Not Quite a Denny's Grand Slam

This morning I went with Ana to have breakfast at a restaurant for the first time in Geneva. The place was really good, and it had a deal going: the full breakfast for the price of 10 Swiss Francs. As an American, when I think of full breakfasts, I think of the Denny's Grand Slam. In other words, I think of a plate overflowing with eggs, toast, hash browns, and bacon. I also think of a coffee with free refills, and maybe even an orange juice on the side.

However, the Swiss idea of a full breakfast is a little, well, smaller. It consists of a coffee to drink, three pieces of toast, and butter and jelly for the toast. For the Swiss, the fact that butter and jelly are included is a big deal. Do not get the wrong impression; I am not insulting the Swiss breakfast. First, it is much easier on the fat intake. Instead of being a meal that satisfies a person's daily calorie count, it leaves plenty of room for calories in the next meals. Plus, the jelly is great and not just something out of a jar bought in a store. Additionally, the coffee comes out in a cool little personal mug for me to pour coffee into my glass as I please.

On a side note, I will say that I have found several food items that I prefer in Switzerland. First, the chocolate is great. I was never a huge chocolate eater, but since I have been here I think I consume chocolate at least once a day. Second, the bread at the grocery stores and restaurants is always fresh and tasty. They are very particular about their pastries and morning bread. Third, the cheese is pretty spectacular. And finally, the fruit and vegetables are much better. Still, I do miss a lot of American food, namely Mexican restaurants, Chick-fil-A, and buffalo wings.

I finished the first week of real class at the University. It is pretty different from my experience at the University of Miami. First, there is no busy work or weekly assignments. The only grade in each class is a final exam at the end of January. Period. If you fail the final exam, you fail the class. And I guess it is quite common to fail an academic year over here. Maybe it is because we pay so much in America that we expect to pass, but here, if you do not bring your A game to the final exams, you will be repeating that academic year.

Another difference is the price of books. Most professors put all the assigned readings on the Internet so we can easily access them without being required to buy a book. This cuts down on costs enormously. In one class, the professor required us to buy a book that costs $45. The students around me were up in arms at the thought of paying that much for a class.

Also, Switzerland leads the world in the amount of waste recycled per year. 52% of its waste is recycled annually. Austria is second, and Germany is third. The USA is seventh at 31.5% of waste recycled annually. So, teachers here do not like to print a lot of papers. I did not even receive a syllabus in any of my classes. We are expected to access that online.

I am curious to see as class continues how I feel about the value of a Swiss education versus an American education. I am withholding judgment at the current moment until I see how the semester plays out.