Switzerland is one of Europe's most visited countries,
but one of its least understood. Pass through for a day or two, as
most people do, and you'll get the quaint stereotype of Switzerland
that the locals deem suitable for public consumption - the Alpine
idyll of cheese and chocolate, Heidi and the Matterhorn. Stay
longer though and another Switzerland will emerge, the one which
the Swiss inhabit, and one which can be an infinitely more
rewarding place to explore. Sights are breathtaking, transport
links are excellent, costs are no higher than in Britain or
Germany, and the locals are unfailingly courteous. Almost everyone
speaks some English along with at least one of the official Swiss
languages (German, French, Italian, or, in the southeast,
Romansh).
Notoriously placid these days, Switzerland nonetheless spent the
first five hundred years of its existence rent by conflict, and
fought a civil war as recently as 1847. The Swiss Confederation
(abbreviated in Latin to " CH ") dates back to 1291, when
Alpine peasants formed an alliance to defend themselves against the
Hapsburgs. By the early 1500s, the Confederation had grown into a
military superpower feared throughout Europe. It was only with the
Reformation that the Swiss began to earn their reputation for
neutrality, a reputation which served them well right through into
the boom years after World War II. In the 1990s, the country's
image was tainted, as exposés uncovered Swiss banks' dubious
wartime collusion with the Nazis. Public soul-searching in the
aftermath of the scandal is heralding Switzerland's first tentative
steps towards ending its dogged isolation and joining the EU and
the UN.
As for where to go , Switzerland invented tourism: the
country's breathtaking scenery has drawn travellers since the early
1800s. The most visited Alpine area is the central Bernese
Oberland , which has the highest concentration of picturesque
peaks and mountainside villages, although the loftiest Alps are
further south, where the small but crowded resort of Zermatt
provides access to the country's most distinctive mountain, the
Toblerone-peaked Matterhorn . In the southeastern corner of
the country, wild, thickly forested mountain slopes provide the
setting for the world-famous resorts of St Moritz and
Davos . Of the northern German-speaking cities,
Zürich has a wealth of sightseeing and nightlife
possibilities and provides easy access to the tiny independent
principality of Liechtenstein overlooking the Rhine.
Basel and especially the capital Bern are quieter,
each with an attractive historic core, while Luzern is in an
appealing setting close to lakes and mountains. In the
French-speaking west, the cities lining the northern shore of Lake
Geneva - notably Geneva itself, and Lausanne -
make up the heart of Suisse-Romande . South of the Alps,
sunny, Italian-speaking Ticino can seem a world apart from
the rest of the country, particularly the palm-fringed lakeside
resorts of Lugano and Locarno , with their
Mediterranean, riviera atmosphere.