Switzerland is a small country with small cities, especially when compared with China. So Chinese friends are amazed when locals greet them as strangers.
We live in a lane with several row houses. The nice thing about this lane is that we all know each other by name and that we function somewhat like a small community.
In summer one lady usually organises a summer party where we set up tables along the lanes, bring food and wines and share the food with each other. We even have three musicians that play as we join in with singing songs.
Our neighbourhood is really great. When we are gone for a while neighbours empty the mail box and water our flowers.
The night we had our party going, the neighbourhood next to ours also had theirs going.
I have to admit that such a friendly neighbourhood is a privilege that can’t be taken for granted. But at the same time it isn’t a just a big exception. In our country there are many other friendly neighbourhoods too.
