5 Little Known Facts About Switzerland

Traveling to Switzerland? Here are a few fun facts that you should know about the country:

1. Lake Geneva is not called Lake Geneva.

The proper name for Lake Geneva is Lac Leman, and the Swiss cringe to hear it called Lake Geneva. It sure is beautiful though, whatever you call it. Don’t you think?

2. Chocolate fondue is NOT a traditional Swiss dish.

For some reason I thought anything that goes into a fondue pot is naturally a Swiss specialty. Apparently not! Although delicious, chocolate fondue is not a traditional Swiss dish. Cheese and beef fondues are both delicious and authentic though… mmmmmm. Another tradition: if your piece of bread falls into the fondue pot, you pay for the meal!

3. Aliens have landed in Switzerland.

Ok, not really. But if you visit the HR Giger museum in Gruyeres, you can learn all about the creator of the Aliens movie series. Or settle down in the futuristic alien-spined chairs have a drink in the bar next door.

4. A must-try in Gruyeres: a Coupe Chalet.

This crazy dessert is made with generous scoops of vanilla ice cream, meringues (another Swiss specialty!), vin cuit (a syrupy sweet reduction made by cooking wine, sometimes with fruit juice), and topped with Gruyere creme. Absolutely delicious!

5. Freddie Mercury lives on in Montreux.

The famous lead singer of Queen spent time in Montreux towards the end of his life, and a festival is held there the first weekend of September each year in his honor. There’s a statue of him on the main lakeside area of the town, where fans can pose for a picture or pay homage to the King of Queen.

Photo of Freddy Mercury statue in Montreux Switzerland originally posted by Lucia45

Topic:  General Travel | 8 Comments
Tags:  food, Switzerland

About the author

Malia Yoshioka is a freelance writer and aspiring full-time vagabond based in Maui, Hawaii. Born and raised in a paradise in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, she caught the travel bug early and has since spent most of her disposable income on roaming the globe. You can follow her adventures at maliayoshioka.wordpress.com.