I'm new to the forum "Get on there" my friend told me so it best be bloody good here!
I've been in CH for eight months now and to be honest I've deliberately avoided getting stuck into the expat community, if I wanted to surround myself with English people... and Aussies, Kiwis and Sarff Afrikans... I could have stayed near London! Hope this makes some kind of sense and doesn't sound too nasty
Anyway, now it's time to stop being "racist" and say a big "hello" to the English-speaking and expatriate community of sunny Switzerland!
Are there any football fanatics out there? I find myself currently supporting the team top of the Swiss Super League. So as I would do at "home", I have to wear my 'Top of the League glasses'!
it's kind of cool that you made an effort to fit in with the swiss peeps - having a few local friends is a great thing. (and yes, you can make good friends here and no not all swiss folk are dry). anyway, welcome along, enjoy the forum. i am sure you'll find a quite a few football nuts here.
(england vs Oz at paddy o reilly's today - starts at 3pm; yeah it's rugby, but you'll get over it)
edit: ooops you are in Basel; i am sure there will be a basel group watching the game though.
It makes perfect sense to me. I have lived in other countries where the British expat community will swallow you whole, hated that, and decided not to go there when I came to Switzerland. The expat community here had a go at me for "going native", but the Swiss really do appreciate it when you try to fit in.
The reward for that is quite simple - I can hardly step out of the house to do a bit of shopping without bumping into someone who will at the very least give me a nod and a Gruezi, and that can extend to a 10 minute chat on the street, or going for a coffee together.
It's nice. I've done the above off my own bat, avoided the British expats, but now I've found EF, I like the stimulation that this forum gives me, my English is improving by dint of reading and writing here, and wish I'd found the place earlier.
I did exactly the same when I arrived in Basel 18 months ago. It was a really good idea as I think it helped me to settle in faster and adapt to the Swiss culture faster than I would have done if I had just spent my days in Pickwick's! Some of my English friends who have been here much longer than me don't have a clue about the country they now live in!
I have to admit though that I do miss the good ol' English gossip and sarcasm hence the reason I joined EF.