Jo dö könned mir jo gly Schwyzerdüütsch rede “Ahm, then we can speak Swiss German right away,” the charming young lady says, as she hears our first words. Antoinette and her husband had taken me into the restaurant “zum Schwiizer” in Zeesen, some 40km south of Berlin. We sit in a nice garden in the warm sun, and obviously Antoinette and I could not hide where we are from. The owner welcomed us in Swiss German. We order Läberli (liver) and Zürigschnätzlets (meat cut into strips in cream sauce) with Röschti (similar to hash browns) and e Gmüeswäie (vegetable pie). We also take Valser Wasser (mineral water from Vals in the Swiss mountains) and Rivella (is made from milk serum and is a drink invented in Switzerland in 1952).

The Swiss quiz

While we wait for our dishes, we smile about this quiz which we found on our table… it contains questions such as

•  which of these dishes do not contain potatoes: Hääperebrägu, Rüeblitorte, Gschwellti, Härdöpfustock (it is “Rüeblitorte” that contains Rüebli or carrots, but not potatoes).
• or translate please: Jetzt faart dä Löli uf em Troittoir, derbii schtoot e Tschugger hinterem Egge. (Now this idiot runs his bike on the pedestrians’ walk, but there is a policeman behind the corner).
• or which of these products have not been invented in Switzerland or by a Swiss? The two stroke engine, democracy, the zip fastener, Chevrolet cars, the bicycle chain, the PC mouse, LSD, aluminium foil, the velcro fastener, the turbo charger, the spam and the LCD display? Answer: The spam – and I somehow think this is not a product, but a nuisance… or did they mean Spiced Pork And Meat – canned precooked meat?

Antoinette’s husband rolls his eyes, as also Germans have a hard time to understand the Swiss dialects. We enjoy our very Swiss experience here close to Berlin. We can recommend this restaurant & pension which is just near the regional railway station of Zeesen with a direct connection to the city center of Berlin (website http://www.zum-schwiizer.com). The young couple running it met in Switzerland, he being from Berlin and she from the Swiss canton of Thurgau, and they decided to start their own business here.