Swiss Identity

World football’s masters reign from Switzerland

This content was published on Jan 2, 2008 Like numerous other international sports federations, they have chosen Switzerland as the place to establish their headquarters mainly due to the flexibility of Swiss law and the presence of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne. It is no secret that over the past 15 years, Switzerland has evolved into a global centre for sports…

History

Taizé Geneva gathering attracts 40,000

This content was published on Jan 2, 2008 The annual pilgrimage organised by the French religious community and Swiss churches attracted some 40,000 young people from 50 different countries. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, and the president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, addressed the young people taking…

Culture

Swiss flag up identity concerns

This content was published on Jan 2, 2008 A proposed amendment to the snappily titled Federal Law on the Protection of Coat of Arms and other Public Insignia, and to the Federal Law on Trademarks and Indications of Source, is currently under discussion. To curb commercial misuse, the so-called “Swissness” bill has two main goals: better protection and more precise regulations for the…

Culture

Black-and-white tradition

This content was published on Jan 1, 2008 Silhouette cut-outs are a traditional art form in Switzerland, but many artists have brought modern techniques to the craft. A new book from Mondo Editions – “Schweizer Scherenschnitte – von der Tradition zur Moderne” takes a look at the development in Swiss cut-out artistry.

Cool as ice

This content was published on Jan 1, 2008 The temperature of the water at the city’s Bains des Pâquis on New Year’s Day was officially four degrees Celsius. The brave swimmers were rewarded afterwards with a glass of champagne. Taking the plunge in extreme conditions is a tradition in Geneva. A few weeks ago, around 700 swimmers dived into the Rhone River for…

Swiss woman reaches South Pole

This content was published on Dec 31, 2007 Binsack arrived at her goal on December 28, her sponsor announced on Monday. It had taken her 454 days to cover 27,000 kilometers by bike and ski. She left Switzerland on September 1 2006. The purpose of her “Expedition Antarctica” was to attract attention to such global problems as poverty, the destruction of the environment…

Demographics

Team Canada win Spengler Cup

This content was published on Dec 31, 2007 It is the 11th time that the Canadian team, whose members mainly play in the Swiss championship, have won the trophy in the 81 years of the tournament’s existence. They were the beaten finalists in the last two years. The game’s three goals all came within a few moments of each other. Scoring was opened…

Popular calendars change with the times

This content was published on Dec 31, 2007 The “Hinkende Bot”, or “Limping Messenger”, is one of several almanacs that have survived the passage of the years. They are the relic of a very different past, when most people lived on the land, when society was rigidly stratified, and when the population was much less mobile than today. They are by nature conservative,…

Demographics

Air rescue service is kept busy in mountains

This content was published on Dec 31, 2007 Rega spokesman Gery Baumann said 40 missions were flown on Friday, 22 on Saturday and 20 on Sunday. Since November 1, the non-profit foundation has flown on 311 missions, two to three times more than in previous years. Rega said one of the reasons for the increase was the early start to the season after…

Culture

Symphonically Swiss

This content was published on Dec 31, 2007 Dmitrij Kitajenko Born in St. Petersburg in 1940, Dmitrij Kitajenko studied at the Glinka School of Music and the conervatories of St. Peterburg and Moscow. Kitajenko first earned international acclaim as a prizewinner at the first Herbert von Karajan Competition in Berlin. During 14 years he was the principal conductor of the Moscow Philharmonic (1976-1990).…

Swiss Identity

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Swiss Identity

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World football’s masters reign from Switzerland

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Taizé Geneva gathering attracts 40,000

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Swiss flag up identity concerns

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Black-and-white tradition

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Cool as ice

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Swiss woman reaches South Pole

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Team Canada win Spengler Cup

More

Popular calendars change with the times

More

Air rescue service is kept busy in mountains

More

Symphonically Swiss

Popular Stories

Most Discussed