Family Time

The halfway point of the NJC school year was marked by a week's holiday. Some students chose to travel home to see their families, but, in most cases, it was the other way around. Parents and siblings made the trip to Switzerland to participate in a week of fun in Zermatt, one of the great ski resorts of the world.

The view over Zermatt from the Hotel Tschugge

As a non-skier, my first instinct was to enjoy my time off somewhere else, but when I mentioned the school trip to my elder daughter, Katie, she became very excited. Skiing Zermatt was on her bucket list, so she made her way here from Calgary to do just that. I was content to see the place and to walk around the village and surrounding area for a few days. Après-ski all day for me!

The Matterhorn looms over Zermatt.

On Saturday morning, Katie and I were on one of the two buses heading southeast to Zermatt. My job was to act as a supervisor to the "orphans", the students whose parents could not get away this week but who wanted to be part of the experience. There would be four of us in this role over the week: Lyn and I in the first half, and Terry and Sandra in the second half.

An electric shuttle bus in Zermatt.

Our bus to Zermatt stopped at Täsch, where we boarded a train to complete the trip to the village. Zermatt, I discovered, is car-free. There are electrical shuttle buses serving the many hotels, but otherwise, the only ways to get around are by foot or by train.

On the way to Hotel Tschugge

Group meeting in the lounge at the Hotel Tschugge

The 15 students staying at the Hotel Tschugge had to climb up a hill to get to our accommodation, while the others, staying with family members, headed in the other direction to the Hotel National. During our time there, we frequently went back and forth between these two hotels. The National was fancier and closer to ski lifts, but also more crowded and noisier; I was content with the Tschugge's quiet location and views over the town.

One group at the National

Clearly, these folks are happy to be on vacation with each other - and their families.

Arriving at about 15:00 on the first day, it was too late to ski, so Katie, Lyn and I merely explored the town to get our bearings. On the second morning, however, the two of them headed upwards to ski while I chose to play indoor tennis with Bill. It had been some time since I had swung a tennis racquet but I competed gamely; I think I got more exercise on the tennis court than the others got on the ski hills!

Jen joins Katie and Lyn on the first day of skiing.

Bill  dominated me on the court. It was like playing John Isner for me.

This was a beautiful day of sunshine, a bluebird day, as they say in skiing parlance. In the afternoon, I wandered around the town window shopping, before stopping for hot chocolate with Kienan and his parents. At 17:00, the week's organizers, George Hardy Tours, scheduled a reception for parents where I enjoyed chatting with many of them in an informal way. Dinner was at Hotel Tschugge where I was reunited with my family member, my Katie, Lyn and our group. Liam's dad, who had just arrived, dined with us as well.

I decided to take a photo into the direct sunlight and see what would happen. I like this one.

On the second day, the light was flatter, creating less than ideal ski conditions, but the day was fine for hiking. I had arranged to meet Becca's mom, Mary, at the Hotel National. The concierge suggested we make our way to Zum See, about an hour's walk away, where we would stop for lunch. There are many hiking trails in the area and this is one of the more popular ones. The restaurant in the hamlet of Zum See is delightful. Mary and I sat in a glassed-in section and warmed ourselves under the blankets provided, while we split a rosti dish. As we were leaving, we met with Andrew's mom, Julie, who joined us on our walk back to Zermatt. (We tried a short-cut first - which became a "long-cut", so we retraced our steps to get down the mountain.)

The restaurant at Zum See is in a 300 year-old building.

Hiking buddies, Julie and Mary

At 17:00 that afternoon, George Hardy had reserved the local skating rink for a friendly hockey game between parents and students. This was an entertaining event, with very relaxed rules. It was hard to tell who was on each team since there were no uniforms; there was no body checking, of course – that might have killed some folks; and the skill level was greatly varied. The Swedish import, Viggo's dad, was an impressive player, as was Sierra's father, wearing the Boston Bruins jersey. To add authenticity to the event, Matt Nunziata and Lauren's dad staged a glove dropping fight in centre ice part way through the second period. In spite of the best efforts of goalies, Jesse and Mr. Boyer, both teams scored a couple of times. The official score was a tie: 3-3, I think.

Lots of players in this game!

After the game, frozen, Katie and I headed out for dinner at an authentic Swiss restaurant, the Weisshorn, where we enjoyed a tomato fondue. That warmed us up!

Zermatt's main street at dusk.

The view as we reached the top of the tree line.

The next day, Tuesday, the sun was shining again – time for me to take the Gornergrat Bahn, a train that stops several times on its way up to its final stop where the Matterhorn can be viewed in all its glory. On the ride up, I shared the car with many, many skiers, but on the way down at 11:00, I had the car to myself. This allowed me to take picture after picture because the views were magnificent.

The Gornergrat Bahn on its way down.

I could not take my eyes off the Matterhorn - what a majestic sight it is! The photos tell the story of my 30 minutes at the top. I have only posted a few of them.

How exhilarating it must be to ski here!

This guy was posing for the tourists.

I was there!!

At 13:30, Katie and I boarded a train to return to Neuchâtel. We missed out on the skating party and the curling matches that took place later that week, but our family time in Zermatt was very enjoyable nevertheless. We were not finished our holidaying either, as you will discover in the next blog post.

One last view of the Matterhorn. 

January Jaunts

January was a busy month for me, what with end of semester tasks to complete; there were exams to mark, final marks to calculate, and report card comments to write. Still, I managed two trips outside of Neuchâtel before the mid-semester break began. In both cases, Dan suggested the destinations and offered to drive, while his colleagues, myself included, were happy to tag along.

Jen and I in Stein am Rhein

On January 11^th, Dan suggested a day trip to Stein am Rhein. This small town north of Zurich registered with me since my son had visited it about 6 years ago and had commented on its beauty. Jen and I hopped into Dan’s car after breakfast. The journey took about two and a half hours, so that we arrived at our destination just in time for lunch. On this day, the weather was not always cooperative; we had a little of everything from rain and snow to bright sunshine mid-day but the trip was well worth taking nonetheless.

Another group braved the cold to wander the streets of the town

Stein am Rhein means “Rock on the Rhine”, by the way, but there is nothing rocky about the place. The town is like a picture postcard with its colourfully painted half-timbered buildings. On this chilly Sunday, it was pretty much deserted. There were a couple of die-hard merchants open for tourists so we did our best to support them, but mainly we meandered along the main street and took our time enjoying the town’s unique character.

Typical building in the town

I love the paintings!

Heading west, we followed the Rhine River until we arrived at Schaffhausen, near the famous Rheinfall. We decided to view this impressive sight from two vantage points. Pulling over to the side of the road, we were able to get a clear view from above, but when we made our way to a tourist parking lot for an even closer view, the weather turned so ugly – raining sideways – we decided to return to the comfort of the car. Of course, as soon as we did that, the sun came out and I got one last gorgeous shot of the church and gate before we headed home.

The Rheinfall

Just a few minutes before I took this shot, it had been very windy and rainy. 

The following weekend, Dan, Paul and Jen convinced me to join them for an overnight trip to the French Alps. (Usually, I do not need much arm-twisting to travel but on this weekend I had my exams to mark.) Our destination was Grenoble, famous for hosting the 1968 Winter Olympics. Again, the January weather made conditions far from ideal some of the time. Emerging from a tunnel just south of the French border crossing, we found ourselves very suddenly in a blizzard. That was a shock! I suppose this should have been no surprise since we were climbing to higher elevations as we traveled. Fortunately, Dan is a very good driver and we made it to our destination with no difficulty.

The mountains looming over Grenoble.

Local cheese at the Saturday market.

Grenoble is an impressive city of 150 000 which is surrounded by mountains. Its Saturday market was a great way to begin our explorations. As we walked through the pedestrian area of the city, we discovered that Stendhal, a 19th century French writer, was born here, and that civic unrest in 1788 near the former Hôtel de Ville was a precursor to the French Revolution.  It was called The Day of the Tiles.

A monument to the Day of the Tiles

One serendipitous moment occurred when we entered Eglise Collégiale St-André as mezzo-soprano, Dominique Dumas, was rehearsing for a concert the next day. Her voice was splendid, so much so that we did not want to leave the building, and when she finished one piece, we all burst into applause. Another special part of our day in Grenoble was our dinner at La Girole, an outstanding restaurant. Dan was thrilled that the wine list included two of his favourite reds, but I particularly loved the meal we were served and the presentation. The French certainly know how to prepare and serve food!

The Isère River flows through the centre of Grenoble

In the morning, we headed back toward Switzerland by way of Annecy, a return trip for me to this gorgeous town of canals. We were fortunate to stumble upon a Sunday market which livened up the place. We also really enjoyed our lunch. I sampled the local specialty, a tartiflette – in our waiter’s view, the Annecy version of poutine. 

Gorgeous Annecy

Another view of Annecy

Annecy is just as lovely in summer and as it is in winter. I was particularly pleased that Jen and Paul were able to see the place, just as Bob, Terry and I had in August – clearly, it is one of Dan's favourite escapes. (There is a blog post about Annecy from late August so if you would like to know more about Annecy, you can have a look back at that entry.) With Paul headed back to Canada at the end of January, this would be his last trip with us.

A gentle man and a gentleman, we will miss Paul Duckett. Photo taken in Grenoble.

By late afternoon, we were back in Neuchâtel, thankful again that Dan was so eager to travel to so many places in Europe. We were all grateful for his generosity. I my case, I tackled those exams with renewed vigour. A little play makes the work much easier to bear.

The Foyer Folks

The Foyer Folk do not spend their days working directly with the students although, in fact, they often do so on an individual basis. With offices and desks, and in some cases, living quarters, in the grand old foyer building, these six individuals have deeper roots in the school than the great majority of us who work in the Pavillon. They are also a very international group, representing four countries.

The foyer building.

Bill leads teachers and support staff in our rendition of the 12 Days of Neuchâtel at the Christmas assembly.

Our leader, the Head of School, Bill Boyer, has been the face of Neuchâtel Junior College for the past 6 years and 25 years ago, he was here for three years as principal, so, like Dan, he has an extensive knowledge of this community. He is also strongly associated with the foyer building since he resides on the second floor. Bill's warm and gentle manner works well to put students and staff at ease from the moment they meet him.

Bill chats with Regula, our guide at Isola Bella during Orientation

Like many others in leadership positions, Bill juggles a lot of responsibilities. He is sometimes a teacher – every Monday, he runs a French conversational class for a small group of students, while every Thursday, he organizes our weekly assembly; he is also a member of various boards and committees, both here in Switzerland and in Canada. As a result, he must often travel - in the fall to Canada for the CAIS conference, or, most recently, to Geneva for a meeting of the ISAS.  Both organizations are for Independent Schools. Bill is at his happiest when he can fit hockey into his day, either by playing goal, or by going on excursions to games with the students and members of the Swiss/Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

Bill at his desk.

The other male staff member who can be found at work in the Foyer building is Diego Corti, our IT specialist for the past seven years. Diego is a native Swiss whose family has roots in the southern part of the country, near the Italian border.  Like a true European, Diego cycles to work every day. He is a computer whiz from whom I have learned a great deal. When someone's hard drive crashes – something that has happened to a couple of unfortunate students – it is Diego to the rescue! Fortunately, I have never been in this predicament, in part because Diego recently loaned me an external hard drive when my computer was on the brink of exploding under the weight of all the photos on it.  I expect to rely on Diego over the next few months as I work with the students to put together this year's yearbook. Besides his job at NJC, Diego also works in the city, training teacher candidates in research methodology.

Diego heads our table at our Christmas dinner at l'Hotel du Peyrou. His wife, Christine, is directly behind him.

Diego and a ray of sunshine 

Sandra Gauchet, our school accountant, is another part-timer. We new teachers have all worked closely with her in order to figure out all the deductions that come off our paycheques, as we adjust to the Swiss insurance, pension and tax systems. Sandra is also in charge of petty cash; if we make a purchase for our classrooms or our apartments, Sandra will reimburse us, as long as our demands are not unreasonable. A school like Neuchâtel is a complex place, with students who have arrived from abroad, numerous trips and many sundry expenses but Sandra has everything under control. When she is not at work, Sandra enjoys her home in Lignières, where she and her husband, a former member of the Swiss Equestrian team, board horses and give riding lessons. When we visited her on the weekend of the Désalpes, we met many of these beautiful animals.

Sandra, ready to balance the books.

I met some of Sandra's horses in September.

Louise is the only office staff member who works full time at NJC. A native of London, England, Louise has lived in Switzerland for most of her adult life and has been at the school for 11 years. She wears many hats as office administrator. On a daily basis, she keeps track of student attendance; when visitors arrive at the school, she is the first person they will meet. Louise's main role, however, as guidance support, is to work closely with the students' pension families, the local folk who billet them for the year.

Louise interviews Matt in Locarno

As soon as the students arrive in Switzerland, Louise goes to work; she interviews them and observes them in order to find a good fit for them all. She knows the pension families well, some of whom have been associated with NJC for many years, and even after students are placed, Louise is in frequent contact with them, sometimes as a problem solver, or simply to keep the lines of communication open. Because the students get to know Louise early in their time here, they trust her and come to her with their problems. This year, this has translated into several trips to the hospital or to the passport office.

Louise looking busy and avoiding my camera.

Like Bill, Eila Mättää, our caretaker, lives on site, on the third floor of the foyer building – with her partner, Raymond, and her son, Claudio. A woman of many languages – she speaks French, English, Swedish, Italian and her native tongue, Finnish –  Eila has been at the school for 23 years. She is in charge of school maintenance, which means she takes care of three buildings, the Pavillon, the Foyer, and the student centre. The latter space is the most challenging one to keep clean, as the students often need to be reminded to pick up after themselves. (They are teenagers, after all.) Another responsibility that Eila has is to keep track of school supplies, particularly books that need to be ordered and distributed. These are stored in the school bomb shelter (yes, we have a bomb shelter) where Eila keeps records of each item that is sold. Early in the year, Eila was very helpful to Bob and me, driving him to Jumbo (the Swiss Home Depot) to get plywood for our unstable Ikea bed.

Eila and her partner, Raymond.

Eila brought books to my room recently. She avoids the camera even more than Louise.

The final member of the Foyer Folks, is Lyn Perrenoud, who has been at NJC for over 35 years. Like Louise, Lyn is a native Londoner, but she is now a naturalized Swiss citizen. She and I bonded early over our shared admiration for Roger Federer. In fact, it was Lyn who obtained tickets to the Davis Cup for us in September. I did not know then that getting tickets is what Lyn does: her job is to organize the school trips. Over the years, she has learned where the best deals are, who the best guides are, and what activities would best suit our school population. Lyn is a passionate ambassador of the city of Neuchâtel and of the school. When we have upcoming adventures, Lyn provides the students with what they need to know, and really builds their excitement. She may be the senior member of the staff, but we all wish we had half of her energy! By the way, Lyn's husband, Roger, makes a delectable tomato fondue, which Bob and I enjoyed one evening in September.

Lyn and her husband, Roger, enjoy fondue with the Bellamys and Bill.

Lyn thinking at her desk

While I have separated the Pavillon Posse from the Foyer Folks, we really are just one happy family. Our small staff enjoy working together and we need each other. We all know the parts we must play and, fortunately, we are a reliable and capable bunch. Perhaps because so many of us come from elsewhere, we make a point of spending time together, too. There are school events: an outing for cheese fondue at Pinte de Pierre-a-Bot to start the year, Thanksgiving dinner, and a Christmas feast; and informal gatherings at local restaurants or at each other's homes. The thirteen people I have written about in this and last week's blog are my Neuchâtel family. I look forward to seeing them every day.

Dan missed the group photo at our recent Christmas dinner

The Pavillon Posse

After a two week school break, I am now back in Switzerland and back in the classroom. Being away has added perspective to my European experience; it was delightful to be home in Toronto, but I was quite content to return to Neuchâtel. After five months here, I have clearly made strong connections with the people I spend most of my time with, my colleagues and my students. It has been good to see them again this week.

The Pavillon Posse gathered recently for a staff meeting. (I am behind the camera.) Don't we look excited?!

The Pavillon Building

Every school day, I arrive at the Pavillon building before 8:00. The students take all their courses in the seven classrooms that make up the Pavillon. I have never been the ONLY English teacher on a staff - not by a long shot - and this isolation in my teaching practice felt daunting at first but I soon realized that my colleagues are all in the same boat. In fact, five of the eight teachers at Neuchâtel this year are new to the school, a circumstance that has further added to our team bonding. We are each others' support system.

Aaron gives Jaime some tips in data management

Aaron Bellamy is the science guy, the man in the white coat; this year he is responsible for three courses: physics, chemistry and data management. While he comes across as soft spoken and very polite, he is quite adept at throwing an occasional "bon mot" to lighten up some of our discussions. Any time I complain that the weather is turning cold, Aaron reminds me that "cold" is a relative concept, since last year, he worked in Nunavut. Unlike the rest of the Neuchâtel rookies, Aaron has arrived in Switzerland with his family in tow. He and Beth are parents to three-year-old Rae and one-year old Isaac, two delightful children who have become big favourites among the students who occasionally babysit for the Bellamys. In fact, we all enjoy having his children among us. Aaron and Beth have opened up their home to all of us a couple of times for birthday parties. Soon we will gather there again for a Robbie Burns night.

 Aaron, Beth, Isaac and Rae, who likes to close her eyes for photos

Sarah and I bonded early with our (somewhat) matching shirts.

Time for French conversation class

Sarah Bergeron-Laliberté is a Quebecoise now living in Bern and married to a Swiss. Her teaching role in the school is unique in that she is responsible for both the 12U French course as well as a number of conversational classes which are not for credit but are geared towards getting the special school diploma. One of the goals of the school is to make a French speaker out of every student and Sarah is an important part of this. Like Aaron, Sarah has a young family, two girls aged three and five, Emma and Léonie, but since she lives far away, we have only met them once, at the Désalpes in Lignières. She has been at NJC for the past six years, at least when she has not been on maternity leave, but she is here only part of the time. I enjoy my "Franglais" conversations with Sarah, where she speaks to me in French and I respond in English. On occasion, she willingly aids me in practicing my French.

Terry, Paul and I at a recent gathering at Dan's

Paul provides individual attention to Alicia and Joe

Paul Duckett is a math specialist who works diligently with his classes to increase their number sense. Like me, Paul has come out of retirement to experience life in Switzerland. Also, like Terry and me, he is here without his spouse for much of the time. We all find this a big adjustment and miss them all the time. Nevertheless, Paul has been eager to see as much as possible of the surrounding regions, and so he has often joined Bob (when he was here) and me when we have travelled. We all take advantage of Dan's generosity, since he is the only one among the full time teachers with a car. At Christmas, Paul and I returned to Canada on the same flight and were able to spend some time in Zurich the day before we left. Upon our return, we met at Le Musée des Beaux Arts here in town to see the automatons in action. Paul will leave us at the end of this semester. He will be happy to go home but we will miss him.

Jen, Terry and I at the Red Cross Museum in Geneva.

The door is always open in Jen's office.

Jen MacLachlan wears two hats here at the school. In her roles as Deputy Head of School and guidance counsellor, she does not have daily contact with a group of students (as the rest of us do), but she is always there for them. She has stayed on top of the University application process and has advised them on course selections to get them to where they want to go. She has also supervised SAT examinations, and will arrange for Advanced Placement exams for those who choose to complete them in May. When students have individual problems, Jen listens sympathetically to their concerns and seeks out solutions with them. She is very supportive of her teaching colleagues as well. In the evenings, Jen usually makes time to talk to her son, Jacob, on Skype. Over the Christmas break, he joined her here and then travelled to Kenya on the Free the Children trip. Since Jen and I live in the same building, we often walk to and from school together. She is such a busy woman, I enjoy these opportunities to catch up with her.

Paul, Dan and me in Besançon, France

Where are your students, Dan?

Dan Martin is the only non-Swiss resident among the teaching staff who is not new to the faculty. Because of this, he is a very experienced and valued resource for all of the rookies. His current tenure at the school goes back five years, and some twenty years ago, he was here for three. He speaks French fluently, and can get by in German too. With expertise in history, he plays a major role in many of the school trips, since he knows the complex historical facts of each region we visit as a school. As already mentioned, Dan is most generous with his time and with his little Peugeot, in which he has taken some of us to various locations in France and Switzerland on weekends. He is also an epicure, with a love of good food and wine. Twice so far, he has arranged delicious social gatherings at his apartment. Frequently, too, he finds a new local restaurant for us to try and then drives us there. We are off to a new one tonight.

Terry has joined the students in adopting the scooter as a form of transportation.

Kienan kneels before his teacher. 

Terry Reynolds is the jack-of-all-trades among us. By the end of the year, he will have taught six different courses, all of which are rooted in the social science or business areas. He is also the school athletic liaison who travels with the students for competitions with other International Schools in Switzerland. Terry's classes are often punctuated by eruptions of raucous laughter, as he is (in)famous for his relentless puns and great sense of humour. I often apologize to my students for the grimness of the English curriculum (it is hard to make war literature funny) when I hear all the fun Terry's students seem to be having. Like Dan, Terry enjoys entertaining and has arranged a number of gatherings for all of us. He also traveled with Dan, Bob and me to Annecy in early September, but has not been on some of the more recent trips because of family and school commitments.

Christine and Jen on the hike

Emma's work is critiqued by her art teacher

The only Swiss among the instructional staff, Christine Weibel teaches and creates art. Among the teaching staff, she has had the longest tenure at Neuchâtel, eleven years. Her true Swiss character came through when she led some 20 students and 5 adults on the hike up the Creux du Van in September. The woman is part mountain goat! Not only was she up to the top quickly, but she walked part way down again in search of stragglers; she also retraced her steps later when we lost contact with a handful of hikers on the descent. In all, she probably covered nearly twice as much distance as the rest of us and still had lots of energy to spare. Like Sarah, Christine is a part-timer at NJC; she teaches at another local school as well. Her passion for art is extended into where she has chosen to live - the beautiful village of Vevey near Montreux, about an hour away.

Dan, Terry and me in Annecy.

Time to review Hamlet

With me, that makes 8 of us who spend our days in the Pavillon. The Canadians often do things together outside of work too, since we know no one else in the town. Every other Tuesday evening, there is a pub trivia competition at a local bar, Le Cerf. We call ourselves "The Canucks" for obvious reasons, and when we are sharp, we place in the top three.

Beth, Terry, Paul, Bill (who will appear in the next blog post) and me at Pub Trivia

 In the fall, Terry organized a couple of outings to a park above the town for frisbee golf, a game at which he excels, by the way, due to his superior frisbee.

Frisbee golf with Terry, Paul and Dan

It is good to have people to work with who actually like each other. While I miss my friends at home, I know I have a strong core of good people here to keep me going.

Next week, I will write about the rest of the staff - the Foyer Folks. Stay tuned.