Living in the country side
The woman behind the counter looked at me suspiciously. Where does he come from? What is he doing here? As if this intruder meant a threat to the peace in the little village 30 km north of Bern. I pretended I wouldn't notice. Typically Swiss, she would of course not dare to ask any questions. Well, I packed the eggs, joghurts and cheese in my bag and left the cheesery. Welcome to Leuzigen, a country side community between Solthurn and Biel.
Since the Swiss authorities want to know where all the people in this country live, you have to register at the municipality. Not doing it is a guarantee for trouble. Being good citizens, the two of us made the journey downtown (5 minutes down the road by foot) to citizen control office. Right in front of us were two out of the 240,000 Germans that immigrated into Switzerland so far. No problem. Then it was our turn - and it turns out that the person who does the data entry was on vacation. Welcome to Leuzigen.
Imagine this. It is 6:54 am. Five or six people are already waiting at the bus stop. It is still dark. The, passenger seven joins the crowed. Now, would we be in a city, I would have told you everything with the previous three sennteces. But living in Leuzigen, of course, everyone knows everyone and hence it is just normal to arrive at the bus stop and wish everybody a good morning. What a civilized way to start the day - even if it is 6:57 in the morning. Welcome to Leuzigen
Not having a car in Switzerland is considerably less of a problem than it is, say in the US. Hence, the first thing Seba and I bought was a General Abonement. However, to profit from the reduction they offer, when two people in a household buy such GA, I needed to get a form signed by the municipality, confirming that the two of us really lived together. Well, how do you that, if the municipal office opens after my bus leaves in the morning and closes before my bus arrives in the evening. Simple. You send it in by e-mail and get the promise that you can pick it up in the mailbox of the municipality the same evening. Great service, I think. it is 19:00 the same day. I am still in my office. The phone rings. Well, it was the friendly lady, who was on vacation earlier, who asked me if I already attempted to pick up the form. I said no. "Oh, I am so glad. Because I forgot to fill it out. Hence I just returned to the office to finish it. You can pick it up when you get home. " What a refreshingly dedicated and customer oriented civil servant. Welcome to Leuzigen.
Even though it is full of friendly (and in a few cases also very curious) people, I am more convinced than ever before that I am a city person. As of December, Seba and I are house sitting - in Bern.
Since the Swiss authorities want to know where all the people in this country live, you have to register at the municipality. Not doing it is a guarantee for trouble. Being good citizens, the two of us made the journey downtown (5 minutes down the road by foot) to citizen control office. Right in front of us were two out of the 240,000 Germans that immigrated into Switzerland so far. No problem. Then it was our turn - and it turns out that the person who does the data entry was on vacation. Welcome to Leuzigen.
Imagine this. It is 6:54 am. Five or six people are already waiting at the bus stop. It is still dark. The, passenger seven joins the crowed. Now, would we be in a city, I would have told you everything with the previous three sennteces. But living in Leuzigen, of course, everyone knows everyone and hence it is just normal to arrive at the bus stop and wish everybody a good morning. What a civilized way to start the day - even if it is 6:57 in the morning. Welcome to Leuzigen
Not having a car in Switzerland is considerably less of a problem than it is, say in the US. Hence, the first thing Seba and I bought was a General Abonement. However, to profit from the reduction they offer, when two people in a household buy such GA, I needed to get a form signed by the municipality, confirming that the two of us really lived together. Well, how do you that, if the municipal office opens after my bus leaves in the morning and closes before my bus arrives in the evening. Simple. You send it in by e-mail and get the promise that you can pick it up in the mailbox of the municipality the same evening. Great service, I think. it is 19:00 the same day. I am still in my office. The phone rings. Well, it was the friendly lady, who was on vacation earlier, who asked me if I already attempted to pick up the form. I said no. "Oh, I am so glad. Because I forgot to fill it out. Hence I just returned to the office to finish it. You can pick it up when you get home. " What a refreshingly dedicated and customer oriented civil servant. Welcome to Leuzigen.
Even though it is full of friendly (and in a few cases also very curious) people, I am more convinced than ever before that I am a city person. As of December, Seba and I are house sitting - in Bern.
Klodynis - 2008-11-30 22:08
