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.
