Day 293 - 295 (January 3 - 5)On the move... back to Europe

Day 293 - 295 (January 3 - 5) On the move... back to Europe

January 3rd I flew out of Charlotte to Munich (8.5 hrs) to Zurich (1.5hrs). I was met at the airport and driven to my new home, Zug. I have a corporate apartment right in the middle of town (ok so its a small town anyway... 20,000 people). But it is right near the train station and shops. The work shuttle bus stops just nearby too (I get to take it to and from work everyday, easy and free).

I unpacked a bit and looked around town. Zug has a nice old city but is mainly newer buildings. It sits on the northeast corner of Zugersee (Zug Lake). I bought a few groceries and stuff. In getting ready to move to Switzerland I had been reading a bit. Here are a few facts:

• 41,277 square km in area (almost twice the size of New Jersey, NC is about 126,000 sq km)
• about 7.6 million people (there are about 9,400,000 in NC)
• they DO have a military with compulsory service but only have about 4,000 full time members with over 200,000 part time
• your tax varies depending on the religion you register as (the money goes to the upkeep of the church), with Catholic being the most expensive
• national languages are German, French, Italian and English
• meat is EXPENSIVE in the stores and mainly imported
• trains, buses and trams are great and run ON TIME!
• in some places men are encouraged to sit to use the bathroom... especially in the night as it makes less noise

I had to register with the police to get my work permit card, which I need to open a bank account here, so I did that. And that was when I had to register the religion and stuff for taxes.

On the 5th I met with a local Couchsurfing Ambassador (someone who likes travelling and stuff and volunteers to introduce people to the city/area). We walked around for a bit and she gave me some tips on living here.

So far Switzerland is a beautiful place, a bit expensive but the people seem nice if cold at times. They tend to value their privacy a great deal. That can feel a bit stuffy at times but it still is good so far!