Aamir Shouket, Embassy of Pakistan

Article published in the infoletter June 2024.

As ambassador, I am responsible for maintaining and improving political, economic, trade, cultural and defence relations between our two countries. I am also concurrently accredited (as non-resident ambassador) to Liechtenstein and the Holy See. My responsibility also includes to serve the Pakistani diaspora living in Switzerland and to provide them with the best consular services.

A typical day at the office starts at 09:00 reading news from Switzerland, Pakistan and all over the world. After that, I check the mail we have received at the embassy. During a normal working day I have one or two meetings on average.

We are currently working very closely with the Swiss tourism agency Globetrotter, which will be offering travel packages for Pakistan from this summer. At the moment, Globetrotter is preparing to send a delegation of Swiss journalists to visit northern Pakistan at the end of June. We hope that this initiative will open the doors for Swiss tourists to visit Pakistan, especially the northern areas where we have five of the highest peaks in the world.

The biggest challenge, as far as I can tell, is the cost of living. The prices for almost everything are very high, which makes it very difficult to plan a good budget. On the other hand, Bern is one of the cleanest and healthiest cities I have ever lived in. It offers many opportunities to indulge in health-promoting activities. The city also has very well organised traffic and you never encounter traffic jams or traffic obstructions on the roads.

What I miss most about my home country is the vibrant lifestyle (yes, the noise!), with shops and restaurants staying open late into the night. I also miss the street food in my home country.

If I had the opportunity, I would like to extend shop closing times to 22:00 and allow shops and markets to open on Sundays as well.

My favourite place in Bern is the historic city centre, because it is the most unique centre of any city in the world. I love the cobbled streets and especially the way the city has preserved its original architecture over a long period of time.

I already know that I will miss the serenity, tranquillity and enchanting beauty of Bern. I am sure that I won't find such an atmosphere and city feeling anywhere else in the world.

I have always wanted to do the "Aareschwumm", which unfortunately I haven't managed to do yet. But it is on my bucket list.

I would say do not feel dejected when you arrive in Bern. At first you would think it is a boring city, but believe me, it is not. You will fall in love with it once you start living here.

I am a big time cheese lover. And my favourite is Emmentaler.

Unfortunately not. But I have learnt a few words and my favourite is "Chuchichäschtli".

Chittipat Tongprasroeth, Ambassador of Thailand (portrait to be published in the next infoletter).

Discover the interesting personalities who enrich our federal city.