Cham, 27.11.2020

From the Baltic to Cham - and back again

Gediminas Paulauskas and his family started a new life in the canton of Zug. But then Corona came along and turned everything upside down. Now he sometimes commutes – with a 19-hour drive each way.

When asked where his home is, Gediminas Paulauskas replies in English: "I feel at home in Lithuania and Switzerland. My family is used to travelling a lot. We are adaptable." Paulauskas is from Kaunas, the second largest city in Lithuania. He came to Zug in 2018 with his wife and two sons – but he would prefer not to see the names of the family members in the newspaper. He works for the internationally active company Polymers Trading, which trades in plastics and packaging materials. And he’s a "workaholic", he says. "I love my job."

The Paulauskas family moved here, more precisely to Cham, because the company for which he had previously worked in Lithuania had set up a branch in Switzerland.. When the 46-year-old talks about his adopted homeland, he becomes very enthusiastic. "Zug is an exceptional canton. It is a very attractive place for internationally-active business people. You can easily find your way around here, almost everyone speaks English, and I find the people to be very friendly and open." He feels very comfortable in Zug, in particular because the canton is "like a village". "Everything is close, the lake, the mountains, and there are no crowds in public places and at the train station, unlike Zurich, for example."

He likes the way the Swiss say "Grüezi" to each other on the street
He is also impressed by the cleanliness, the safety and the ecological awareness. "The Swiss neatly separate their waste, and even seem to enjoy doing it. This is very exemplary for me." In addition, the Swiss are "relaxed” and helpful. Paulauskas likes the way people say "Grüezi" on the street. And he and his wife like to be outdoors. "We don't like fitness centres. We’d much rather go hiking or skiing."

Compared to his home country, political stability has existed in Switzerland for a long time. Lithuania, which has only been an independent state since 1990, has always had to fight for this status. "Lithuania is basically a very young democracy, and you notice that." Nevertheless, he enjoyed a good education at Vilnius University and is convinced that the country is on the right track.

High quality of the local schools
Gediminas Paulauskas and his wife sent their two sons, aged 13 and 15, to local schools, first in Hünenberg, then in Cham. "They quickly learned German, and integration was easy for them," he says. The quality of the local schools in Switzerland is very high, which is why the question of a private school for the children was not an issue.

Gediminas Paulauskas (left) with his wife and two sons on the Baltic Sea in Lithuania.

Is there something he doesn't like about Switzerland? Paulauskas ponders for a moment. "It was really difficult and quite complicated to find an apartment. And living in Switzerland is expensive. But wages are also higher." In summary, Paulauskas finds that Switzerland is "a dreamland" for him.

The start in Zug was a great success for the family from Lithuania – but then the corona virus came along and turned everything upside down. As the number of cases in Switzerland was higher than in Lithuania, the family decided to move back to Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, in the spring. "It wasn't an easy decision," says Paulauskas. "The children felt very comfortable at school." But health is paramount, and they currently feel safer in Lithuania.

19-hour drive
Despite the pandemic, Gediminas Paulauskas has to travel to Switzerland every two to three weeks for his work. He then works for his company for one to two weeks from his apartment in Cham, without having to meet people. Because he doesn't want to fly, he uses the car for the journey: from Vilnius to Zug is a drive of about 19 hours. It’s a stressful situation, but he has come to terms with it. "I've been on the road a lot before."

What happens next? For the Lithuanian, it is clear that he and his family want to return to Switzerland in the longer term. His sons would like to study here, and he considers a good education to be very important for his offspring. "But, first of all, the corona situation has to calm down." They will probably stay in Lithuania for at least another year. The family is in the same situation as many other people at the moment: it’s difficult to plan anything. But Gediminas Paulauskas, who has already travelled in countless countries, is also taking this calmly. He feels comfortable in many places.

 

The "Zuger Zeitung" is portraying expats and newcomers in the series "New in Zug". The contacts were made by Sandra Herzog, founder of the meet-up group "Meeting new friends in Zug".