A New Job And A New Adventure

I have just recently landed what may be one of my ultimate dream jobs. Starting in mid to late August I will be moving to Switzerland to teach at The American School in Switzerland, or TASIS.

I have dreamed about moving to Switzerland since I first visited this beautiful country in the summer of 2003 to do my Masters Thesis research at CERN. This dream was further kindled when I traveled there during my Austrian-Swiss Adventure in the summer of 2005. Of the many places I've been to in Europe, Switzerland is has to be my favorite. I love the combination of cultures: French, German, and Italian. While the three regions have certain similarities to these cultures, they are also distinctly Swiss. Along with the medley of cultures there is another thing that has drawn me to this enchanting country. That is the landscape. To be more specific it is the beauty of the Alps and the gorgeous alpine waters, the steams and falls that are filled with glacial runoff. The valley of "loud waters," the Lauterbrunnen Valley, is one of my favorite area. Many who know me know of my love for Gimmelwald. This small enchanting village is located half way up a mountain in this area, which is a bit north of where I'll be.
TASIS is located in the south of Switzerland, just outside of a town called Lugano. This is the Italian area of Switzerland and it is very near the Italian border. The middle picture shows a wonderful view of the town along with Lake Lugano. The bottom picture shows a view from Lake Lugano. The school is about 1.5 to 2.0 Kilometers from Lugano.

TASIS is a very diverse school, having students from 42 different countries. This is far more than the boarding schools I've worked at here in The States where there have been only around 10-12 different countries represented. There are also a multitude of cultural learning opportunities outside of the classroom and away from campus. TASIS has a few different weeks where small groups of faculty and students travel to different European countries to learn about history, art, culture, and more. There are also travel weekends like this as well. And, the whole school goes skiing somewhere in Europe the week before the second semester begins. This is not a part of winter break. Its actually built into the schedule.
There are many more amazing aspects of TASIS, Switzerland, and Europe. I will try to write about as much as I can as I learn more and my adventure progresses.