Building, Healthcare, Black Mirror and end of year lists.

Look at this timber frame house. I know a little about building and that is nothing like any house I've ever seen. This is being constructed on the side of a steep hill. These guys seriously know how to build a totally solid and well insulated house. I was looking at the other houses in the area and all of them had unmelted snow on the roof - a sure sign of good insulation. Check out UK homes after a light snowfall and see how long the snow lasts.

Still not had to use the healthcare system here, though I sort of dread the dent I fear any attention will make in my bank balance. In some ways this is good as you avoid going to the doctor unless you really ARE ILL. However surely this is not good for the general well-being of your society. That said the Swiss are supposed to be one of the healthiest. This is despite there being large numbers of smokers and 'smokers lounges' in most bars and clubs here. All this and everyone has to pay into health-insurance, it is a huge industry here. It won't be long before the tories make an equivalent industry in the UK as it looks like a license to print money while your health-care system saves it. Much as I love the NHS it looks like the way it hemorrhages cash without decent management this is the way it will end up.

After my Brooker rant in the last post I have to say I really enjoyed the Jesse Armstrong penned episode of Black Mirror 'The Entire History Of You.' Wheras the first two couldn't seem to get beyond the excitement of the format or Brookers absurdist humour, this managed to be a serious piece of TV drama with a sci-fi frame, somewhat unexpectedly from the writer of The Thick Of It and Peep Show. The basic premise of an implantable hard-drive that records everything you see and hear for perfect recall and providing a new form of screen based reality entertainment was secondary to the relationship breakdown at the centre of the piece. Relationships can be precarious and paranoid places to reside at times and this new technology only adds to this - the new ability to recall exactly what someone has said only adds to this. Excellent piece of TV this, just when I though the medium was finally dead, great performances from Toby Kebbell (Dead Man's Shoes) and Tom Cullen and a decent bit of directing from Brian Welsh.

End of year lists-
RECORDS(out this year)-
Doomsday Student - A Jumpers Handbook


Honey For Petzi - General Thoughts And Tastes

Cheer Accident - No Ifs, Ands Or Dogs

Nisennenmondai - Nisennenmondai LIVE!!!

Big 'N - Spare The Horses

I'm Being Good - Mountain Language


FILMS(seen this year)-
24 City - Jia Zhangke.

Kafka- Stephen Soderberg

I Saw The Devil - KIM Jee-woon

Cold Fish - Sion Sono

Helpless - Shinji Aoyama

Sad Vacation -Shinji Aoyama

Stranger Than Paradise - Jim Jarmusch

The Lady of Musashino - Kenji Mizoguchi
-I was put on to Mizoguchi by Jarmusch's former partner Sara Driver, who is currently screening her excellent short film 'You Are Not I' in various places. Seriously cool.
Bad Timing - Nick Roeg

(Ok - too much Theresa Russell for most peoples liking - but at least she gets bumped off)

BOOKS-

Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said
Solar Lottery
The Man in the High Castle
Martian Time Slip
The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch
A Scanner Darkly
-Philip K Dick

Minutes to Go
-William Burroughs, Gregory Corso, Brion Gysin and Sinclair Beiles

The Exterminator
-William Burroughs, Brion Gysin

Tornado Alley
-William Burroughs

Without Stopping
The Spider’s House
Their Heads Are Green And Their Hands Are Blue
-Paul Bowles

You Are Not I: A Portrait of Paul Bowles
-Millicent Dillon

Council spending and Black Mirror

What do your taxes get you? How much do you pay? Why is the tax system so complex no one really knows how much they should be paying?
There is a problem of accountability and affordability it seems - where does all the money go? Why are Councillors paid so little? Why did Cameron veto the deal?

Enough with the questions. Here in St Gallen the Canton apparently funds such public delights as the botanical gardens (pictured) that are incredibly well maintained and have a vast array plant species. Not a place I'd normally hang out, but nice as something to do on a Sunday (refreshingly all the shops are closed here, so Sunday remains a genuine day of rest for all, while in the UK it has become just an extension of Saturday shopping), it is warm and quiet in the tropical house. What's more it is free to get in, unlike similar spaces in the UK.

Managed to find the time to watch the first two episodes of Charlie Brooker's 'Black Mirror' and found the whole thing pretty uninspiring. Ok, we know that social media is playing an increasingly important role in political decisions (The National Anthem) and that an Orwellian future is increasingly easy to envisage thanks again to social media, virtual worlds like 'Second Life', everyone having to own the biggest plasma screen available, the fact that ipad 2 will be number one Xmas present this year and the fact that X factor have TV ratings and itunes music downloads pretty well sewn up (15 Million Merits), but Black Mirror seems like a wasted exercise.

Ok, Brooker's wish fulfillment of Big Brother zombies in 'Dead Set' was stylish, dark and funny but 'The National Anthem' was a wish fulfillment too far: like one of his diatribes of easy targets chucked in a blender. Let's use Kate Middleton, the Turner prize, the Royal wedding, David Cameron, twitter and bestiality and see what comes out. Trying to use 'The Thick of It' as a kind of 'fly on the wall' model didn't work, and the direction was off the mark, particularly with the overuse of unnatural colour and lighting which worked with 'Dead Set' but didn't work here.

Much as I liked the concept of considering how far politicians would go in the face of such pressures (with some similarities with Cameron's recent veto) it just wasn't very funny and the shock factor was not as high as it could or should have been. I understand a response to my criticism is that it is hard to make such a production be any better due to pressures from the channel etc. but there it is.

The second episode I liked more, perhaps because there was more of a narrative thread and a character, Bing (brilliantly played by Daniel Kaluuya), who the viewer could follow and empathise with. I am a fan of dystopian sci-fi and despite my criticism of the obviousness of the targets here it had more going for it than Brooker's 'Cameron f*cks a pig' episode. Though like the first episode it certainly lacked any kind of humour - even Chris Morris' dark 'Jam' had laugh out loud moments, this did not. This is perhaps to do with the writing input from Brooker's wife, ex-Blue Peter, ex-X-tra Factor presenter Konnie Huq who I recall being the most inept Blue Peter presenter, and despite this managed to remain the longest serving female. I don't wish to be too 'down on Huq' but there are several moments that seem to connect with her life in this episode, first there is Bing being called to audition, him being chosen because he is an 'ethnic.' Is Huq suggesting this was the case for her being chosen for X-tra Factor, or even Blue Peter? - e.g.- 'Good 2:1 at Oxford, some screen time, and ethnic - put her on!' There is also the grey area surrounding her departure from X-tra factor, some say she left, some say Simon Cowell disliked her presentation skills - and much as I would hate to agree with the biggest A**hole in the universe her skills could be better...There is also the porn star trap door idea, the suggestion that good looking starlets without sufficient talent or the 'X-Factor' are being siphoned off into porn - does Huq have insider knowledge of this as well?

Despite the presentation, acting and direction of '15 Million Merits' being better it is the premise that bugs me a bit. It just seems like Brooker and Huq's attempt to criticise X-factor and the culture of watching TV and involving oneself in multimedia - which by both reviewing TV, appearing on it and writing for it they are fully paid up members of. So I guess I am accusing them of being hypocritical. Again the response to this is that they are trying to do what Bing does in the episode - tell everyone what is wrong with what they are doing, then sell out for an easier life anyway. I am more optimistic in that I believe there are people who are willing to go through and attempt to destroy the system from within, regardless of the personal cost, and it is important that viewers become inspired by this kind of TV drama. The pessimism of the ending of '15 Million Merits' only serves to indict the writers as sell-outs too. As an example of inspiring, dystopian sci-fi TV drama perhaps they should have looked at Dennis Potter's 'Cold Lazarus'. I think it time someone said that, contrary to a review I saw suggesting Brooker should move to a Scottish island and avoid TV for a year, he should go back to what he does best, writing scathing reviews of bad TV, and leave (as he has for episode 3) the real comedy/satirical writing to those who can do it best, like Armando Iannucci, Chris Morris, Jesse Armstrong and Graham Lineham.

Culture part 2

The University of St Gallen has seen some serious investment. Not just the site, the buildings and infrastructure but there are numerous GOOD artworks well placed around the site. Can't think of any other establishments that have a Joan Miro ceramic frieze (pictured) decorating their main hall.

I have also made contact with the head of English, a really nice guy, who allowed me to sit in on a couple of undergraduate lectures. Most enjoyable. And a refreshingly relaxed atmosphere and attitude all round.

Tried (and failed) to find the Cabaret Voltaire in Zurich last week. Will try again next time. I can understand why the movement started there; Zurich is a mad place full of distinct contradictions, the ultra rich, a nasty little English book shop selling overpriced non-academic books and overpriced hard to find English and American food stuffs like Oreos and Marmite, and tight cobbled maze like streets full of shops selling the most upmarket designer stuff I've ever seen. Even encountered a group of Santas riding Harley-Davidson motorbikes.

Culture

St Gallen knows how a museum should be. The History and Ethnology Museum, in the City Park is a model of how a museum should look, be curated and be run. Wheeling A we decided to go for the disabled entrance where we were met by a woman who offered to show us in, we made our way to the entrance proper where we paid and dumped the pram and stuff in a corner (on the advice of the counter staff member - how unbelievably chilled) of this pristine building. We made our way up to the attic/mezzanine space which was set up for kids and celebrating childhood across the ages - a really well thought out area with loads for kids of all ages to do and explore - from spinning tops and traditional games to shadow puppets and a hand puppet theater, I could have stayed there all day. The other floors were equally well thought out with sections on the history of St Gallen, traditional dress and crafts, and a section on world ethnography (see photo) which had loads more interesting stuff than I was expecting, from Incan statues to samurai swords. Amazing. Will be checking out the Art museum soon, after seeing this I can't wait.

Two other things I have noticed. The first and most telling is something you can try. Walk down the street in a UK town or city centre. Do you feel like you are being watched? Do you have an odd feeling in the back of your mind? This is entirely absent here because there are (virtually) no CCTV cameras. It is really odd to think that in the UK we have all become so used to their insidious spread that we can't imagine life without the speed cameras, shoplifting store cctv, Council littering cams and London's 'ring of steel' or whatever it is called. Well here it can be imagined and it is liberating - a weight lifted. Smash the cams!
The second thing is I have noticed several well maintained public phone boxes, that are not only not used as urinals or for call girl cards but are actually used by people to make calls. This can only mean a couple of things: Not everyone in Switzerland owns a mobile phone, and public phone boxes here are reliable and worth using. Amazing as in the UK the mobile phone companies have such a hold over the UK population that people believe that not giving their child the latest mobile phone is a form of child abuse.

Parks

The St Gallen area has an huge number of public parks. There are three within about a hundred yards of our apartment (all good for A!), and these are not just concrete leftovers from the 1970s, these are well maintained, well thought-out and designed areas. The photo here depicts an adventure playground right next to a school (we saw one of the classes involved in learning a kind of cross-training learning exercise using the equipment), it has two play houses, two ripple-effect slides, three swings, a spiders-web rope climbing frame, a death-slide and a sand-pit. Totally awesome. What I like about it too is the lack of over-zealous Health & Safety precautions: The photographed playhouse is a good six feet off the ground, so kids using it can experience real danger - something I craved as a child. This lack of 'H&S gone mad' translates across the board, at nursery the kids are not wrapped in cotton wool but allowed to explore freely, and the parks here are not closed off to other members of the public as in the UK, and parents seem happy to allow and able to trust their kids to roam freely.

Autumn

We were told today that it is unusually warm at the moment, and that there was much snow this time last year. Lucky us then getting to see views like this at the local swimming lakes, with autumn colours in full effect. Breathtaking.

Found first real negative aspects of Swiss society: Health care. Their model is based on the American Insurance system, and has had the effect of making health care highly expensive (even for Switzerland), with the poorest people getting the worst or even no care. Basic Insurance packages are not only mandatory but very expensive (around 1/5 of salary). Pharmacies are also a problem as they can charge for basic advice, and even basic medicines are very expensive. Disappointing as we hear standards of care are actually very high.

Design

It seems that not only are things better organised, maintained better, less bureaucratic, cleaner and friendlier here, but there also seems to be an organised and holistic approach to design and planning. Roads for example: the tarmac is well laid, the drains and manhole covers fit and don't get clogged, there are no potholes, signs are generally clear and well placed (no overkill) as are crossings. New houses and apartments fit seamlessly between old ones, and even modern style buildings do not seem out of place. Even the graffiti (see photo) seems of a higher class.

One thing I really like is the adherence to shutters. Every window in town seems to have a shutter in front of it. This is something I have seen in Paris, but only now I'm living in a flat with shutters can I see the benefits and question why there is no tradition of shutters in the UK (apart from to prevent shops getting JJB'ed). They prevent a considerable loss of heat through the windows, negate the need for curtains, add security and look a bit like eyelids on some houses. What's not to like? Is it the obsession with 'double glazing' and fancy curtains that has prevented a shutter industry in the UK?

Jobless Whatshisname

In trying to translate a document from Immigration the word for residence failed, leaving me with 'Jobless whatshisname' as the subject of this letter.

Other events of interest in the past week are the purchasing of bin bags, a more momentous occasion than you might expect because here in Switzerland you have to buy state bin bags in order to be able to put out your rubbish, and in order to keep taxes down these are charged at a premium (in our Canton about 2CHF each) and must be asked for at the counter - they cannot be left on the shelves as apparently they keep getting nicked! So things you don't have to ask for over the counter in Switzerland: guns, hardcore pornography and euthanasia. Things you do: bin bags.
Incidentally the denial of genocide and other crimes against humanity is an imprisonable offense while viewing child pornography on the Internet is not a criminal offense in Switzerland. Not sure what would happen if you tried shooting at a bin bag full of child porn while shouting that the Iraq war never happened and pumping your elderly relatives full of morphine.

Shopping part 2: More genius differences between UK and Swiss supermarkets.
Do you remember Kwik-Save? Not only did they spell Quick with a K but they used to have a bench a little way away from the checkout where you could sort and pack you shopping at leisure, they even provided cardboard boxes to put it in. I always loved that idea, much better than the harry and rush to thrust your tins on top of your tomatoes in bags that split as soon as you lift them. Well Migros have an even better idea. Not only do they not provide plastic bags even if you ask (they only sell heavy duty reusable ones ) but they still have the checkout divider bar - you know in Sainsbury's they used to have these before the conveyor belts so that 2 people could pack their shopping simultaneously- not only that but there is a large table about 20ft long behind the checkouts where you can not only sort and pack your shopping, but there is a plastics recycling bin so you can dispose of all your extraneous packaging so you don't need to take it all home only to have to take it to the recycling bin later. Genius. Where did we go so wrong in the UK?

Volksbad

Public swimming baths. Something of a local issue in my old hometown of Bridgwater in Somerset. I grew up with a huge outdoor lido with three pools and a high diving platform. Ok it was built in 1960 as a replacement for the Victorian baths but it was awesome. The council sold the land to Safeway in 1990 and bulldozed the site to build a shopping centre, replacing the lido with a single 'theme' type pool in an open glass house type building. It had slides and rapids but no soul, and was known for the paedophiles drilling holes in toilet doors. This has also recently been pulled down to make way for a Tesco's. No replacement has been built, and those who wish to swim must travel 10 miles to the nearest pool. Was there any need to build supermarkets on these sites? No. Plenty of out of town areas for that. It could be argued that the Council simply wanted some income from the land and jobs from the stores rather than a pool that drains resources. What they miss (and missed when the original baths were pulled down) is that these recreation facilities are what makes a community. It gives kids something to do that does not involve breaking into JJB sports. The buildings themselves are heritage sites that give communities a sense of identity. When they are replaced by Tesco's and Morisson's what do you have left? A choice of similar prices and products and nothing to do.
The Swiss seem to understand this basic principle, that it is better to hold onto your heritage and encourage community spirit and recreation (rather than consumption) and their Victorian Volksbad is in fine fettle. Proof that such places can be renovated and restored and kept operational. Such a great little place, with real atmosphere and echos of the past all around - see the Gothic statue in the centre of the picture. Here such places persist while in the UK they are consigned to history, bulldozed by the unstoppable progress of the supermarket. More on this later...

Guns

Guns are a big deal in Switzerland. More per head of population than the States. Wikipedia tells me: 'The total number of firearms in private homes is estimated minimally at 1.2 million to 3 million.' In a country with a population of around 8 million. Why is this? It seems that it is because the Swiss Army is a national militia, trained against threats to the nation's sovereignty. Most Swiss men undergo military training and remain reservists into their thirties. After their service they have the option of keeping their semi-automatic rifles. It seems that after turning eighteen, among other things you can also buy a gun. Neat. What is remarkable is that because of the extensive training, the quality of life and education in Switzerland gun crime is extremely low, 'Police statistics for the year 2006 records 34 killings or attempted killings involving firearms, compared to 69 cases involving bladed weapons and 16 cases of unarmed assault.' The poorly taken photo of a gun shop here sells an array of weapons, ammunition, hunting equipment and paint-balling supplies and is just a few hundred yards from my front door. Weird how I feel really safe here, but sense I will not in the States.

Lounge Street

Been doing a little exploring. It seems that St Gallen is set in a kind of bowl, with steep inclines on each side. The University is on the side of one of these and it is a half-hour walk to get up to it. Heading the other way, past the huge cathedral that dominates the centre of the city (the bells of which dominate the sounds of the city too) there is a street that has been dyed red, with benches shaped to resemble sofas. It also has large grey blobs suspended between buildings around thirty feet up. I don't know what these are supposed to represent, presumably the current location of the grey ordinariness of the street. The overall effect is pretty surreal and I like it.

Library

Food is priced differently, but only a few percent more than the UK; some things more some things less. The real difference is quality. No matter what we have bought so far, even the Migros budget brand stuff, it has been good to the point of being significantly better than the equivalent product in the UK. An example is kidney beans: check out how much water and air there is in UK tins. The can I opened here today was crammed full of beans with little water, and the beans themselves were bigger than any I have seen in the UK. Weird (though pretty dull I know).
Chocolate is great and cheap too.

Above is the St Gallen University Library. I visited it today and was surprised and impressed by the differences between it and Bristol University Arts and Social Sciences Library. Not only does it have the Louvre-like glass pyramid, but it has a system in operation where users must leave their bags in a cloakroom, with anything they wish to take into the library being placed in a clear plastic bag - much like liquids on planes. This I would think significantly reduces loss of stock - a particular problem with RFID systems. It looks like they have been running a high-spec RFID system for some time as their catalogue uses several of the tricks it is capable of, such as an online map showing you exactly where the book is, even locating it on the shelf! You can also self-check out many items in one go making life easier for everyone - no more long queues. Their Information desk/ Loan desks are in a separate glass annex making it easier to control both access and noise levels from this area. In fact the only sound audible in the stock areas was the rustling of my jacket. Against expectations there were several books that are useful to my thesis here, although it appears that all items have a two-week loan status.

Orientation

Average temperature so far has been 7 Centigrade, so getting used to that with a lack of layers due to my over zealous replacing of clothes with books means I may be struggling when it gets really cold. Now online thanks to Mr Bourgazi downstairs, a really nice guy. University campus the cleanest I have ever seen, the beautiful, unmarked, clean concrete lines had the skater in me slobbering: no room for skateboard in luggage...grr...

Beautiful architecture, clean streets, little noise, everything works. Only problem is the prices. Paid around 9CHF for a small pot of houmous (about£6.50!). We'll be OK if we keep it simple though. For those interested in high street differences instead of Tesco or Sainsbury's there is the infinitely superior Migros (still a cooperative) and its Kwik-Save like subsidiary Denner (good for cheap veg). At the high end is Manor - like a 'cool' and 'hip' version of Marks and Spencer, that stocks brands and other things you actually want, in most cases at (comparatively) affordable prices. This is where we bought A's neato Hello Kitty hat.

Friday 14th was sunny - see the view from our apartment. The park you can just see had a brand new unlocked bike left in it for two days. It also has a frog prince water fountain, a climbing wall, a rope bridge and two play huts. What can you do...

In der Schweiz

Arrival was inauspicious. Carting large suitcases (mostly full of my books) from plane to train to landlord's sister's car to third floor flat was not exactly fun we managed it. Switzerland exactly as I remember: clean, fresh and smooth running. Made the same mistake as last time of taking residence in the first class carriage with second class tickets, resulting in us having to negotiate carting A, our cases and all our stuff through three first class carriages and the buffet car. We also had a run in with a slightly insistent Chinese guy who did not want F anywhere near his case. Landlord's sister met us as St Gallen station (though we did not find her straightaway) and whisked us off to the apartment 2 or 3 minutes away. Apparently there is a festival of some kind going on, and the old town has many expensive shops. This fact I do not doubt.

It was getting dark by the time we got settled and managed to drink tea and eat our last houmous wraps. Very pleased with apartment: clean, warm and spacious. Time to crash.

St Gallen