I meet Omid in front of the University of Lucerne, where he welcomes me with a smile and a firm handshake. Talking to him, I am quickly impressed by his open nature – and no less by his impeccable German. Omid is 27 years old and has been in Switzerland for two years. The fact that his dream profession is interpreting will hardly surprise anyone. As an interpreter, Omid sets himself a high goal: “I would like to find the corresponding word in my mother tongue for every word in a sentence, even if that doesn’t exist.” 

Although he cannot spontaneously remember his first word in German, he assumes that it would have been a simple “hello”. That matches the disarming uninhibitedness with which he approaches people. But it also fits in with how he could imagine living together in Switzerland even better. Metaphorically speaking, he says: ”We’re all living under one roof, but we’re not really together.” If we don’t not give each other the opportunity to get to know each other properly, we will always remain separated, he explains. Omid would like to have more exchange with local people. And to make friends like he had in Afghanistan. It is important to him to be together and to learn from each other. 

Omid has already gotten to know a few new things in Switzerland. Asked about his favorite dish, he doesn’t have to think for a moment. “Lasagna!” he smiles, and his face suddenly brightens. He ate this dish for the first time with friends who also introduced him to Italian spaghetti and to the Swiss way of cooking. Omid likes to meet different people. “Abmachen”, he says with a smile – a typical Swiss-German expression for meeting friends. 

Nevertheless, he sees studying as the best way to really feel at home. But there are still a few obstacles to overcome on his way – especially for his dream job. At interpreting schools in Switzerland, you have to speak one of the languages that are taught as your mother tongue. Ovid’s mother tongue is Persian, which is not taught within this framework. As a first step he is therefore preparing himself for a German language test. In spite of the difficulties, he is thus building on something he quickly noticed in Switzerland: “The Swiss are looking for a solution for almost everything. I like that. “ 

Omid wants people to get together more, to get to know each other and learn from each other. And with his help, it may soon be possible to have an exchange across language barriers.