Sundays are sacrosanct ‘quiet’ days in Switzerland, and this rule has even been applied to a children’s playground near Basel.
Foreigners settling in Switzerland are often stunned at the concept of ‘quiet Sundays’ that is so deeply entrenched in the local culture.
That’s because Sundays are considered rest days, so your neighbours’ peace and quiet should not be disrupted by any loud sound — such as a lawn mower, hedge cutter, nail being hammered into a wall, glass bottles being tossed into a communal recycling bin, or even…the sound of children laughing and playing.
(Also, you cannot hang your laundry out to dry: while this activity is noise-less, the sight of your undies hanging on your balcony may be offensive to your neighbours on a Sunday.)
And in at least one instance, a foreigner attempting to assembly IKEA furniture on this day, heard a knock on his door. The neighbour was not exactly angry, but thoroughly confused at this activity. “It’s Sunday,” he said.
READ MORE: Why is Switzerland so obsessed about keeping Sundays sacred?
That’s the general ‘quiet Sunday’ rule, but sometimes it is taken to absurd extremes.
Never on Sunday
In compliance with municipal regulations, a property management company in Sissach, near Basel, has informed residents that a local playground will now be off-limits to children all day on Sundays to prevent any noise in the neighbourhood.
On other days too, children are only allowed to play according to a strict schedule, which is displayed at the playground’s entrance: during the week, no access is allowed between noon and 1 pm, so that adults can eat their lunch in peace.
The playground also closes at 8 pm daily, and at 6 pm on Saturdays, when local residents presumably go to sleep.
The sound of silence
Though Sissach’s effort to curb playground noise may seem overly persnickety, it is actually in line with the federal noise ordinance.
It states that children are allowed to play and make as much noise as they like on public or private playgrounds – but only outside of quiet hours.
However…”this does not apply to teenagers who meet at a playground in the evening to drink beer while playing loud music.”
