Why Do the Swiss Stare? And: Testing Swiss Products | Easy German Podcast 581 from Basel

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Wir sind in der Schweiz! Gemeinsam mit unserem Publikum in Basel testen wir Schweizer Produkte, beantworten eure Fragen und sprechen über kulturelle Unterschiede – vom Müllsystem über Sprachverwirrungen bis zum Thema: Warum starren die Schweizer?

We’re in Switzerland! Together with our audience in Basel, we’re testing Swiss products, answering your questions, and discussing cultural differences – from the waste disposal system and language confusions to the topic: Why do the Swiss stare?

SHOW NOTES:
https://www.easygerman.fm/581

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CHAPTERS:
00:00:00 Intro
00:00:19 Greetings from Basel
00:01:57 Your Questions
00:03:11 Embarrassing Translation Mistakes
00:04:35 Cleanliness and Trash Bags
00:07:11 Top or Flop: Swiss Products
00:19:02 Why Do the Swiss Stare?
00:21:56 Do Germans Understand Swiss German?
00:26:23 German Stereotypes About France
00:28:06 Recognizing Germans Abroad
00:32:39 Farewell

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PRODUCED BY:
Easy Languages is a video and podcast series that showcases language as spoken in the streets and among friends. Our goal is to help you learn languages in a fun and authentic way. We are based in Berlin, Germany, but operate with a global network of producers. Learn more about us and check out our other channels:
http://www.easy-languages.org
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Hosts of this episode: Carina Schmid, Manuel Salmann
Camera: Chris Thornberry
Edit: Chris Thornberry

Wait a minute, Cari, you have a piece of lint on your microphone. So. Manuel, welcome to the Easy German Podcast. Thank you very much and welcome, Basel! We welcome you today. We’re currently recording a podcast, live in Basel, with our audience. Manuel, isn’t it extraordinary that we’re in this city today? It’s beautiful, it’s a beautiful city with a beautiful atmosphere, and it’s one of the few opportunities to meet you, our listeners and viewers. If you’re watching this on YouTube, that most podcast episodes aren’t available as videos. Why not? Because… It’s a lot of work, and sometimes we sit at home in our pajamas. Ah, that’s the answer. One of several answers. Okay. We’re really happy to be here with you today. We have a fantastic audience from all over the world, really. And we’ve collected ideas today. We’ve once again crowdsourced our podcast topics, as we say in German. And we’re starting with our segment. We want to answer a lot of your questions today. We’ve been collecting ideas , and we’ve done so beforehand, and we have an exciting audience today. We’ll start with a question from Nelda. Nelda, are you in the room? And now it’s Janusz’s moment . Janusz is still looking at his cell phone. First of all, we’d like to welcome Janusz Hamerski here today as our sidekick. Janusz, come up front. We want to ask you a question now… I think you have to go to the very back, Nelda, where are you sitting? Wow, right at the end, Janusz is running over to you. Janusz will be going around with the microphone today and bringing it to you. Nelda, what question did you bring? Have we… Have you ever had an embarrassing moment because of a bad translation? Oh, embarrassing moments because of translation errors. What’s it like here in the audience? Have you ever had an embarrassing moment? Raise your hand. Every day here in Switzerland. Oh, most of them! You always have to translate. Swiss German, High German or Standard German, French, Italian. Yes, I once asked, did you want a photo with Carol Shreek? Because I thought that was Cheryl Creek’s name. Huh? It’s more of a celebrity fail. Is that her name, Cheryl Creek? Nobody reacts, Manuel. You obviously said the name wrong twice. Which is it now? Carol Shreek or Cheryl Creek? Meryl Shreek. Meryl Shreek. Meryl Streep? Meryl Streep. Do you mean her? I’m not very good with names. That’s right, that’s the solution. I have a lot of embarrassing moments with names. With names. And numbers too, by the way. Because I have trouble remembering names. Yes, fantastic. We already had a really big laugh here on the podcast. Thanks, Nelda, for the question. We’ll continue with a question from Lorenzo. Lorenzo asked us to read it out ourselves. It is: “I have a question for you. I’ve personally lived in both Berlin and Basel.” You too, right? Me too. You know both cities. “And I have to say, when it comes to the cleanliness of the streets, there’s a really big difference.” That’s true. Yes. “I’m interested to know, what would you as Germans like to trade with Switzerland?” Oh, that’s a great question. And the topic of garbage is particularly annoying in Berlin, because people just leave their garbage on the street. And there’s a good system here that we could copy, because in Germany it’s like this: You pay a little more rent, that’s the utilities, and that includes… That the garbage collectors come and take away your own garbage and that of your neighbors. But if you produce little garbage, you still pay the same as your neighbors. And here… That’s why I produce a lot of garbage, so I can get more out. Exactly, and it’s not just you; lots of people in Berlin do that. And here you have to buy certain garbage bags in the supermarket, and they’re very expensive. A roll of garbage bags costs… 30 francs for a roll of garbage bags, but you don’t pay for the bags themselves, you pay for them to be picked up. You’re only allowed to put the garbage in these bags outside your door, and then it’s picked up because it’s an official bag, and you paid for the collection with it. An ingenious system. Pay what you throw away. That’s a really good idea, but then these garbage bags get filled to the brim. Yes, of course. And maybe some people burn their garbage in the fireplace because they want to save money. I think that’s a very German mentality. The Swiss… the money is there, so we can still pay for the garbage. Okay, who here has ever burned their garbage in the fireplace? Nobody? Nobody. Fine. They’re called little bags, right? Little bags, they’re bought. They’re bought, yes. They have to be. I think it’s really good. Okay, you’d like to swap that. Fantastic, Manuel. Very good answer. And also higher fines for those who put their garbage on the street anyway . In Basel, the equivalent of the public order office comes straight out and checks who owns the garbage. Oh, that’s very German. I find that annoying. The people who… But that’s why the streets here are so clean. Okay. Manuel, I have another fantastic question for you. And I’m particularly pleased. That’s my favorite question this evening. It’s from Romina. Wow. Romina says: “Swiss products, top or flop?” Swiss products? Do you have an example? But wait, she has a list, and I bought these products today and brought them with me, so we’re going to do a spontaneous top or flop. Play the… Cari, you had to tell me beforehand! No, that was a surprise. Wait, where’s the button? … Interval music… Wait, I have buttons here too… Oh, now we see behind the scenes, how many… Oh, wait, wait, that’s the wrong thing! Stop all. We’ll start this again. Wait a minute. I have buttons here too. I’m excited. Well? People are clapping. It’s not just my favorite segment, Manuel. Now I’m really looking forward to going through the products with you that Romina sent us . Okay. And they’re in here. Oh, Esthi is helping me now, because I have them in a Rewe bag. They do n’t even have them here. They don’t even have them here, yes. I didn’t have any other one. We’ll start with a spice. Ah, we haven’t had such good experiences with that. We did an episode about spices and got a lot of negative feedback. Manuel, do you know this spice? Aromat. Can I take a look? Okay, there are a few “oohs” and a few claps. Aromat is a very special spice mix from Schwyz. Aha. And spice mixes are actually your thing, because you like spice mixes, where all the spices are together. What does it smell like? Very intense. Okay, I have to tell you: Aromat… …has milk in it. It’s not vegan, which is unfortunately a bit of a disappointment for both of us. Yes. Manuel is vegan, I’m lactose intolerant. Flop! Next. A flop. Janusz will be happy to take it home. Janusz will be happy to try it. Okay, then we have Ovomaltine in the… Then we have Ovomaltine in the bag. So, a lot of fans in this room. Ah, yes. What is that, Manuel? Is that hot chocolate? Yes. I have to admit that I’ve only tried it once in my life. You can’t try it now either, because it’s also… It’s powdered milk that you mix with milk. Oh God, oh God. Esthi, can you open that? And what’s so special about it? We also have hot chocolate and cocoa powder. Well, this was produced. Oh, you prepared yourself. I prepared myself with ChatGPT and Wikipedia, the best. So, in 1865, the pharmacist Georg Wander opened a chemical-technical and analytical laboratory in Bern. He was looking for a means of preventing the malnutrition that was widespread at the time. This is the remedy. It’s a powder, and I don’t understand… Smell it. I don’t understand why it’s still popular. It’s a mixture of malt, milk, cocoa, and vitamins, and it’s mixed with milk. Janusz, can you come on stage? I’d like you to try it now. I’d love for you to. Because we can’t drink it, Manuel. We don’t want to drink it. Janusz is now trying this drink called Ovomaltine live, for the first time in his life. Tastes great. Top. Haha, okay. Great, Janusz. Fantastic. Can we take the cow off the stage again? Then you’ll have the vitamins you need for the evening. Manuel, next we have a drink. Well, it was one, too. Yes. This drink is called Rivella. Rivella, is that like an Aldi Cola? No, it’s a herbal lemonade, and I thought: finally, something vegan! But no, because Rivella isn’t vegan either. This morning, as I was researching in my hotel room, I was shocked, Manuel. You know, the Swiss dairy industry, so many cows, they have to go somewhere with all that milk. Then I did some research: Why is everything made with milk in Switzerland? That’s because they have a lot of cows here. But I found this: Rivella Vegan, you can try it. And Janusz can try the original, which is made with lactic acid. Janusz, what do you say? Super tasty, very balanced, not bitter, but not too sweet either. Great, top-notch. Mhm. You can drink it, it’s okay. Okay, so the idea was to develop a healthy and light drink that uses the nutrients from milk but is more refreshing. Okay, I’ll take that on board. Good, then of course we have in Switzerland… What is typical for Switzerland here? Cows. Yes, what do they make from cow products? Cheese. Cheese, of course. We brought cheese with us, Manuel, which you can’t eat either. Ah, I’m here, this is a disappointment here. It is a disappointment, but we have Janusz, so actually… Exactly, we have to open it now. Would you like a piece of cheese with your cocoa? Exactly. Romina wrote down the following cheeses for us: Gruyère and raclette. We should try those now. I think I can even eat the raclette cheese myself. I’ll just take it out of the package. Is that the traditional way of eating raclette cheese? I think so, right? Straight from the package. A midnight snack, a quick trip to the fridge. Very tasty. Janusz, please, would you like some? Janusz gets the nibbled piece. I have to say, melted raclette cheese tastes fantastic. Okay. We still have to open it. We can’t eat it, says Esthi. Yes, bite into it! For logistical reasons. Give it to Janusz. We’ll try the cheese now. Janusz will eat it. It’s a real… The cheese tastes great and Cari has bitten into this layer of wax here. Nothing will happen. You can eat it too. Janusz, come up on stage and bite into the Gruyère. We’ll do it like a real Swiss on the mountain pastures. And? Is it tasty? It really is tasty. It tastes really good. Mhm. A top from Janusz Hamerski. I’ll take that. Great. Okay. Good. Romina, I don’t know if this is what you imagined. But Manuel, since you haven’t been able to eat anything yet, I’ve expanded the list myself. I’ve also brought you: Ricola. Oh, Ricola. That’s fantastic. Do you like it? I really like it. I actually had a bit of a cold myself. Oh, even the sugar-free ones. Perfect. And yes, I’ll gladly take those. They’re great. They’re sugar-free. For your throat. I bought them at some point and realized they had so much sugar that I stopped buying them. But I didn’t know there were sugar-free ones. Wonderful. Good, and Manuel, I have another special present for you. And there is, of course… What else can you make with milk? Er, chocolate. Swiss chocolate is, of course, very well-known, but most things are made with milk. But there are a few brands that make vegan chocolate. And I’ve brought you, dear Manuel, the first one: Lindt Vegan. Is it from Switzerland? It’s from Switzerland. For me, it’s a… Well, we only have top or flop. There ‘s nothing in the middle. For me, it’s a flop because it’s not top. But I have another brand from another brand, the Läderach brand, I have… You know what it is. Wait a minute, I’ll try this flop chocolate first. Yes. Maybe you’ll like it. And now Manuel is trying vegan chocolate from Switzerland. Yes, that’s good too. But can I throw it into the audience for dramaturgical reasons? Yes, of course. Go ahead. Okay, like at Fasnacht in Basel. Uiii, yayy, vegan chocolate. This one is even better. Oh yes, that brand. Creamy Cashew. Mhm, Läderach. Oh, Esthi, can you open this? Look, it even has an opening system like Apple packaging here . Open here. Guess how much this tiny bar of chocolate costs. We ‘re in Schwyz, nothing’s cheap there. Ten francs, but the closing mechanism alone is worth it. This bar of chocolate cost nine francs. It’s tiny, but muah… I’d say. I’m not throwing this chocolate into the audience. No? No, you take it, I have to talk, you can eat it. A dream. Yes, I’ll share. Will you share too? Manuel, because now comes the absolute highlight. I tasted vegan chocolates yesterday. I walked around like I was in a luxury store, having all the vegan products shown to me. Manuel, these are vegan chocolates. I think they cost about four francs each. I’m curious to hear your opinion. It would be a shame if they were a flop, because then they would be expensive. A chocolate costs ten francs, you say? No. Four francs. Yes, three or four francs. What’s in them? Fat, above all. Be careful, Manuel, be careful. Vegetable fat with cocoa, very roughly summarized, but in a pretty good mix, right? Should I include the price in my rating? No, no. It’s still a flop. What? It’s wonderful. It’s tasty. It’s okay, but it’s very mushy. Not that crunchy. It’s a chocolate that melts on the… Okay, Manuel, so that was a hit or a flop for Swiss products. Hey, thanks. That was a nice surprise. Yeah, right? All in all, there were a lot of good things. Janusz handed out the vegan chocolates. Remember, they cost four francs each. We’ll continue with a question. Yes. Do you want to hear the jingle again? Yes. Natsuko, you brought a question with you, and hopefully Janusz has the microphone in his hand and can give it to you quickly. Where are you sitting? There, on the left, behind you, next to you, on the right. Hello, when I lived in Lausanne and here in Basel, I often wondered why the Swiss stared at me so much. You’re German, but that’s my question. I think it’s cultural. I’m not… Yes, of course I’m very attractive, but I think it’s cultural. Aha. So Natsuko was stared at and thought, do people all find me attractive? Or do the Swiss just stare? Yes, both Germans and Swiss have a reputation for staring, and I think there’s something to that. Well, I think in… What does staring mean? Can you demonstrate that? So staring is when you… So, when I, when we talk and I look at you the eyes, then that’s not staring, because then we’re having a conversation. But if I’m sitting on the subway and someone comes on and I don’t know them and I look at them the whole time, but they’re not looking at me at all, that’s staring. And in America, for example, and in England, I think you’re taught early on, as a child: you don’t do that, it’s rude. But I think in this culture, in our countries, it’s not so rude or you’re not taught that way. And that’s why some people get used to it. But I think there are different types of staring. How do you see it? Yes, there are, it depends on how many seconds. You can look for a really short time and then you catch yourself and look away. Yes. Or you can look and not stop. And then the other person thinks: what’s going on here? And as a German, I feel the same way. But I don’t find it so strange because I know it from my culture. Exactly. I think it also has something to do with the type of staring, because there is also people-watching. I sit down in a café and people walk past and then you look… Is that a legitimate hobby in Germany? Yes, I think that’s okay, for example. People walk past and you just look and think: Who is that? And then you imagine: What kind of life do they lead? That is also a type of staring, but I think it’s harmless. But if you stare at someone the whole time on the subway , that makes you… You should probably be a bit careful, because some people feel uncomfortable with it. But that happens a lot in Switzerland and Germany and you probably have to get used to it. Manuel, we have another question from Clémence. Clémence, we don’t know exactly. I’m supposed to read the question myself, Janusz, and it’s Clémence who writes—I say, I think—”I’m Clémence, and I come from the French-speaking part of Switzerland. I live in the canton of Fribourg, which is bilingual. So I hear German-speaking Swiss people speaking quite often, and I know they use words you don’t use in Germany. I want to know whether you, as a native speaker of Standard German or a native speaker of German to German, understand these words or not.” And now I have a little list for you. Okay. We’ll do a test. But you have to say you lived here. Exactly, in Basel, but that varies from canton to canton, or even from city to city. So which region of Switzerland do these words come from? I don’t know. Ah, okay. We’ll test that now. These words are called Helvetisms. They’re words in the German language that only exist in Switzerland and not in Germany. Okay. Manuel, what is s Velo? The bicycle. Yes, how do you know that? Because I’ve cycled a lot through the city and along the Rhine and into Germany and France. I’m a cycling fan. I’d say that even if you’ve never been to Switzerland, you might be able to understand it, because… Is that French? Velocity, there are… There are other… It has a Latin origin that you might have heard of before. It’s different with d Beiz. D Beiz? Yes. Say a sentence. I’m about to go to d Beiz. A Swiss person wouldn’t say it like that. I have to pass on that. I’m about to go. I’m about to go. I’m about to go. I’m about to go. I’m about to go to d Beiz. But I don’t know what it means. Yes, Manuel, that’s strange, because you should know that. It’s the pub. Yes, I never go in there. Yes. So I don’t need to know. Okay, let’s move on to s Natel. That’s the cell phone. And that’s something like in Germany, for example, Zewe or something, it’s a brand name. Zewe? Yes, or what do you call Tempo? Tempo tissue. Tempo, yes.
It’s also a brand name… So if you have a Tempo, if you have a tissue, that’s a brand name. So Natel is a brand name… I think that was the first company to sell cell phones here, and that’s why it remained a Natel. De Coiffeur. That’s the hairdresser, of course. Please excuse me if I pronounce the words incorrectly; I’m not from Switzerland. Commented. But that’s interesting, I researched it straight away, because Friseur and Coiffeur are actually both words with French origins. And one is used in Switzerland and Austria, namely Coiffeur. And Friseur is used in Northern Germany or in Germany. Completely crazy, right? And what do the French say? They say Coiffeur, I think. Friseur, I think, comes from a certain time, back when we adopted a lot of words. We have that in German too: frisieren. But that’s a different way of cutting hair. It was popular back then, so we imported that word: Friseur. And today in German you can also say: Du hast eine schöne Frise. That’s a beautiful hairstyle. Thank you, Manuel. Yes. Du hast eine schöne Frise. Is that really a compliment, to have a Frise, or? A beautiful hairstyle. Isn’t that a derogatory term? No, that’s just youth slang. Okay. But also in my youth. Okay, then I picked out some other things that I thought you might not know. To be in love. No, I don’t know, but I can guess. In Minne, I’d say. Minne sounds so petty. Maybe you don’t have much money in your bank account. I read that it means: in agreement, in harmony. Can a German-speaking Swiss person confirm this with a thumbs up ? Is it actually used? Or did I just read that on the internet? Did you just read it on the internet ? Well, then I’d say we close this segment. Okay. So, we can say, Manuel… My Basel German, my Schwyzer German, is excellent, passive. Except for the thing about the pub, you didn’t know that, right? Good, then we have a question from France. Lea wanted to know: “Which cliché about France is most widespread in Germany?” Which cliché about France? So, what kind of clichés do you have? France, who’s French in this room? Maybe just think for a moment, who could Manuel offend? Well, it’s a cliché, but it’s also largely true. However, it doesn’t apply to you, sitting here, by definition, so to speak. But it’s true that many French people prefer to speak only French. And I’ve noticed that too. I worked here ten years ago now, in a retail store, and of course, customers from Germany, Italy, and France often came in in Basel, and many of the French customers came in and just started talking in French. Bonjour! In Basel, in a German-speaking city, they just started talking . And I would always stand there and say, “Uh, yes, one moment…” and then quickly get someone who… Yes, bonjour. And then get someone who speaks French. Ah, okay. But you, sitting here, prove the opposite, that there are also people who enjoy learning German and other languages. Okay. Yes, I’m curious to hear your thoughts on that, Lea. You can tell us right away. Over a glass of wine… French… after the show. How are things going, Manuel, with your time? Do you want to answer one more question? Yes, of course. Let’s do that. Okay, then we have another great question from Heather. Heather works around the corner from here. Yes, I work at a primary school in Lörrach and I noticed straight away that I can recognize a German child, except that they dress differently than the children from America, where I come from. And my question is: You both enjoy traveling. Has there ever been a time, or more than once, where someone has said: Hey, you’re definitely German! Not because of your language or pronunciation or whatever, just the way you look or your behavior or what? Behavior or appearance. What indicates that you’re from Germany, Manuel? Oh, when I was in Japan, I felt very German because we were so loud on the subway. Aha, how loud? Yes, in Japan the subway is completely silent. I was an exchange student in the US, and I was taught back then—I don’t know if it’s still the same—that you’re never allowed to wear the same sweater or the same pair of jeans two days in a row. What? Big fashion no-no. You don’t have to wash it right away, but leave it on the chair, and three days later you can put on the same sweater. Yes, you’re American too?
And that’s not the case in Germany. I often wear the same sweater three days in a row. Or ten days. I then claim I’ve worn it more than once if someone asks. Wow, that’s good to know, because I actually have… For example, I have that twice, the T-shirt, the pants three times. Yes. And I look like I’ve been wearing the same thing for days. A real faux pas. Another beautiful French word. That’s interesting. What about Birkenstocks, and even better, white socks with Birkenstocks? It hasn’t happened to me yet, but maybe to Janusz. Although, it’s more like flip-flops with socks for Janusz. Yes, Janusz wears socks with flip-flops and claims it’s a samurai style. Even in the airport when traveling. But it’s not German, it’s Polish. Aha, so socks with flip-flops. Then, very German is functional clothing. Like Jack Wolfskin jackets, even if that’s not a German brand. Lots of pockets all over the sides. Exactly, trousers with pockets, rain jackets—that’s German, isn’t it? Yes, and older people in Germany, if they’re very active and ride bikes, often wear exactly the same outfit. The same rain jacket, the same rain pants, the same brightly colored helmet. You mean the same thing for one person, or with partners? Well, the partner, the two partners. I often see pensioners riding bikes in Berlin, super fit, but wearing exactly the same outfit. So, they went shopping together and said, “Once, twice, please.” Yeah, I had to laugh, because I was here cycling with Maria this morning. And I got to ride her husband’s bike. And they also have the same bike in the same color. Maria, where are you? Can I tell them? Yes, I said: Couple Goals. No, that… But Janusz and I are like that too, we at least have the same brand, the same e-bike , and we ride through the forest in Berlin together like a retired couple. Sweet. The forest in Berlin? Outside. The urban forest. Outside. Yeah, okay. Heather, what do you think? Were those enough arguments? How do you know the kids are from Germany? Maybe… Wait, wait, we’re waiting. Janusz runs. They always wear a scarf, even in spring or fall… vague. And the mud pants they put on over their pants so they can play outside in the rain. Wait, what’s that called? Mud pants. Mud pants, mud pants, those are the pants that can get dirty. Mud is like… What is mud? Mud, dirt. Okay, so German children have mud pants. They’re pants that you put on over your normal pants and you’re allowed to play in the mud with them. Exactly. And in first, second, even third grade, they sometimes still show up with mud pants. And in the US, when it rains, we just stay inside. I think it’s really nice that in Germany you take mud pants to school. Wonderful. Great observation, Heather. Thank you for your question. Cari. Manuel. Oh, that’s the wrong button. Beep! That’s to censor you when you’re talking nonsense. Hello! No, what I really wanted to play is our outro. It’s a shame it’s already over. It was a wonderful moment here with you in Basel. Where are we going next? We’ll chat a bit more anyway. If you become a member of Easy German at easygerman.org/membership, And we’ll have a beer or a glass of wine or a Rivella and chat and practice German together. Thank you all for being here today. And see you soon! And see you soon!