Category: Teaching

Canada Slim in the Capital

Bern, Switzerland: 11 February 2016 13,000 people move to Bern, Switzerland´s capital, annually. Some tens of thousands commute to the city every day. Approximately 17, 000 students are enrolled at the University. Above: The main building of the University of Bern The Bern Tourist Office registered 686,967 overnight stays in 2012. Hundreds more tourists come for… Continue reading Canada Slim in the Capital

A to Z: Adam to Zelg

Zelg, Appenzell, Switzerland: 9 February 2016 There are brief moments when I envy some of my peers in the academic world. They have what I call “the Holy Grail for freelance teachers”: a permanent contract with one school that provides all the benefits an employee could wish for – pension, sick leave, unemployment insurance, written… Continue reading A to Z: Adam to Zelg

Where there´s a way, there´s Wil

Wil, Switzerland: 2 February 2016 A small walk on a nice day?  Why not? Climb some hills, ascend a tower, a leisurely stroll. So while North Americans anxiously worried about whether their local groundhogs would see shadows, I decided to face my own shadows. Prior to this day, the city of Wil represented only one… Continue reading Where there´s a way, there´s Wil

New Switzerland lost and found

Winterthur, 29 January 2016 Wearing my teacher´s hat again this day…conversation class. Topic of discussion: The Swiss Family Robinson, written by pastor Johann David Wyss (1812), edited by his son Johann Rudolf Wyss and illustrated by his son Johann Emmanuel Wyss, is a story about a Swiss family shipwrecked in the East Indies en route to Australia. The… Continue reading New Switzerland lost and found

Of men and merit

Landschlacht, 9 January 2016 It is 0430 in the morning and in an hour´s time I shall dash off to the station, grab a train to St. Gallen and once again assist the world´s largest coffeehouse increase its profit margin. The past few days I have had travels and discussions and thoughts about what is… Continue reading Of men and merit

Me at the U of Z

Zürich, 29 December 2015 Both the big name guidebooks, Lonely Planet and Rough Guides, suggest a visit to the University of Zürich. “See the Archaeological Collection”, they say. “Visit the Graphics Collection”, they suggest. “Check out the Law Library”, they advise. Yet a university is so daunting a place to check out as a tourist, especially… Continue reading Me at the U of Z

On a pathway to Hell

Boxing Day / 26 December 2015 I decide to go a-walkin´. Wife at work while I have the day off and a ticket to ride anywhere in Switzerland for as long as 26 December 2015 lasts (0500 – 2400). Decide to resume walk begun long ago in Bargen (the northernmost point in Switzerland)… (See Borderline… Continue reading On a pathway to Hell

Smells like team spirit

I know…I know.. Working at a place like Starbucks, it is normal for there to be a lot of personnel change. People move away for personal reasons. People get transferred. People leave for better opportunities elsewhere. But there is something uniquely special about working in an environment like a restaurant or a cafe as opposed… Continue reading Smells like team spirit