are planning in the future. We are going to Lithuania for work, and hopefully to Italy for a family trip. My boyfriend and I are planning a trip to London at some point as a romantic getaway, and in the distant future, we will be visiting my relatives in China.

-What about housing, have you bought, or are you renting a home? How much do you pay for it?
We are renting a very nice apartment in a not so nice part of town. It’s not terrible, as we have lived in DC and we know terrible, but there has been some known “activity” in the area. We pay around 1100 CHF for a 3-bedroom apartment. We use the 2 bedrooms for ourselves and the third big one for an all-purpose room (study, storage, playroom, exercise room).

However, if you want a similar sized apartment in a nicer part of town, I’d expect to pay in the neighborhood of 1800-2400 CHF. Since there is no parking, we also pay 99 CHF a month for a garage.

-What is the cost of living in Switzerland?
Here are some rough estimates of our bills for a month:

1100 CHF Rent
200 CHF Utilities
600 CHF Groceries
99 CHF Parking
500 CHF Health Insurance

We also have bills for cable, car insurance, property insurance, and daycare but I don’t have the figures on me. FYI, living in Switzerland is EXPENSIVE.

-What do you think about the Swiss?
I have a fairly negative attitude about the locals. I have encountered a few nice people, but I have also had many encounters with rather rude, discourteous people. Perhaps this is due to my being a minority and therefore clearly a foreigner. Perhaps this is just because I haven’t made the effort to speak the language, or perhaps it is just the Swiss way and I shouldn’t take it personally. I’m not sure. I doubt everyone has had a negative experience, so I don’t want to turn people off immediately to the Swiss. I am keeping my mind open and I hope I have more positive experiences in the future.

-What are the positive and negative aspects of living in Switzerland? Positives:
Breathtaking scenery
Healthy lifestyle
Fresh foods
Great insurance
Nice places to go to on walks
Decent weather
Excellent healthcare
Good daycare
Top-rate state-run educational system

Negatives:
Not the friendliest people in Europe
High cost of living
Extremely complicated bureaucracy (try getting something done in less than 2 trips and less than 10 forms)

And the worst? All those expensive cars and skinny people are enough to make a normal, somewhat poor person with a slightly jiggly midsection sink into deep dark despair.

-Do you have any tips for our readers about living in Switzerland?
Go on a lot of walks. I was never the outdoorsy type, but being in the mountains and taking in the scenery while busting your butt hiking is probably the best thing to do in Switzerland. It keeps you healthy, it is a fun activity to do with kids, and it also gives you the opportunity to explore all of the wonders of the country that require a little searching first. Even a walk through the city center is a great way to spend a few hours out of the apartment.

Explore the produce section every month. It’s always a great way to have fun with dinner by making new recipes with whatever fruits and vegetables are in season. We always have the best time during the asparagus season.

Before you move here, don’t throw away all your toiletries and clothes thinking you’ll just restock when you get here. I still haven’t purchased any lotion yet because I keep waiting to go back to the US and get it for significantly less at Target :)

-Do you have any favorite Web sites or blogs about Switzerland?
Pie Pants - this is my blog where I detail all of our experiences so far, including the mundane, the exciting, and the downright embarrassing.

This Non-American Life

IndieMama