There are no angels in paradise (Montreux, Switzerland, June 2012)
June 28, 2012
I came to Montreux, Switzerland with my husband on June 15 for a two-week holiday. Our stay has been quiet and relaxing but yesterday, June 26, a letter arrived by registered mail that changed my perception of Swiss life.
I was cooking eggs with tomatoes for breakfast when the doorbell of our flat rang, around 9 am. My husband opened the door and received the letter. He said it was from Monsieur F, the manager of our building. He opened the letter and of course it was in French. He came to the kitchen, held the letter in front of me, and asked me to translate its contents. I didn't have my reading glasses on but I managed to decipher it. It informed us that the residents of the building had had a meeting and do not want the winch that my husband had had installed last year. The letter had referred to the winch as "lift" but it is not The French word for winch is treuil. It had to be removed by August 15, 2012. The letter did not mention if it was a unanimous vote; neither did it note who were present. It was a letter written on behalf of the residents by the manager. Incidentally, we never see the manager, the concierge, or the gardener. It seems they make an appearance every three months.
We were very surprised to receive such a letter. I was of course very, very, very annoyed! My husband had spent a lot of money to have that winch constructed and installed. We use the winch to hoist up or down our luggage. The layout of the building is kind of bizarre. The garage is on the roof; then we go down a stairway to access the inside of the building; then we go down two floors and on that floor the elevator starts to four floors. Our flat is on the fourth level down from garage, which is the roof of the building. The view of the lake and mountain is fantastic from our terrasse – one of the best views in Montreux, people say. But the building layout is very, very inconvenient to all the residents. Hence, my husband had a winch constructed to transport our luggage from the garage to our terrasse when we come for holiday. Otherwise, we would have to carry our luggage down from the garage roof; then up two flights of stairs; then take the elevator down to our floor. Like most buildings in Montreux, it is situated on the side of a mountain.
My husband took a picture of the letter with his mobile and sent it to Monsieur B, the contractor who installed it. Monsieur B sent word that he will go and talk to the manager, Monsieur F. He said not to worry as he'll take care of it.
Monsieur B, the contractor who installed the winch, said before installation that he would obtain all the necessary permit and get the consent of the residents of the building. We had assumed all these were done. The day after we received the letter, Monsieur B came to see us about the issue. He told us that because the building is private it was not necessary to get a permit from the municipality. He said that three of the six residents in the building had not agreed to its installation but he went ahead and installed it anyway! It was a BAD situation. He again assured us not to worry about it as he will sort it out with the manager. He said it seemed our neighbors were mauvais. To the question why he installed it despite the objection of some of the residents, he just shrugged his shoulders, muttering something about the Swiss.
Being foreigners in Switzerland, we do not know much about their laws. We spend only one to two months every year in Switzerland, usually in summer. I thought the issue of the winch was so minor that I thought some of the tenants were making a mountain out of a molehill. Sometimes, when there is not much to do except sit in your balcony and stare at the view, little distractions can be exciting.
According to our neighbor and friend Mme D, the tenants who are against the winch consider the contraption an eyesore. The son of Mme D thinks the residents are jealous. I tend to agree with him because the contraption blends with the garage. I wonder a lot what those who want the winch removed consider aesthetically pleasing. On the ground near the winch is a composition of assorted play things. I heard it belonged to one of the children in the building. As of this writing, I heard that someone had taken a picture of the play things and sent it to the mother of the child! Who could have taken the picture?
One of the residents in the building is an old Swiss woman who lives alone. I am told she is very, very rich. She is an old maid. She smokes incessantly, so they say, and her flat stinks from the cigarettes! Last summer, we used the winch early in the morning, around 8 am because my daughters and I were catching the early train to Milan. She had complained that the noise had woke her up and since then she had been strongly against the winch. She keeps complaining to the other residents about it when she comes on her yearly holiday. Like us, she is a temporary resident. She comes only once a year for three weeks. I doubt very much though if she snapped that picture.
One of my husband's friends advised him to give gifts to the residents to keep them quiet. We of course rejected the idea. I was planning to make a date sweet to give to my good neighbors as I was planning to get to know them better. Now, after that letter, I abandoned the idea.
Switzerland is rich in beautiful scenery and many foreigners buy summer or winter homes. Beautiful land! Where are the beautiful people? Today, we had coffee with some people who thought Montreux is "paradise on earth". If so, where are the angels? Funny, but things are not always what they seem.
Rachel Hajar, M.D.
Author of My Life in Doha: Between Dream and Reality
Available at:
http://www.strategicpublishinggroup.com
http://www.amazon.com
http://www.barnesandnoble.com
I came to Montreux, Switzerland with my husband on June 15 for a two-week holiday. Our stay has been quiet and relaxing but yesterday, June 26, a letter arrived by registered mail that changed my perception of Swiss life.
I was cooking eggs with tomatoes for breakfast when the doorbell of our flat rang, around 9 am. My husband opened the door and received the letter. He said it was from Monsieur F, the manager of our building. He opened the letter and of course it was in French. He came to the kitchen, held the letter in front of me, and asked me to translate its contents. I didn't have my reading glasses on but I managed to decipher it. It informed us that the residents of the building had had a meeting and do not want the winch that my husband had had installed last year. The letter had referred to the winch as "lift" but it is not The French word for winch is treuil. It had to be removed by August 15, 2012. The letter did not mention if it was a unanimous vote; neither did it note who were present. It was a letter written on behalf of the residents by the manager. Incidentally, we never see the manager, the concierge, or the gardener. It seems they make an appearance every three months.
We were very surprised to receive such a letter. I was of course very, very, very annoyed! My husband had spent a lot of money to have that winch constructed and installed. We use the winch to hoist up or down our luggage. The layout of the building is kind of bizarre. The garage is on the roof; then we go down a stairway to access the inside of the building; then we go down two floors and on that floor the elevator starts to four floors. Our flat is on the fourth level down from garage, which is the roof of the building. The view of the lake and mountain is fantastic from our terrasse – one of the best views in Montreux, people say. But the building layout is very, very inconvenient to all the residents. Hence, my husband had a winch constructed to transport our luggage from the garage to our terrasse when we come for holiday. Otherwise, we would have to carry our luggage down from the garage roof; then up two flights of stairs; then take the elevator down to our floor. Like most buildings in Montreux, it is situated on the side of a mountain.
My husband took a picture of the letter with his mobile and sent it to Monsieur B, the contractor who installed it. Monsieur B sent word that he will go and talk to the manager, Monsieur F. He said not to worry as he'll take care of it.
Monsieur B, the contractor who installed the winch, said before installation that he would obtain all the necessary permit and get the consent of the residents of the building. We had assumed all these were done. The day after we received the letter, Monsieur B came to see us about the issue. He told us that because the building is private it was not necessary to get a permit from the municipality. He said that three of the six residents in the building had not agreed to its installation but he went ahead and installed it anyway! It was a BAD situation. He again assured us not to worry about it as he will sort it out with the manager. He said it seemed our neighbors were mauvais. To the question why he installed it despite the objection of some of the residents, he just shrugged his shoulders, muttering something about the Swiss.
Being foreigners in Switzerland, we do not know much about their laws. We spend only one to two months every year in Switzerland, usually in summer. I thought the issue of the winch was so minor that I thought some of the tenants were making a mountain out of a molehill. Sometimes, when there is not much to do except sit in your balcony and stare at the view, little distractions can be exciting.
According to our neighbor and friend Mme D, the tenants who are against the winch consider the contraption an eyesore. The son of Mme D thinks the residents are jealous. I tend to agree with him because the contraption blends with the garage. I wonder a lot what those who want the winch removed consider aesthetically pleasing. On the ground near the winch is a composition of assorted play things. I heard it belonged to one of the children in the building. As of this writing, I heard that someone had taken a picture of the play things and sent it to the mother of the child! Who could have taken the picture?
One of the residents in the building is an old Swiss woman who lives alone. I am told she is very, very rich. She is an old maid. She smokes incessantly, so they say, and her flat stinks from the cigarettes! Last summer, we used the winch early in the morning, around 8 am because my daughters and I were catching the early train to Milan. She had complained that the noise had woke her up and since then she had been strongly against the winch. She keeps complaining to the other residents about it when she comes on her yearly holiday. Like us, she is a temporary resident. She comes only once a year for three weeks. I doubt very much though if she snapped that picture.
One of my husband's friends advised him to give gifts to the residents to keep them quiet. We of course rejected the idea. I was planning to make a date sweet to give to my good neighbors as I was planning to get to know them better. Now, after that letter, I abandoned the idea.
Switzerland is rich in beautiful scenery and many foreigners buy summer or winter homes. Beautiful land! Where are the beautiful people? Today, we had coffee with some people who thought Montreux is "paradise on earth". If so, where are the angels? Funny, but things are not always what they seem.
Rachel Hajar, M.D.
Author of My Life in Doha: Between Dream and Reality
Available at:
http://www.strategicpublishinggroup.com
http://www.amazon.com
http://www.barnesandnoble.com
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