74 episodes

Your British guide to Switzerland: an audio podcast for English speaking expats living in Switzerland and Swiss interested in Britain. Everything expats need to know about finding a job in Switzerland, how to find an apartment in Bern, Geneva or Zurich, how to find friends and get to know Swiss culture, traditions and of course, learn the language.

We will try to answer your questions and give you personal insight into what it's like to move from London to Bern. This is not just a view from the outside looking in however, we will also bring you the Swiss perspective, from a "real" Swiss, born and bred in the Bernese Oberland.

Swiss and Chips - Your British guide to Switzerland Jo Fahy, Simon Zryd

    • Society & Culture
    • 4.8 • 35 Ratings

Your British guide to Switzerland: an audio podcast for English speaking expats living in Switzerland and Swiss interested in Britain. Everything expats need to know about finding a job in Switzerland, how to find an apartment in Bern, Geneva or Zurich, how to find friends and get to know Swiss culture, traditions and of course, learn the language.

We will try to answer your questions and give you personal insight into what it's like to move from London to Bern. This is not just a view from the outside looking in however, we will also bring you the Swiss perspective, from a "real" Swiss, born and bred in the Bernese Oberland.

    How to survive Swiss queuing culture

    How to survive Swiss queuing culture

    How do you cope with the chaos, confusion, and frequent frustration of queuing in Switzerland? In this episode, we explore Swiss queuing culture and share our experiences and advice on how to survive and possibly thrive in the chaotic queuing land of the Alps. We have some horror stories to share that you might be able to identify with. Whether you’re a newcomer, a visitor, or a long-time resident, we hope this episode will help you to navigate Swiss queueing protocol, or at the very least, give you a laugh.
    Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland Suzi LeVine complaining about queuing in Adelboden.
    A discussion on Reddit about Swiss queuing culture and even if it exists at all.
    Learning Swiss German Hundsverlochete
    Tuck into more Swiss and Chips 🎧 Subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play Music, download as an mp3
    💬 Find us on Threads Swiss and Chips, Jo and Simon
    📸 Follow us on Instagram
    ✉️ Drop us an email: hello@swissandchips.com
    📞 Send us a voice message to play on the show +41 76 282 67 66

    • 20 min
    Decoding Swiss German Nicknames

    Decoding Swiss German Nicknames

    More Swiss and Chips 🗣️ Let us know what you think about the episode and leave a comment
    💬 Find us on Threads Swiss and Chips, Jo and Simon
    📸 Are you following us on Instagram?
    ✉️ Drop us an email: hello@swissandchips.com
    📞 Send us a voice message to play in the show +41 76 282 67 66
    A walk through the Swiss German linguistic labyrinth New here? Join the Swiss and Chips community.
    Switzerland, a country known for its linguistic diversity, is home to the unique dialect of Swiss German. It has many variations around the country, with words, sounds and phrases changing by city or valley. Here, we dive into a very specific topic of Swiss German - the use of nicknames.
    In this episode of ‘Decoding Swiss German Nicknames’, we aim to unravel the meanings, origins, and usage of nicknames. Let’s decode together!
    Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland User feedback Swiss dialects / Swiss nicknames Learning Swiss German The Instagram video.
    Grübschi: Apple or pear core Mürggel: The end bit of a loaf of bread Rittigampfi: A swing Fööf: Five Küdder: Rubbish or bin Gluggsi: Hiccup Gagel: Poo

    • 19 min
    What noise does an animal make in Swiss German?

    What noise does an animal make in Swiss German?

    Join the Swiss and Chips community!  Join the Swiss and Chips chat Send us an audio message to +41 76 282 67 66 Discovering animal sounds in Swiss German: A fun exploration at the Dählhölzli Petting Zoo
    Come with us on a stroll through the famous Dählhölzli petting zoo in Bern where we talk about the different animal noises in English and Swiss German.
    A special welcome and thanks to all our super early subscribers: Samir, Julian, Nuclei, Alicia, Nicholas, Joee and many more - we really appreciate the early support!
    And Krissy! She was the first to comment in the subscriber chat about what advice she’d give anyone planning to move to Switzerland.
    Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland Why ducks say "quack-quack" in English but "ga-ga" in Japanese. By Quick and dirty tipps
    Bee, bird, cockerel, owl, horse, frog, sheep, cuckoo, dog
    John’s explanation of what a Bünzli is Learning Swiss German Liiri, Liiri-Bänz, Gritti-Bänz
    Do you have a suggestion? Send your voice message to +41 76 282 67 66 and we’ll discuss it in the show or via email to hello@swissandchips.com.

    • 19 min
    5 things you need to know before going to a Swiss cinema

    5 things you need to know before going to a Swiss cinema

    Be sure to subscribe to us on Substack Join the Swiss and Chips community chat Comment on our website Send us an audio message to +41 76 282 67 66 Find us on Mastodon Swiss and Chips, Jo and Simon Are you following us on Instagram? The experience of going to see a film in Switzerland has some quirks. The first question you’re probably going to ask yourself when trying to catch a new release is what language it’s going to be shown in and secondly, how much the pleasure is going to set you back. 

    In this episode, we talk about which kind of cinema typically shows films in which languages, how dubbing or subtitles come into play, the financial consequences of a cinema trip in Switzerland and where to find out what’s on.
    We also explain why we moved the Swiss and Chips community to Substack, a place where we want to hear from you and get to know you better.
    All our content and community chat on Substack is free.
    On Substack, you can directly subscribe to the episodes and additional content via email, be part of the subscriber chat, give direct feedback on the episode articles and have your say in polls.
    This is what happens if you get in touch with us We read all comments, emails and chat replies carefully, as we really want to hear from you. Often these conversations make our day and are why we’re doing what we’re doing.
    Other community members can join the discussion, give advice or get help.
    All of this will directly influence the show and upcoming topics.
    At this point, many thanks to our first new subscribers on Substack 🥳 and a special welcome to Amritam, Jane and Krissy 👋
    Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland Why we moved from Facebook to Substack
    An app to look up films playing at the cinema: Cineman
    Learning Swiss German Swiss words we explain in this episode: “Schärmä”, not to be confused with “Schirm” (umbrella) or being “andercover”. And as a bonus, a more cinema-related word: “Küder”.

    • 11 min
    Unboxing the Swiss ballot papers - becoming Swiss

    Unboxing the Swiss ballot papers - becoming Swiss

    We’d love to answer your question in our show. Please leave us an audio message directly on our website or send a voice message to 0041 76 282 67 66.
    After 13 years of living in Switzerland, Jo is finally allowed to have her say in her new home country and participate in the democratic process. The Swiss elections are coming up and after becoming Swiss, this might be the second most exciting day for a new citizen. The papers have arrived (a long time ago) and are ready to be explored. Let's do the unboxing together and talk about the specialities of the Swiss elections.
    Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland What's it like to get the the election material for the first time? What's inside the envelope? How do you vote? Smartvote Connect with us Thank you for listening to the Swiss and Chips Podcast!
    We’d love to answer your question in our show. Please leave us an audio question directly on our website. Get in touch via email and we'll answer your question directly in the show (if possible). Find us on Instagram and become part of this community.

    • 15 min
    We taste traditional Swiss food and drink so you don't have to: Rivella

    We taste traditional Swiss food and drink so you don't have to: Rivella

    We’d love to answer your question in our show. Please leave us an audio message directly on our website or send a voice message to 0041 76 282 67 66.
    The Swiss can't get enough of it: Rivella is the Alpine nation's traditional soft drink of choice. But there's an unusual ingredient hiding beneath the bubbles of this thirst-quenching liquid. Any idea what it is?
    In this episode, we'll introduce you to the delights of Switzerland's weird and wonderful fizzy refreshment, and Simon takes a blind Rivella taste test to find out how Swiss he is after all.
    Notes on this episode of Swiss and Chips: Your British Guide to Switzerland Facts and figures Different colours of Rivella bottles and their meaning The drink experiment! Learning Swiss German How to properly order a Rivella in Switzerland.
    Connect with us Thank you for listening to the Swiss and Chips podcast!
    We’d love to answer your question in our show. Please leave us an audio message directly on our website or send a voice message to 0041 76 282 67 66. Connect with us and become part of the community Don't miss the latest episode of Swiss and Chips. Subscribe via iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, email or RSS! Jo Fahy on Mastodon, Simon Zryd on Mastodon

    • 17 min

Customer Reviews

4.8 out of 5
35 Ratings

35 Ratings

Ian_Gardner ,

Really helpful

Very helpful for those new en Suisse. Thank you.

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