IT WAS time for a new adventure, this time in Switzerland. I boarded a puddle jumper for a short flight from Vienna to Geneva. After arriving in Geneva, I took the train to Lausanne.
Such a pleasant ride along Lake Geneva. After checking into my hotel, I wanted to venture out and see the neighboring cities along the lake. I learned that a huge jazz festival was happening at Montreux, a town toward the French side of Lake Geneva.
I took a ferry to go to Montreux. The ferry ride was breathtaking, seeing the Swiss villages and vineyards on the slopes on one side and the towering French mountains across the lake on the other side. What was more astounding was the coastline, which was filled with locals basking in the warmth of summer sun. Although there were no real sandy beaches, the locals were sprawled on top of boulders that lined the edge of the lake.
On the ferry, I met Helen, a domestic help from Camiguin. We bonded quite quickly. She gave me a popsicle to cool off from the blistering heat. Helen has worked as a domestic help in Switzerland for 23 years. She goes home to the Philippines every one to two years to visit her daughter, who now lives in Bohol. She loves her life in Switzerland.
Although the winters are harsh, the lovely summers allow her to enjoy and see neighboring towns. It was her day off so together with two other Filipino friends, they were planning to visit the Chillon castle, a medieval fortress near Villeneuve.
Helen has created a life for herself in Switzerland. She has a teenage son from a Swiss ex-husband. She has worked in three different households as a domestic help and baby sitter. She earns about 25 Swiss Francs an hour (about P350 an hour). Although salaries are high and taxes are low in Switzerland, the cost of living is higher in Switzerland than most other European countries.
Obtaining a work permit in Switzerland has become increasingly difficult. Since 2015, against a backdrop of a growing anti-immigration sentiment, the Swiss government has reduced the number of work permits available for non-EU nationals. However, migrating to Switzerland is still possible.
Obtaining Swiss citizenship is also possible, after 10 years of residence in Switzerland. However, this will depend on the specific canton you reside. There are 26 cantons of Switzerland, these are the member states of the Swiss Confederation.
In smaller cantons, residents vote whether to allow an applicant to become a Swiss citizen, while larger cantons have a formalized stepwise process including panel interviews that require the applicant to know Swiss history and current events.
Lausanne is gorgeous. It is also diverse as 43 percent of its residents are foreigners. Knowing that I was in the area, a Chinese friend invited me for lunch. He took me to a lovely chalet, Le Chalet-des-Enfants. We literally had lunch in a vineyard. We had a great time catching up, especially tasting some regional favorites like pate terrine de campagne. The menu changes depending on the day’s harvest.
I realized that Swiss residents love anything organic. Lausanne specifically boasts having the cleanest tap water in the world. Being the Olympic capital of the world, as home of the Olympic headquarters, Lausanne offers several running routes and bike trails. No wonder it ranked high in safety, health, and environmental quality among all the cities in the world.
With small tiny steps and with institutional support from the government, I think the possibilities of improving our quality of life can also happen in Cagayan de Oro. The raging river surrounded by lofty mountains are emblematic of our history and can be the starting point of our future. If we could reset our possibilities by investing in opportunities around these natural treasures, our future could have boundless opportunities for economic growth.