interesting facts...

At Dinner tonight, I learned alot about Switzerland and the Swiss:

e.g that in summer you can go mushroom picking (just the plain variety kids) - anywhere, where it is written. The only catch is that, per person, you can't take more than 2kg's a day. ok a little strict perhaps but you know this is a swiss story when they then start saying that there are police who control the weight of people's baskets. Not leaving the mushroom picking site...no, afterwards, in a narrow part of the road where you can't turn around. Better yet? you get to pay 200 Franks for being so rude as to have picked over your allotted 2kgs, thus depriving the other pickers of their rightful mushrooms.

when talking about the paper I had just written on the differences between Swiss and Australian manners, I started a major discussion about the swiss youth of today. Not the usual, drugs, sex, rock and roll business. No. The heads were shaken, sighs were heard - The youth of today put their feet on desks during breaks in class!!! They leave their jackets on the floor in the lecture halls and (the worst of all) they have forgotten their table manners. (Which has been attributed to the western style of eating on the go all that "fast foods und Hamburger!" and not eating lunch at home with the family where all youths belong). I was then informed that "naturally" the swiss all knew what was the right thing to do when it comes to manners. They have all have "knigge" training in the back of their minds when they are out. Oh Yes indeed they are trained. I seem to remember elbows being smacked off the table, stern looks reminding me my plate would be empty before I was able to get up but nothing like this.