During our recent trip to Switzerland, we visited the Swiss National Museum. The aspect of Swiss cultural history that intrigued me most was how their political system combines features that appear to come from opposite ends of the spectrum in American terms. They have a weak federal government and strong "states" (cantons), but also a direct democracy with citizen-generated initiatives. The Swiss people hold on tightly to traditions, but with liberal social policy. I decided I wanted to read a book that would help me understand how these apparently contradictory traits fit together.
Diccon Bewes is an Englishman now living in Switzerland, and Swiss Watching is an entertaining if somewhat anecdotal attempt to "unravel the true meaning of 'Swissness'." Its style is similar to Bill Bryson, although in the early chapters Bewes downplays the humorous travel stories in favor of more historical and cultural analysis. For me, it mostly struck the right balance between being informative and being comic. It was good to read it after spending time in Switzerland, because some of its observations corresponded to things that I had noticed. I felt like I had a better sense of the country after reading it.
Diccon Bewes is an Englishman now living in Switzerland, and Swiss Watching is an entertaining if somewhat anecdotal attempt to "unravel the true meaning of 'Swissness'." Its style is similar to Bill Bryson, although in the early chapters Bewes downplays the humorous travel stories in favor of more historical and cultural analysis. For me, it mostly struck the right balance between being informative and being comic. It was good to read it after spending time in Switzerland, because some of its observations corresponded to things that I had noticed. I felt like I had a better sense of the country after reading it.
