" The ... LasT.... SUIX .... StanDinG .... ?? !! ... "

Yes, This BLOG, has Gone " Dormant " for about 6 Months, the last ones of 2011 !
Because it can NOW BE FOUND on Another Website !

Please, Accept this Post, as A "Closure"   :(
BUT !
Cheese-FilledChocolates BLOG
By CFC
in Zurich, Switzerland, can be found at :

angloinfo.com

Click, to CONTINUE :)

blogs.angloinfo.com/filled-chocolates/

There is a Common Denominator which is happening right at this Absoluted-ness of a Second.  If we are all here, erhm, here, as we know it....On this Web-Site.
Then, we All Have Something in Common.
We are All " Travellers ".
Yes ?

 

Now the above Book, is not Swiss, but it is called: " THE TRAVELLER " and is a Colossal and Compellingly Good Read....about, err....Travelling.
I Decided to CONSULT, some other Travelling Folk.

Two Men, to be Precise.
Who are rather INFAMOUS in their Own Right....
And, Wondered what some of THEIR IMPRESSIONS were, of SWITZERLAND, when they were last here.
Mmmm, now that would have been, in -
- Circa 50 BC.

" ASTERIX AND OBELIX IN SWITZERLAND ".
Now, what did they Observe about :  THE SWISS ?? !! ??

Here are a Few of them, for you, To Peruse, and, To Ponder....

( Asterix and Obelix, have just got out of a Lake, and, are about to meet their, First,
Swiss Friend, who is called : " Petit Suix ".....) 

SKETCH 1

Conferences, Cleanliness, and, Cuckoo Clocks.

SKETCH 2
Anonymous Bank Accounts, Neutrality, and, Foreigners.
 

SKETCH 3

Cheese, and, Taking a Cure.

SKETCH 4
Fondue Etiquette, and, Tidiness.

SKETCH 5

William Tell.

SKETCH 6
Yodel-Lei-ing, and....   GLEE Club ?? !!

You Can now Find this BLOG, with Much MORE NEW Material !
MOVED to :
angloinfo.com

blogs.angloinfo.com/filled-chocolates/


Until Next Time.  Thanks For Reading.
Yours CFC x

What lies Beneath ? ....?

 

High Above the Ground, in an Oncoming Summer, Purple Night Sky. Somewhere in the Urbanisations of ZURICH, Switzerland.
We must look down, further, than to what the eye can see.

Into THE WATER........ 

  

 

This Place does exist.  It is called : " Jules Undersea Lodge " inspired by The Jules Verne Books.
" Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea " is probably one of the most famous books, written by The French author, in 1870.

The above, is a Submarine Hotel, located in Key Largo, Florida, USA.

NOT, Switzerland, unfortunately.

I mean WHAT a place to write from !   :)

Look again...

  

And, now Look at....This....

Which could be virtually anywhere in the world ....Incidently, we have now moved from Salt Water, to, err....Fresh Water.
Namely to : ZURICH LAKE.

Every Year, about 90 TONS OF RUBBISH is pulled out of this Swiss Lake.

Every 2 Years Lake Zurich has a Full Clean-Up.
Unfortunately...they... do not have the...resources.....to do it more often, like in some other places, in SWITZERLAND.

90 TONS OF RUBBISH, like the Bicycle pictured above....
Is DUMPED by Swiss People.
Into one of...their.....errhm...
" Precious "  LAKES...??? !!! ??? !!!

A Staggeringly Grim Picture.

All this, From what is considered to be :
One of the Cleanest City`s in the World.
And.
One of the Cleanest Country`s in the World.
Switzerland.
Yes.
( Roll out the INCREDULOUS, but TRUE (?) Cliché....)

This AMOUNT of Human Made Rubbish, hidden away from the Naked Eye; well; mostly, as Zurich Lake does look very clean, both from a Distance, and Close-Up.
Gets to you....thinking....
That :
Any Nationality, Any Country.....whatever is said, shown, or hidden...
...Dumps Rubbish....



To many, the following is Rubbish ( albeit a totally other kind of ).
But, Perhaps The Entry from FINLAND, should have Won this Year`s Eurovision Song Contest ?
In this Surprisingly, Beautiful, and, Tragically.. True.. Song :


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SA5Vno4Z43M

Until Next Time. Thanks For Reading.
Yours CFC x

How Low can you Go ??



CHEESE  CHEESE  OH  -  GLORIOUS CHEESE !!


(  unless u hate the stuff, except on Pizza, or are Lactose Intolerant, then I guess it really, truly is a Poison, err, and NO Joke....)

Not going to talk about the British Created above : " Wallace and Gromit ", and their, well, strong relationship with the stuff !
But, could not resist a reference to them, at this point.  ;-)

After all, this is, err " Penned " in SWITZERLAND.

So, what more can we DISCOVER about CHEESE, without, erhm ; Labouring le Sujet...

Welcome to : PRO MONTAGNA.
A Swiss Farming Organisation, which Supports Alpine Farmers, their Way of Life, and Well-Being.
Whose Slogan could go as :
"  For Our Mountains.  For Our Farmers.  "

Because, much as, sadly...everywhere else...almost....
In Switzerland, these Farmers Way of Life, and ORGANIC Farming  (known as BIO here ) is also threatenend by the Bad Side, of "THE BIG BAD BEAST"  known as :
Modern Life...??

PRO MONTAGNA - are for Preserving The Swiss Mountains, which Nourish and Look after their Inhabitants, via the Pure Richness of Nature that can be found there.

You only have to take a few looks at THE SWISS COUNTRYSIDE ( not so much in Winter, by the way !! )
To see and breathe the ABSOLUTE Fertility of it all.
It is literally " Popping With " LUSHNESS.  Almost as if it were (again, very sadly)....err : fake...?
But, it is most definitely NOT !

These Alpine Farmers make, yes - CHEESE, of course !
The PRO MONTAGNA BRAND of Cheeses - Are Cheeses which have EARNED their Name.
So it says :

These pictures are from the Adverts, for Pro-Montagna Cheeses, sold in the Swiss SUPERMARKET CHAIN, whose name is : COOP.
For every Cheese Sold, COOP will give back to This Mountain Farming Community, so that the Farmers, and Regions can continue to do, what they do, and quite sincerely have been doing so for many, many years...
All of this, also gives...Everyone... a Bit of Swiss Culture. 

AND... Each Pro Montagna Cheese will LITERALLY TELL U at which ALTITUDE it was made.

For example.
The one on the left was made at : 1.475 Metres Altitude !
The one on the right was made at : 930 Metres Altitude !
The Selection on the List goes on :

Now, maybe you are a : Cheese Conaisseur ?
If so, then perhaps, this may come, as nothing particularly new to you ?

But, to not only pick your Cheese -
on Taste, Suitability for what you will be Eating it with, Price, and NOW -  ALTITUDE ??? !!
Goodness, Math-Thoog-Ness ??!!!


Got so many Decisions to Make.....

Gonna have to Sleep on it...

Until Next Time.  Thanks For Reading.
Yours, CFC x

9800 TEARS




Dear, Baby Bunny, Please! Don`t Cry For.... Easter



If the " Fortunes of Lady Fate, and her Sisters " stay on our side, there is ( will be...)another Easter, Next Year.
So, Go-Go and Hop into Freedom, Little Furry Sweet One !

It`s all over, but, before we do leave this Year`s Easter Festivities behind.
Whilst, yes they do, put Unsold Easter Items, on Sale, in the shops, here in SWITZERLAND...
Going to Do a bit of a Cheeky  :)
as this is NOT OFFICIALLY in Switzerland, but in GERMANY.

What you are about to See, may well be, somewhat, of an, err, Extreme Version. Well - why not ??
Have all The Fun.

The point being :
that the Style of it, is much Copied here, in what is the : `German Part of Switzerland. `

As to what, or WHO, came first ?
The Hanging up of Eggs.. in `The` Germany....or `The`Switzerland...?

Take a Look at This, if you will : 



It started 40 Years Ago.
With 14 Eggs.

Now, on this tree in Germany.
There hangs :  9,800 Eggs !!!!!

What is NOT CLEAR, is errhm, whether or not these DECORATIVE HANGING EGGS, are taken down, and then put up again, every Easter...??

On that note, better go Check got some REAL EGGS, in the Fridge.
Ready for Tomorrow Morning.
Ready for a Brunch, in Front of The Television.
A " Wedding Breakfast ", if you will...?! 

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/occasions/royal_wedding

A nicely made : EGGS FLORENTINE, to go with :
Watching The British Royal Spectacle.

Telling myself   ;-)

Until Next Time.  Thanks For Reading.
Yours, CFC.

Breathe and Par-Ti

Switzerland is the HIGHEST CONSUMER of TOBACCO in Europe ...

(.... forget about the whole, Switzerland is not, officially a part of The European Union, bla-di-bla. )

This was, err, calculated....in 2007, and according to :
http://www.swissinfo.ch/

After Switzerland, came Hungary, Poland, and then, Ireland.
( So - not Spain or France...?? !!  Not criticising, simply observing....  :)


Okay, so that was 4 years ago, and A LOT CAN HAPPEN, in this time.
Fast Forward to Today....2011, and CHINA is BOTH, the Largest Consumer, and, Producer, of TOBACCO, in The World.


Rewind, back to these "Statistics" of 2007.
Nearly : 1 in 4 SWISS PEOPLE SMOKE.
Mmmm, time for some more numbers....
Within these 1 in 4, which in Swiss Society, made a figure of :
29 % of 14 - 65 year olds.
Of which,33 % were Men, and, 24 % were Women.


There are, also, Locally-Grown Tobacco Plants, which produce SWISS BRANDED CIGARETTES, one is called : Maryland.


Much like in many countries, of late, Switzerland did BAN Smoking inside Pubs and Restaurants, last Summer, of 2010.


Yet, ADVERTISING Cigarettes is not a problem, with teeny-tiny,aha, there it is....warnings at the Top, or Bottom.

In most of the Cigarette Advertisements, here in Switzerland; the inferred message is :
Smoking Cigarettes is Great for your Social Life.
Clever.
And, actually quite TRUE...

That Cigarette `Break` at Work, IS SOCIAL, and often where you do make friends.
The After Dinner Cigarette in a Restaurant.
The Coffee and a Cigarette.
The Drink and a Cigarette.
The Out Clubbing and, err, Loads of Cigarettes.
The Hanging Out at Home, with Friends, and Chatting...putting the "World to Right"....and Smoking.
All go hand in hand.

Whichever, the Swiss Emphasis, is on Having a Par-ti when you Smoke.

Lots of Big Social Events, are either Sponsored by Tobacco Companies.
Or, like the Current, Advertising Campaign of this Brand, in Swiss Newspapers, Magazines, and, Posters : "Winston".
One can win Tickets, to the Upcoming Summer, Open Air Festivals, if your Pack of 20, is a Lucky one.

Err, perhaps stating an obvious here....but Open Air...equals "Fresh Air"...??....and Cigarette....SMOKE !! ??  Bit of a Contradiction-Oxymoron, no ??!

On that note; I am an Ex-20-a-Dayer, have been Smoking...aha...Socially..yes... for some time now..
( just to get that Perspective outta the way :) 

By The Way :

Advertising has been around since the Dawn of Civilization.
Egyptians used to make sales messages, and wall posters, out of Papyrus.
The Ancient Greeks created signs for their theatres.
Pretty much, All Ancient Cultures, show evidence of Signage Advertising, for different wares, especially for the open-air markets they had.
Open-Aha-Air-Market....had to say it !

Let`s go to the 1940`s, and 1950`s....

 

If you wish to, and are able, to spend a Weekend, in Switzerland, on a CI-TY BREAK, in ZURICH, for example.
See how many Swiss people do Smoke.
And, not to make, a Somewhat Stale, and Terribly Trite, Automatic Association now.
This is what, the Big-Mama, and Big-Daddy of News, Surveys, and, Statistics said, in 2004.
You know the one :  REUTERS.


" Swiss Teenagers Smoke more Cannabis, than their peers, in every other European Country, a Survey has said, Casting a Pall over the Country`s PRIM and WHOLESOME IMAGE.  "


Pall = A Cover for a Coffin....blimey, had to look that one up !

Indeed. 

The Ever-Lasting Beauty and Tragedy of Smoking.

Until Next Time.  Thanks For Reading.
Yours, CFC x