Babylon

At the moment, there is 196 countries in the world. People from 189 of them live in one city. It is Geneva. Even so, you don’t have to take a dictionaries there. Swiss people speak in more languages than you will ever have cars. If you don’t speak in any of them, you can always find an expat who can speak your own language.

More than 40% of residents who live there are not from Switzerland. Why? Mainly because this is one of the best cities to live in the world.

Geneva regularly ranks among the top cities in international ratings and among the most expensive, but these tend to be based on powerhouse “quality of life”. Salaries are among the highest in Europe and public finances are used very effectively. Nobody can complain about the public services like healthcare, industry, policy or pensions.

Geneva also recently won, for the second time, the Gold European Energy Award for visionary energy policies, which lead to reliable expectations of low pollution.

Being multicultural doesn’t mean that the city lost its own climate and tradition. In the 16th Century, John Calvin, a major Protestant reformer, changed the city a lot. His achievements still influence locals, but the tradition of moral discipline and minimalism might not always work with different cultures of expats.

For people who prefer more natural and wild views, Geneva will also be a great place to live. In summertime all residents go to Lake Geneva.

The Jet d’Eau ­– the landmark fountain that shoots water 140m in the air – attract crowds to the manmade peninsula known as Les Bains des Paquis.

Thus, real Babylon exist and people are getting along there. Although, more important for the Irish community should be, the information that Dublin is going into the same direction as Geneve.