Posted in Animals, tagged Animals, cats, dogs, Food, health, horses, Switzerland on February 18, 2013| Leave a Comment »
Hercules the kitty liked visiting these rabbits, who were being raised for meat.
Europeans are uneasy in the aftermath of a scandal involving horse meat found in hamburgers and lasagna. A few weeks ago I wrote a piece about how people are comfortable eating some animals and not others.
Click here to read “Animal lovers question morality of eating pets“.
Posted in Beauty, tagged beauty, cosmetic surgery, employment, Fashion, museums, plastic surgery, Switzerland on January 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. This age-old saying is less true than ever, if one considers the growth of the beauty industry. The sector that includes everything from cosmetics to plastic surgery profits from engrained notions of good looks.
It is estimated that every day, the Swiss population works its way through 64 tonnes of cosmetics and hair products – all in the name of looking better. For facial products alone, the Swiss spend SFr400 million ($428 million) per year.
Click here to read the whole article and see a gallery of people primping at swissinfo.ch.
Posted in Culture, tagged Apps, art, audio guides, Culture, design, entertainment, iPod, Lucerne, museums, Switzerland, technology, tourism on October 22, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Scanning for knowledge at the Museum of History in Lucerne
With competition from social media and other online diversions, cultural attractions like museums must find innovative ways to keep the public’s attention. Swiss institutions are experimenting with new technology and special events.
“Swiss museums are trying to become more interactive – it’s only just starting,” notes Brigitte Schaffner. The course administrator for Basel University’s art management programme explains that local cultural institutions are, in part, taking a page from the book of their United States’ counterparts.
“Some museums, especially American ones, have been doing this for quite a while – using social media to let the public become a part of what happens in the museum and even part of the process of what’s exhibited,” she explains.
Click here to read the whole article at swissinfo.ch.
Posted in Travel, tagged children, Culture, Heidi, literature, marketing, Switzerland, tourism, Travel on August 5, 2012| 1 Comment »
A scene from the “Heidiland” region in Gräubunden. © Susan Vogel-Misicka
I was in Graübunden recently for an article about how Heidi, the storybook character, is used as a marketing tool in Switzerland. Beautiful scenery, including a lot of vineyards and castles!
Click here to read Swiss sweetheart generates tourism cash on swissinfo.ch.
Posted in Current affairs, Health, tagged Culture, female circumcision, FGM, health, law, Switzerland on July 15, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Amal was one of my sources for this story. She asked if we could take a photo together, so I did my best holding the smartphone at arm’s length.
A change to the Swiss penal code on female genital mutilation (FGM) came into force on July 1; it aims to prevent Swiss-based families from having their daughters circumcised, whether in Switzerland or abroad.
I did a pair of stories on this topic for swissinfo.ch; you can find them at the links below:
Law tightened on female genital mutilation
Susan's News 