Swiss Quiz 1

Which are the highest mountains in Switzerland – do you know?
Although Switzerland is renowned as a country full of mountains, the highest mountain of the Alps and Western Europe actually belongs to France - it’s the Mont Blanc that towers above all at a height of 4809 meters! And with the exclusion of the Caucasus mountain range, Mont Blanc is the highest summit throughout Europe. In Switzerland, the four highest peaks are the Dufourspitze (4,634 m), Dom (4,545 m), Weisshorn (4,506 m) and Matterhorn (4,478 m).

Have you ever heard of these men: Richard Ernst, Heinrich Rohrer and Rolf Zinkernagel? Have a think and then try and answer the following question: They are all ...A.) Swiss Nobel Prize winners - B.) Pioneers of the Swiss watch industry or C.) Bankers. If you selected A as your answer you are correct, because they are all Nobel Prize winners! Switzerland has 27 Nobel Prize winners, and no less than 113 Nobel Prize winners are somehow related to Switzerland – And naturally, the most famous of all is Albert Einstein, a citizen of Zurich.

Did you know that even today, nostalgic paddle steamers from the year 1900 and turn of the century still cruise on Lake Lucerne?
We are talking about the biggest paddle steamer fleet in the world that travels on inland waters together with Lake Geneva. Moreover, the steamers of the Lake Lucerne navigation company operate all year round.
Until the construction of the Axenstrasse between 1863 and 1865, the waterway provided the only possible route to the canton of Uri and the Gotthard Pass - and hence was the only way from the hanseatic towns in the north to the ports and commercial towns of the Mediterranean, such as Genoa and Venice.

Which is the highest-lying European village?
The highest-lying village in Europe is called Juf - a village inhabited throughout the year and found in Switzerland. Situated at a height of 2126 meters, it belongs to the Avers valley community, canton Graubunden. About 24 inhabitants from six families live in the former Walser settlement and so-called German-speaking island (Walserdeutsch). Originally, Rhaeto Romansch was the language spoken here. The title of highest-lying European village is disputed by the villagers of Le Baite, near Trepalle - municipality of Livigno in Italy - but information sources favour Juf.

Do tropical fruits grow in Switzerland?
Quinten is found on a small ledge, by Walensee, at a height of 434 meters above sea level. The dwelling place and home of 55 inhabitants, nestles between Walensee and the steeply rising Churfirsten rock faces. These impressive mountains - which are also treasured by hikers – protect this Garden of Eden from cold northerly winds and ensure a year-round mild climate. Hence, not only do grapes grow, but figs, kiwis and other tropical fruits that under normal circumstances wouldn’t survive in Switzerland’s climate.

Did you know that the biggest subterraneous European lake is found in St Léonard, canton Wallis?
Here you can take a boat ride even when it’s raining! And the puzzling cavern of the large subterranean lake was first discovered and researched in 1943 by Jean-Jacques Pittard. The 300-meter-long, 20-meter-wide and 10-meter-deep cavern was opened to the public only 6 years later and a 40-seat boat provides passengers a most unusual sight to see!

How competitive is the Swiss Economy?
The Geneva-based World Economic Forum places Switzerland at the top concerning global-competitiveness and a survey of 125 countries in 2006 – and furthermore praises Switzerland’s capacity for innovation and its sophisticated business culture. America took 6th place and the UK 10th in the rankings. Switzerland generally seems to do well in opinion polls and surveys issued by various organisations, as it also did in 2005 when it took 8th place in the World Competitive Yearbook rankings. At that time, the US occupied the top position and the UK the 22nd.

Which Swiss citizen plays a major role in the next James Bond adventure?
Marc Forster, the critically acclaimed Swiss director, has agreed to bring James Bond's next adventure to the big screen! Forster will direct the lucrative, franchise no-name-yet film from a script he and Oscar-winning screenwriter Paul Haggis shall develop, that stems from a draft by previous Bond collaborators. Marc Forster is the son of a Swiss doctor and German architect, who was born in Germany in 1969 and grew up in Davos - in the east of Switzerland.

How much do the 300 richest individuals and families in Switzerland own?
The super rich in Switzerland are becoming even richer and their assets now total a record CHF 455 billion (€274 billion). According to the Swiss economics magazine Bilanz, average sums for each super-rich individual amount to CHF 1.517 billion - but it’s important to mention that on taking a closer look, together, the ten richest in the rankings own CHF123 billion – approximately a quarter of all the assets owned by the 300 super-rich!