The Caran d’Ache Saga – the story of a global Genevan brand

Hopefully every Swiss living abroad will soon be using Swiss Caran d’Ache pencils to support the economy back home,” wrote the “Correspondenzblatt für die Schweizer und Schweizervereine im Ausland” in 1925. Geneva-based pencil manufacturer Caran d’Ache - still a fledgling company in those days - had just opened a shop in Berlin. 

This was the beginning of a success story that saw Swiss writing and colouring products become a global hit. Freelance author Ralph Brühwiler tells the story of Caran d’Ache in a new, lavishly illustrated book. His evocatively written chronicle contains a wealth of facts and details. 

Company founder Arnold Schweitzer, an industrialist from eastern Switzerland, features prominently, Brühwiler describing him as a kindly businessman who experienced his fair share of setbacks. The author also explains why the company name transliterates the Russian for pencil, how the company’s laboratories and workshops became a conveyor belt for new products, and why Caran d’Ache pencils are just as popular among Swiss school children as they are among famous artists. Caran d’Ache is a global brand these days, and is still owned by three Swiss families.

Unfortunately, this book is only available in German but definitely worth reading if you dominate Goethe's language. ;)

“Die Caran d’Ache Saga. Von Genf in die Welt.” NZZ Libro 2020 (in German), 264 pages; CHF 49.-

Roger's insider tip...Ticino

Here's a pairing we didn't see coming: Robert DeNiro and Roger Federer. Ask the Swiss tennis star, recently named the new brand ambassador for Switzerland Tourism, and he'd say the same. “I am a huge fan of his so I couldn't believe he said yes to the campaign,” says Federer, who calls up the Hollywood actor in a new commercial spotlighting Switzerland's spectacular beauty. 

The short film features the unlikely duo, split between New York City and Zermatt, with a guest appearance from the towering Matterhorn. 

"The outdoors are where Switzerland shines", Federer says, reminiscing on summer hikes near his home in Graubünden and beyond. "We're also very proud of our lakes and rivers. I think Ticino, the Italian-speaking part, lends itself very well for a beautiful summer trip. A lot of people from the Swiss-German part travel down to the Italian-speaking part because it's really a hidden gem. People know about it here in Switzerland, but not on a worldwide level."

The power of food

It is normal to feel homesick when you are living away from your home but I start feeling homesick when I return to Switzerland. This manifests itself especially in delicious food. My favourite shopping spree is not to the fancy fashion boutiques but rather a quick runaround the Coop, one of Switzerland's two supermarket giants. Further, I just cannot resist those Early Beck bakery's? Too many temptations in too many shapes and colours. I call it Swiss comfort food... here are some of my favourite.

Teatime on the balcony. A chocolate-filled Carac with my tea.

Expat Girls favourite: Chiacchiere di Carnevale

Take-away lunch on top of the mountain: the best hot dog ever!

The most Swiss of all drinks: Ramseier and Rivella

Hot chocolate last year in a cosy café...

Hot chocolate on-the-go this year due to Covid restrictions.

I'll take them all, please. Carac and Vermicelles.

No winter holiday is complete without a raclette accompanied by a glass of Fendant.

Gruyères' best kept secret outside of Switzerland: meringues and cream.

A typical Swiss light lunch: Laugenbrötli, Bündnerfleisch, Salat und Ramseier.

Cannot get enough of those tea cakes.

An epic chocolate bar for yourself or as a present.

This little lemon cake made it all the way back to Paris for teatime.

Sparenmoos my new favourite place

When my bestie - who has tons of energy and knows the area well - starts sending messages suggesting a variety of activities, I duly take note. They can only be worth checking out. I especially love the ones with names you cannot pronounce unless you're Swiss. 

Turns out we needed to cross the "Heimchueweid" to reach "Sparenmoss", a sun-drenched high plateau above Zweisimmen boasting magical vistas of the Bernese Alps, the Simmental and Saanenland. Its peace and tranquillity is a source of strength, plus the vistas are simply good for the soul. I could not be further removed from Paris in spirit and in body. 

Picture perfect

Sparenmoos enchants with a fantastic view from Stockhorn to Les Diablerets

It is a magnificent snow-clad fairytale landscape...

... and no one in sight.

The mountains are calling

Happy to be back

The mountain restaurant is open for take-away. The menu is simple but delicious.

The "Site Alp" serve their own farm produce and offer authentic home-cooked food.

Busy in the mountains

Swiss stories

The House of Switzerland is a Swiss hospitality centre, meeting point, and social hub. It is part of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, which aims is to promote Swiss interests.

Switzerland’s image is closely related to the people and things that create it, such as Swiss brands, athletes and products. It is with such icons - and sometimes clichés - that House of Switzerland work. Their role is to showcase them in the best possible light and explain what makes them specifically Swiss and how that impacts Switzerland’s image. 

Check out their Swiss stories... there are over 260 stories to discover up to date... Happy reading!

Swiss citizens living abroad

Figures published by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) show that more than 770,000 Swiss citizens lived abroad on 31 December 2019, that is more than 1 in 10 Swiss nationals.

About 182,000 Swiss citizens living abroad are registered on an electoral roll. This corresponds to the number of eligible voters in the canton of Neuchâtel. 

Almost two thirds lived in Europe, notably in France (25,9%). Their number continued to increase, both among the young and old. Overall, the share of women remained greater than that of men, according to the results of the statistics on the Swiss abroad from the FSO.

But did you know that three quarters of Swiss abroad have one or more additional citizenships. This proportion varies according to the country of residence.

Friendly neighbours

Living in Paris and travelling back to my home country regularly, I was curious about the importance of the relationship between France and Switzerland! For those curious, or if you just love numbers and charts, following is the link to the 2021 edition of the brochure "Switzerland-France: an economic partnership of excellence" published by the Swiss Embassy in France, including supporting figures and  lots of infographics. 

France is Switzerland's 4th largest trading partner, thanks in particular to exchanges between border regions. Investments on both sides of the border contribute to cultural exchange, the sharing of good practices, as well as the creation of jobs. In 2018, Swiss investments in France generated more than 3,300 jobs, thus contributing to economic development.

Bonne lecture. Click here!

This year's Swiss president 2021

After a difficult year dominated by the coronavirus pandemic, Switzerland’s new president, Guy Parmelin, has called for national unity to help overcome the many uncertainties ahead. The French-speaking economics minister assumed the rotating Swiss presidency for the first time on January 1st.

In his online address, Parmelin recalled the important work being carried out by health workers in nursing homes and hospitals. He also expressed support for people currently on short-time work and others who have lost their jobs due to the virus. “The pandemic has changed our lives by putting people out of work, destroying traditional businesses and putting our education and health systems to the test,” he said.

Realism prevented him from making “overly enthusiastic wishes” for 2021, the former farmer from canton Vaud declared. He ended his speech with a call for national unity.

The Federal Council photo for 2021 shows the seven cabinet members and the Federal Chancellor as a unit. The parliament building in Bern can be seen in the background.

Happy New Year 2021

Christmas spirit

 "May you never be too grown up to search the skies on Christmas Eve."

Best X-mas gift this year.

A Swiss touch in the kitchen.

X-mas table decorations: simple, traditional and festive.

We cannot go without the Italian Panettone.

Busy baking with Expat Girl

In remembrance of Nonna... struffoli fatti in casa!

Babà au rhum à la napolitaine.

A Swiss escape experience

Searching for some inspiration? Ready for a break in your routine? Need something to look forward to? How about taking a trip through Switzerland's cultural heritage with magnificasa? Don't get discouraged by the website's language barrier... this is so worth exploring!

The foundation "Ferien im Baudenkmal" was founded in 2005 with the aim to take over endangered monuments by renovating and turning them into holiday homes.

In Switzerland, the most varied architectural monuments can be found in the smallest of spaces: from traditional farmhouses to town houses. Many buildings are witnesses of industrialization or a record of the beginnings of tourism, renovated they are outstanding examples of modern Swiss architecture.

These monuments - witnesses of a moving past and important components of our townscapes and landscapes - are often demolished because they no longer meet today's usage requirements. The foundation "Ferien im Baudenkmal" commits itself to the preservation of valuable historic buildings throughout Switzerland.

The best part is that the carefully restored objects are made available to the public by renting the houses for vacations at reasonable prices. Many of the monuments are in remote regions. In addition to the idea of ​​saving cultural heritage, holidays in these historic monuments create a basis for sustainable tourism and, in the long term, add value to these regions, which are often at risk of emigration.

Clicking through the history of their portfolio is like undertaking a voyage through Switzerland's diverse cultural history: https://ferienimbaudenkmal.ch. My personal favourite is this little jewel in Bondo deep in the Grison valley: https://magnificasa.holidaybooking.ch.

Go ahead, give it a try.

Need a break? Holiday architecture is the answer.

Need a break of daily routine? Looking to experience the extraordinary – or you want to share something extraordinary with the world - Holiday architecture is the answer. These architecturally innovative holiday homes are a world unto themselves.

URLAUBSARCHITEKTUR – is Europe’s leading online portal for architecturally outstanding holiday homes. In other words, they bring architecture-lovers and proud holiday home owners together. And while they consciously don’t offer a booking service, they offer a point of contact between hosts and their prospective guests. Their website acts as a gallery where they post beautiful, exciting and exemplary accommodations in a showcase for you.

You can narrow down the number of listed houses by specifying the number of people, the region and many other criteria.

Here is the latest addition: The village of Guarda appears as if taken right from the pages of a storybook. Situated on a sunny south-facing terrace high above the River Inn in the Canton of Grisons (the home of the Swiss children’s book classic Schellen-Ursli) it is famous for its historical village centre. The winding alleys are lined with well-preserved 17th century Engadine farmhouses. One of these houses on the outskirts of the village is Chasa Padrun, in a very scenic location with a beautiful view of the valley and mountains from the garden.

Marameo publishing house

Marameo is the first Ticino publisher specialising in children's literature. It was set up to promote picture books for the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland that are popular in Switzerland but have been overlooked by Italian publishers.

Marameo! The word is an interjection of a mockery, yet playful and light, like such of a child. A marameo with which - drawing on a good dose of recklessness and defying any business plan - the courageous bookseller, Francesca Martella, appeared on the publishing scene, giving life to the first publishing house of literature for young people. 

It took courage because if the other linguistic regions of Switzerland can count on a wider audience potential, and therefore boast publishing houses and long-running catalogs, the inhabitants of Italian-speaking Switzerland are very few compared to the public of Italy, a nation that also counts numerous highly successful and extremely competitive publishing houses for children. 

Yet Marameo in little more than a year of launching has already made itself noticed inside and outside of our borders, thanks to both an editorial line conducted with a decisive attitude, relying on the names of prestigious authors and illustrators, and by winning the precious international “ProLitteris” award.

In times of lockdown, why not read the alphabet in 26 nursery rhymes by Roberto Piumini with illustrations by Paloma Canonica to your children? 

Or download some free samples here: https://marameoedizioni.com/download-gratuiti.

A come... Grande alfabeto illustrato

It's been 10 years...

Reposting my very first post from 10 years ago... you've come a long way, baby!

“Before the beginning of great brilliance, there must be chaos. Before a brilliant person begins something great, they must look foolish in the crowd.” - I Ching

Let me introduce myself:

Born an expat to an American father and a very British mother I was raised in Zurich, Switzerland. I fled to the United States to study and came running back “home” to Europe two years later to finish my studies in Italy.

I found myself a luxurious job in the International city of Geneva where my career blossomed for nearly 10 years when I fell in love with a charming Italian.

I turned my whole life around, abandoned my career and with THE ring on my finger said goodbye to friends and family and was swooped off to our first expat destination, my dream port of call: Buenos Aires, Argentina. 

Our son was born a Porteño and proud of it. Two years later we moved to Paris, France only to move again after 6 months, this time to Milano, Italy where our daughter was born. A real Milanese.

Enjoying a three year stint in Madrid - a city all 4 of us fell hopelessly in love with - we are now based in the Metropolitan city of Lugano, Switzerland.

Without planning I have returned back to my roots so to say and my husband and kids are getting a healthy dose of Swiss discipline and education.

Personally I am lacking the hustle and bustle of a big city and therefore decided to undertake some territory discovery of my own via a blog.

Welcome to my world....Expat with kids!

Settimana della lingua italiana 2020

One country, four language regions, multiple cultures. In a country known for its white cross and cluster of identities, the Italian-speaking region is often overlooked, even by the Swiss themselves. This region includes the canton of Ticino and four valleys known as the 'Grigionitaliano' – Mesolcina, Calanca, Bregaglia and Valposchiavo – in Graubünden, the country's only trilingual canton.

Italian is Switzerland's third national language, and it's spoken by around 590,000 Swiss people, or 8.1% of the country's population. The language can also be heard in cities in both the German- and French-speaking parts of Switzerland: more than 50% of the country's Italian speakers live outside the Italian-speaking region, in part due to immigration from Italy, especially in the 1960s and 1970s. In fact, Switzerland is home to the third-largest community of Italians outside of Italy.

To mark the #SettimanaLinguaItaliana lets place the spotlight on where and how #Italian is spoken in #Switzerland!

Swiss startups on the map

Co-published by WIPO, Cornell University and INSEAD, the Global Innovation Index 2020 provides detailed metrics about the innovation performance of 131 countries and economies around the world. Its 80 indicators explore a broad vision of innovation, including political environment, education, infrastructure and business sophistication. 

The 2020 edition sheds light on the state of innovation financing by investigating the evolution of financing mechanisms for entrepreneurs and other innovators, and by pointing to progress and remaining challenges – including in the context of the economic slowdown induced by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis.

For the tenth consecutive year, Switzerland finished first in the Global Innovation Index thanks in particular to the many developing startups. In 2019, nearly CHF 2.3 billion were invested in 266 of them, making Switzerland the 5th largest European country investing in startups. They represent the diversity and richness of the Swiss innovation ecosystem.

Like the biotech company Cutiss AG that won first place in this edition of the TOP 100 of the most promising Swiss startups. Founded in 2016, Cutiss cultivates skin made from human cells in the laboratory to treat skin defects, including severe burns. She was followed on the podium by Wingtra, a startup that produces drones specialized in mapping. Finally, the startup Piavita finished third thanks to its sensors allowing horse owners, clinics and veterinarians to remotely monitor, via an application, sick or convalescent animals.

Taking teens to the screens

According to Swiss owners and distributors, teenagers have abandoned the cinema. Certainly, the children’s cinema club, “la Lanterne magique”, which has 20,000 members in Switzerland, helps those aged between 6 and 12 years to discover the seventh art, but does this mean that they will grow into fans of the cinema itself? The answer is no. “Cultural autonomy develops between 15 and 20 years old. It is therefore necessary to offer something to this age group,” explains Ilan Vallotton, director of “la Lanterne magique”. 

The association and other industry players have therefore developed the #ciné concept, to entice 14-18 year olds to reinvest in film and become regular cinema-goers. Currently present in eight towns throughout the country, the project entrusts the organisation of cinematic events destined for teens to groups of adolescents of the same age. Once a month, they take over a cinema in their town to present a preview of a film of their choosing. “The idea is to position the cinema as a place where adolescents can take control,” explains Ilan Vallotton.

Venue: La Lanterna Magica 

Where: CineStar 3, Via G. e F. Ciani 100, 6900 Lugano

When: Wednesday's at 14:30

For more info contact: Tel: 091 745 30 07 or write to: lugano@lanterna-magica.org

Website: https://www.lanterne-magique.org/it/clubs/lugano/

Saving the Swiss cinema

Whether to kill time or to indulge their passion for cinema, people in lockdown from all over the world have turned to streaming or video on demand (VOD). Film consumption has reached record highs. Industry leader Netflix has recorded the strongest growth levels since its creation. But in the midst of the giant American platforms, small Swiss productions are invisible.

Swiss cinema is promoted on local portals, such as Cinefile, Filmingo and Artfilm, which also saw rapid growth at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of Filmingo users quadrupled. Cinefile recorded five times more viewers than throughout all of 2019, while the little platform Artfilm, dedicated exclusively to Swiss productions, saw 20 times more traffic than usual. But despite this significant growth, streaming will not be able to save Swiss cinema, according to key actors in the sector.

To fight against this phenomenon, the Swiss cinema industry is placing its hopes in the amendment of Switzerland’s Film Act, currently under discussion in parliament. In the meantime, you can support screening of independent films, and prevent the disappearance of our culture by checking out the local portals offering films through streaming: www.filmingo.ch/en, www.artfilm.ch/en/artfilm-ch and www.en.cinefile.ch.

Following are a few suggestions:

The Divine Order: www.cinefile.ch, trailer in Swiss German: https://www.youtube.com/watch

Platzspitzbaby: www.platzspitzbaby.ch

Citoyen Nobel: www.citoyennobel.com

Alpine Fire: www.cinefile.ch

Moskau einfach! www.kino-on-demand.ch

Paradise War – The Story of Bruno Manser: www.cinefile.ch

The Mistress: www.cinefile.ch or www.artfilm.ch

Winner of the Audience Award for Best Narrative Film at the Tribeca Film Festival, THE DIVINE ORDER is set in Switzerland in 1971 where, despite the worldwide social upheavals of the previous decade, women were still denied the right to vote.