Switzerland is a federation like the United States, meaning it's a political entity (i.e. a country) formed by uniting smaller self governing regions (ie states) under a central federal government. Instead of 50 states, Switzerland is made up of 26 cantons that function as unique political ecosystems. Then these cantons are divided into four linguistic regions. So, sometimes going to a different canton in Switzerland feels like going to a different country, because even the language spoken changes. Where I live in Geneva, French is the main language spoken. However when I went to Schwyz (a different canton) for my hike this week, the main language was Swiss German. That being said, English functions as a lingua franca throughout Switzerland, and if I'm being honest, most of western Europe. Going to the eastern side of the country where German is the main language, I found it was easier to communicate in English than French even though French is a national language and English is not. There is actually so much English that it's a little difficult for me to practice my French!
The Swiss Franc (chf), which is one of the strongest currencies in the world! The conversion rate is around CHF 1.– (one swiss franc) to $1.25 USD, which is rough on my wallet. For reference, a small coffee can easily be $9.00 USD in Geneva thanks to the conversion.
