Switzerland: following Jung
It has been months since I was in Switzerland but writing this blog didn’t come quickly. Perhaps because the intent of the trip was different. We were not just going to a place we thought of exploring, or there for work or family. We went to there to follow Jung. I had applied to The Research and Training Centre for Depth Psychology, and our trip was for me to attend interviews. I recently found out that I have not yet been accepted, meaning I passed most application criteria but need to fulfill additional analytical hours. Whilst at first this made me cry I have come to see the potent beauty of my delay. My commitment is firmer, I am relishing my analysis, and the extra time until I might be able to start has allowed me to attend to other aspects of my life. I hope that I will return to Switzerland, many times. I hope that the return will be for my study and work. But for now the single experience we had was quite profound.
I knew the country was expensive to stay in. That is true and not true. Value has to be measured by the exchange, and what you pay for you get. The quality is incredibly high, and I didn’t mind putting money down knowing that what I got in return was excellent. I often exchange money for something and am disappointed. That said traveling there extended our budget. We didn’t buy anything other than places to stay, food and car. We did try to eat out once but everyone was booked or closed. That is another truism of the place, time is as close to the clock as possible. Though time defies such linearity, it is as controlled as it can get in Switzerland. This means everything is punctual and reliable and inflexible. Our first house overlooked a construction site. The house was perfectly kitted out for children and the noise minimal, so it was tolerable. At noon and five every work day, exactly, the cranes stopped. It was by the clock to the end. It is best to have a mindset that looks ahead since the Swiss like to plan so as to maintain the structure of the order. I am not very good at this beyond a few months. I have a far reaching vision but the detail is not what I naturally attend to. Coming from South Africa my sense of time is much more malleable - like the saying we have of ‘just now’ which can mean two minutes to an hour. The moments in which this characteristic emerged were taken mostly by the Swiss as due to me being on vacation and tolerated. But only just.
When we arrived at the rental car stand we were told our car was gone because we were late, due to the long flight delay we had. So we learned first hand about necessary attention to detail - make sure you put your flight number into the car booking. We ended up getting, for the same rate, a massive car, really a small bus. We got it because it’s impossible to drive and too big. But my man handled it and we drove around in a ship. It was useful when daddy had to sit in it for an hour and a half with a crying toddler. He was asleep by the time we parked in central Zurich for my interview, so I left and soon after Aziz woke up. He spent the next hour and half not very happy. I did get a magical walk alone through the heart of Zurich, able to just be silent, looking at the old structures and meandering streets. Zurich is truly exquisite, as is most of Switzerland. The natural areas are pristine. The Swiss understand the value of natural territory and they respect it so highly they place tight restrictions on how it is used. You do not litter, you do not leave unnecessary trace. The environment is protected in its wild beauty. Whatever is deemed as not wild is very much preened and carefully developed for optimal use. The effect creates great beauty that feels contained and safe. It made me wander where all the chaos goes.
Switzerland for all its order embraces children and creates a world for them. The infrastructure is child friendly as long as you stay in the right zone, as with anything there. Toys are of the highest quality, bathrooms abundant and clean (even in parking lots), people accepting of what it means to be a child. Mothers seemed to be honored for their job as mother. I saw many mothers with their children during the day. I often am in places where children are with nannies or grandparents. I think the lunch time ritual may have something to do with that, since it’s standard for people to take off lunch and children are sent home, and someone needs to be there to cook. There was a general respect for woman taking time to be mothers and it’s palpable.
Because my lens was focused on Jungian studies I saw Switzerland as a place to come to for that purpose, not to travel or live. It made sense that such an internal psychology would emerge here, introspection comes naturally. It’s cold, worldly structures work and are ordered for you, you can move inward without worrying that everything outside will fall apart. This also isolates the culture, the borders are held strong, outside influences are not truly welcome. But what is allowed for and encouraged, is perfected. So if I got the privilege of going back to learn, I would also gladly partake in the chocolate (which is truly sublime and there is a chocolatier on every corner), hope to be close to the immaculately maintained nature and eat the real deal Swiss cheese. Switzerland gave me a deeper understanding of life where sensation (in the Jungian sense) is elevated.
