She Works Hard for the Money

I got the call on Saturday morning. A language camp in Arosa, Graubünden, was in desperate need of an English teacher available to start immediately and take over a class of intermediate students. The gig would last only one week, with free room and board, as many students would be leaving by the week's end and I would no longer be needed. Never one to turn down a legitimate work opportunity, I quickly discussed the pros and cons with my husband.

Pros: Our visitors had been with us at that point since Tuesday and would be leaving Monday morning to head to Geneva, so I wouldn't really be abandoning them. Plus, I didn't need to arrive at the camp until later Sunday evening, which would still allow us to take our guests for a quick overnight stay in the Locarno area. Plus, the camp's host institution is a boarding school in St. Gallen for which I'd like to be a full-time teacher. Taking this job would really be a foot in the door!

Cons: I'd have to be away from Isaiah for the entire week. Also, the work hours are long: 7:30 am until 10 pm.

Despite the cons, I returned the director's call and accepted the position, then we hopped into the car for our drive down to Locarno.

While laying out on the beach Sunday afternoon, I got a call from the camp's director of studies, "Have you got a pair of proper trousers with you? It snowed yesterday and it may get chilly again during the week."

"Um, no, just a pair of blue jeans."

"Oh, well, I'm sure that will do since you are arriving on such short notice."

Yeah, it hadn't occurred to me that there might be some sort of dress code at camp. I had thrown just a few blouses and a sun dress into a duffel bag hoping that would do for the week. Just a few hours after that call, we were on the road heading north to drop me off at the camp. There would be no time to stop at home first to pack a pair of slacks. I already had a feeling that I was in for a very long week.

Long week it was. So long that I have been recovering from it since I returned this past Saturday evening, mostly because I woke up that morning with a tickle in my throat, which has now manifested itself as a full-fledged summer cold. To top it off, it turns out that extreme exhaustion seriously impairs my ability to walk down a flight of steps, so I somehow managed to fall down the staircase in my apartment building and sprain my ankle, pretty badly. It's black and blue and I'm wearing an ankle brace.

In the long run, was it all worth the mere CHF 600 cash that I earned? It's too soon to tell. But I will tell you this, I'm glad to have had such a unique experience working with some bright students and friendly colleagues in one of Switzerland's most beautiful settings. In wintertime, Arosa (30 km/45 min. outside of Chur) is a hot spot ski resort town, comparable to St. Moritz. During the summer, the town features hiking, sun bathing, and other leisure activities amidst rocky mountains and pine forests at 1800 meters above sea level.

Highlights from the week:

• International flair of the camp included students and staff from Portugal, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, the UK, Monaco, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine.
• An afternoon of shopping in Chur, kid-free, during which I purchased a CHF 99 skirt from United Colours of Benetton for only CHF 25. I love the July sales! I then proceeded to wear said skirt every day for the rest of camp so I wouldn't appear to be a slob.
  
• We had two BBQs that week, during which I stuffed my face with salads, sausages, and Paprika chips.
• Lunch and Dinner were served to us in the hotel's dining hall in three courses: salad, main dish, and dessert. No dish-washing duty at this camp.
  
• Since 90% of my students were Russian, I picked up how to say yes ("da"), no ("niet"), and what ("shto").
• My 9-year-old little buddy from Mexico City would often tag along with me during free time and speak in lists. "Amanda, can you answer three questions for me? Number one..." "Amanda, I have three reasons why you should stay at camp. First, you're the only one of the teachers who speaks good Spanish, next ...."
• I played UNO in German with a Russian-born German-language teacher, a Spanish kid, and my little Mexican buddy.
• I played beach volleyball at the Strandbad (small lake, pictured above, with grass area and sandy beach).
• I went small bore target shooting and I wasn't half bad for a first-timer.
• Many students spoke 3-4 languages and would alternate between them quite freely.
• Disco-night. Children dancing to hip-hop is seriously entertaining.
  

Views from Hotel Eden, my home for the week