In your other thread you ask just about Basel and Geneva - are you restricted just to those towns? Do you speak French or German?
If you're just planning to move at random and see what happens when you get here, then I'd suggest it's not a good idea to move to either place.
It depends on where you are coming from.
If you live in Olten, it's a brilliant idea.
You should perhaps first consider what sort of income you could make before you do anything.
If you already work for a multi-national Pharma company, then BANG, Basel is the place for you.
If you have no formal qualifications for anything, then finding work maybe difficult if you don't speak the local dialect.
It also depends on what sort of person you are, Who you are coming with, what your interests are, etc.
So far we have no idea who you are or what you're about, so how can we say if anywhere is better than where you currently are.
I too am considering a move to Basel for a job with a technology company. We will be moving from Texas and it will be a huge transition. Basel seems like a wonderful city.
We have a 3 1/2 year old and a baby due in January. I'll move my wife after I find a house for us and get the essentials completed.
Basel is obviously not a nightlife city but do people like living there? Any recommendations on areas to live? Our son is a bit noisy so we are going to pay the premium for a home vs apartment.
I'll try to ask specifics:
Do those of you who live in Basel generally like living there?
Since this is our first European living experience, should we ship our car?
Can you recommend an area with homes 2.5k-5k with freestanding homes? Kid friendly? Apologies, but we come from a area with all suburbs.
Are there any Brazilian communities or churches in the area? My wife is Brazilian and we are looking for a good church. Any denomination really.
Any other tips for a foreigner moving to this city?
I can't answer your other questions, as Basel is a long, long way away, beyond the Great Metropolis and the Outlands of Olten, but I can give you a link to a Brazilian church in the city: http://www.inforel.ch/i1264.html
Hope that's useful. I'll leave the rest to the locals.
Understood on the OP. Will give him a break, good intentions, I remember my first beer too.
Look forward to learning more about the country. I'm fascinated this far and I really disagree with the "impressions" of the Swiss written various blogs. Every one has been friendly and helpful. I am looking forward to the move. The change will do me good.
Welcome to the forum.
Get hold of a copy of “Living and Working in Switzerland” by David Hampshire. It’s full of useful info for both before and after the move. You can order it from your local bookshop or via the Internet.
I wouldn’t bother shipping the car as you’d have to have modifications done to make it meet Swiss regulations. Plus you’ll probably have heart attack when you work out the price of gas per gallon here compared to Texas. Either use the excellent public transport system or get a new or secondhand car once you’re moved in. European models are much more efficient on fuel usage than the American gas guzzlers.
Recommendations for where to live - if I were moving with kids, I'd probably live in Riehen, Muttenz, Allschwil, etc, more the outskirts kinda, than directly in Gross or Klein Basel. The reason for this being that usually the apartments are not quite so stacked on top of each other, and there may be more options of having a small garden (yard ) as well as a better ratio of houses (perhaps row-house) to apartments. Another benefit to many of those also tends to be lower tax and (I believe) health insurance, but the trade off is sometimes slightly higher rents (but I've heard that the tax benefit outweighs the higher rent).
Before bringing your car, or deciding on a car at all, I'd look for where I wanted to live - depending of course on the type of car you have or like. When I first moved here, my brother-in-law and his wife lived out in a small town and some of the roads along the way would have been a little frightening in my mother's Ford (somethingorother) SUV and "okay" in my 4-door Cavalier, but perfectly fine in my mother-in-law's Opel Corsa hatchback. So, see what your neighborhood is like, and then choose.
For many things (and in many / most areas near Basel), public transport here can't be beat. After being here for 5 years though, without a car AND being previously accustomed to getting in my car and DRIVING for hours, I really miss it. So, make sure you keep your driving options open. There are a few rental / share schemes (such as Mobility car share) here that make driving while not owning pretty manageable.
Other than having a desperate urge to drive (wish I'd known more sooner after I arrived - selberschuld - my own fault) and living a lot closer to family (in-laws) than I'm accustomed to doing (I'm a military brat), I love it here.
While I don't know much about moving with a family to Basel -- work just posted me here for four months.... And I really like it!
Everyone back home told me that Basel is not a big town --- sleepy and mostly industry, they said.
I think it is very cool.
A wonderful walking city, with interesting sights and museums.
There are supermarkets seemingly everywhere; shopping is easy.
And, as other posters have said, the public transport is awesome.
In the true, original meaning of the word --- I have been awed!
Pristinely clean. On time.
The trams and buses have areas for strollers and "kneel down" to assist with getting them on and off.
I've seen spending every free moment taking the public transport to various outdoor area both inside and outside of Basel and it has been great.
I've also been exploring the rest of Switzerland via the trains (and buses/trams) at my destinations.
So easy!
It is expensive to live here, though.
I come from one of the most expensive cities in the U.S. (San Francisco), and work gave me a cost-of-living adjustment!
I am not complaining, just sharing interesting factoids:
An import beer in a bar: $15.
Bought some celery in the market yesterday, without even noticing the price: $6. (Cheese is really cheap. Meat is not so much)
My staple of roast chicken from Migros: $12
$100 per month for Basel city transport card for me
$60-$150 round trip for 1 person on the trains to nearby places (Zurich, Bern, Interlaken). Without a half-fare card.
I gladly pay the high transport costs, if it means clean, quick, everywhere, on-time! I am coming from a place where the 38 Geary bus through SF was called the 38 Scary, and you didn't want to touch anything and stepping in vomit happened regularly and boisterous teenagers rough housed or yelled across the entire length of the bus.
(I do, however, miss my car a bit. But I don't think I would really use it much here).
From a Zurich point of view, this is correct, sleepy very much!
And Basel has a almost Swiss-southern (very local) climate, generally 2-3 degrees C warmer and mainly much more sun than in Zurich, especially during winter season, indeed very distuinguishable!
That's true anywere in Switzerland.
Well, what else should it be?!?? This is just normal, isn't it!?
Every third working person in Switzerland commutes to work with public transport, daily.
Well, only in a night club. In a normal restaurant a " Stange " (lit.: a pole, 3 dl from peg-taps) beer costs between CHF 4-5.
see in Basel: http://bazonline.ch/basel/stadt/Es-g...story/26983016 ...
in Zurich: http://blog.tagesanzeiger.ch/stadtbl...s-schieflauft/
Well, from my point of view, cheese is very expensive. And well, meat is not cheap, but I prefer to eat healthy bio (-->organic) meat without any antibiotics in it and from animals, which have not been feeded with genetically modified US soja-beans! And chickens, which saw sun (... or clouds, for heaven's sake) every day!
see also: http://www.srf.ch/suche?q=monsanto
If you put it into the oven yourself, it is only CHF 5.50 (" Aktion " right now by Migros: http://www.leshop.ch/leshop/Main.do/...FUcV3godbxoAIQ )
Only, because you are not a resident inside of the transport network in north-western Switzerland ( TNW ), otherwise it would be CHF 73 (or CHF 60 for a yearly card) per month for the whole TWN network (canton of Basel Stadt (city) and canton of Basel Land (country))!
see fares ( BVB ): http://bvb.ch/en/tickets-fares/stand...es/travelcards
see network: http://www.tnw.ch/fahrplan-und-linie...iniennetz-tnw/
Almost everybody who lives in Switzerland and travels ~4 or more times a year with ÖV (public transport) has a half-fare card!
We truly and thoroughly appreciate your contribution to our health and protection of our ( and earth's ) precious and life-important environment!
...... However, ... "sigh" ( a very deep one! ) ... we are not that "happy" at all about the fact that 4.5% of the world's inhabitants contribute 33% ( one third !) to the world's pollution ! In fact: What an ignorant and arrogant misuse.
And last, but not least, we are not surprised, neither , not at all!
Only concerning CO2 pollution see:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ky...t_map_2010.png
One of the main reasons I'm considering an expat move is for my sons. I want to teach them respect for the environment, respect and Switzerland is a good classroom.
I have no idea how to compare costs of living. My concern has been salary and taxes. What's a good salary, or a great one? I don't have a basis to work from.
My wife is Brazilian and made a transition to the states, she is completely fine. Me, a Texan, loving, truck driving, tech executive, with a passion for culture, art and travel, should I risk it all in a new country?
I think we are going for it, for my kids and wife. This forum is very helpful. A real comfort.
Very simple, for a starting point only, multiply your current salary with a corresponding PPP value (Purchasing Power Parity) and than change it to CHF while applying the corresponding exchange rate.
From a private living point of view, I would advise to use the PPPPRC , which is currently at 1.566739.
Of course, your living standard/expectations will change as well, because ... well, different culture finally means different priorities, of course. ... And more than you would expact. And, I often have the impression that many expats - especially from the USA - do not consider such thoughts before they meet the depression phase of living an expat life, which every expat will inescapably have to enjoy ;-) E.g. regarding space and privacy , or emotionality , just to name a very few.
As starting help, cosider to read this: http://www.dicconbewes.com/about-the...swisswatching/ But this is only to get a very positve basis for your future challenges
But a much more thorough perception you get by this: http://www.bergli.ch/100/con_liste.a...StartPageNext=
But, it will be you and your family who define how they want to percieve what you like to learn or not. And being able to communicate in a local language will be a major aspect of it. Actually, this is by far the most important , as well as, at the same time, the most challenging aspect of an expat life (if you are not used to ispeak in a foreign language, you will soon be disappointed how slow and how much work it means!). ... and even more than you could imagine. ... And finally, we are our own designers of our destiny ... while being part of a society with not small (quite the contrary!) influences of course. So it is fundamentally important which society you choose to be part of - if you can (e.g. expat bubble vs. " I am still a foreigner, since that is and stays just a fact, but I am curious and willing to understand, and open to be eventually surprised" ).
And ,yes, Life is hard.
Now I have to leave, since I am invited to a Sylvester (NYE) dinner. "Es guets Neuis!"