This new section is aimed at helping us get to know each other that bit better. What I’m asking of you, is to tell us something about yourself. Shouldn’t be difficult really, as we must know ourselves quite well by now. The difficulty is not what to write, but what to leave out. It could be a kind of life story. So, limiting it in length makes it quite challeng-ing. So, here is the challenge: a single A4 page plus, if you wish, a photo or two telling us a little about yourself or you and your partner, events that were for you important, amusing or tragic, whatever you would be prepared to share with the rest of us. If you would be more comfortable writing in German, then I would happily translate that for you. I look forward to your response. Here are a couple of contributions to get you all started. Other contributions will follow.
Doreen and Walter Boetsche
Prasanna Kumar Francis
I was born in Bangalore, India, in May 1970. Because I was the first child among my fathers’ siblings, they were extremely delighted about my arrival, and therefore gave me the name “Prasanna” which means “Happy”. I have one sister, who is two years younger than me.
My parents always gave me the best. Best in their understanding was: giving us good education, healthy / fresh food and guiding us to become good citizens. In this regard, I was fortunate to get my basic school education in a good English-speaking private school.
My childhood dream job was to become a “Taxi-Driver”. I still remember the shouting I got from my parents, that I should aim to become a Doctor or an Engineer.
As I had a wonderful childhood and great time at the college, and against the wish of my parents went on and graduated in commerce. I was successful in finding job incredibly early in my career.
I was so attached to India and I never wanted to leave the country. Another reason why I did not want to leave India, was because every year I used to meet wonderful youth from all around the world in my house. My parents had rented a flat to the International Cultural Youth Exchange Organisation. Did have all my fun (with tons of sins) those days itself….
So, this fun part of meeting the world in my house took a twist and became serious. The part which became serious was getting into a relationship with a Swiss girl. This was in August 1995, when I became motivated to come to Switzerland for a cultural exchange programme for one year. Another reason why I urgently wanted to move out of the country was because I was already getting “Indian” arranged marriage proposals, which I could only avoid by moving out of India.
After the exchange programme, we went to India to spend a few months with the family. Later a new chapter began for me in Switzerland in 1997. Just imagine those days in Schaffhausen (I did not meet Alex, ex-pats, no English speaking, no Indian restaurants etc etc).
Actually, all the above led me to do so many different things in Switzerland. I can hardly imagine that anyone in the “Tescos Club” has done so many different things like me viz., working in a grocery shop, in an old age home, in McDonald’s, in a Bank, in a commodity trading company, in a consultancy, in my own restaurant, in a food truck etc. etc.
One of my dreams when I came to Switzerland was to open an authentic Indian Restaurant. I gave up my banking career to pursue a career in the food business. I have heard that some people who cleaned plates- became millionaires. This was exactly the opposite in my case. Therefore, after running the restaurant for nine years, I closed this chapter because it was not making any money at all, but managed to pay the salaries and bills with all I had earned for years…..
Because I feel privileged in having had a good youth, the opportunity to do so many things in my life, was able to realize my dream of running a restaurant (although it ruined me financially) all this did not stop me – along with my family – to set up a girls` home (since 1998) to give shelter, protection, education and nourishment to at least 12 girls who have faced undue circumstances (very horrible experiences). …….
One of my dreams and wishes for this planet (which I am sure will not be fulfilled) is “That all human beings have the basic facilities and a right to enjoy their lives”.
Alan Brighty
Who am I? Well, a journalist for the past 60 years, a husband for 58 of those years, and a father of three. Why I went into journalism, I’ve no idea. My essays at school were pathetic, my spelling appalling and my handwriting atrocious. Nonetheless, the advert in the Daily Telegraph sounding appealing and I got through the interview. Thus began my training on a wine and food magazine.
Journalism has brought me everything: satisfaction, a liveable salary and most importantly my wife. I was doing a slip edition for the Daily Mail when I met Rosmarie in July 1962; twelve weeks later we were married … and have been ever since so I must be doing something right.
That same year, I joined a weekly financial paper first as a feature writer, then features editor and finally managing editor. It was to lead to the next chapter of our life for in 1964 I published the first four-colour supplement in any British newspaper. Its subject was the Lord Mayor’s Show. During the next two-and-a-half years this led to colour supplements on every imaginable subject plus a telephone call from a head-hunter asking if I would be interested in setting up a corporate magazine division for the Brussels office of a large worldwide agency.
By that time Rosmarie and I had been living in Britain for five years. We were quite amenable to a move so it was Brussels here we come – except it wasn’t. Halfway through negotiations the venue was switched to Geneva. Well, no doubt you’ve seen Brussels and you’ve seen Geneva so we weren’t exactly heart-broken.
Business boomed but not in colour magazines but rather in computers and hi-tech companies which became one of my specialities. We didn’t intend to stay longer than five years in Geneva but you know how it is. By 1973 we had three kids; the two eldest were happy in their schools and as well as agency work I had decent freelance assignments from the Weekly Tribune, Business Digest and was publishing a quarterly magazine for the Arab-Swiss Chamber of Commerce.
We had been keen on regular fitness and work-outs since our thirties and once the kids were pseudo-independent Rosmarie took this a step further by going to week-end school and qualifying for certification by the International School of Aerobic Training. She worked as a Fitness Instructor at the Fitness des Alpes and once that club changed ownership she gave freelance classes at Ecole Club Migros, Du Pont International and Bettan Square Fitness. Ultimately she ran her own fitness business until we got itchy feet again in 2001.
After a glorious three months in Hawaii, we moved on to Sydney to open an Australian office for the agency I had been working for in Geneva. It was a wonderful experience which lasted till 2004 when the pull of Europe became strong again. We didn’t want to rush back so Rosmarie treated us to a cruise liner which took 55 days to reach Britain via Reunion, Mauritius, Durban, Cape Town, Namibia, Ghana, Senegal, Madeira and the Canary Islands.
I still write and take on editing assignments. We both hike and try to work out twice a week. What do we do for hobbies? We travel extensively and we snorkel and take underwater photographs. Rosmarie specialises in Sharks and things with teeth or tentacles. I do the little, highly-coloured ones (Well, someone has to!)
We are working on a Reef Fish Identification Archive where people can identify the fish they have seen during holidays.
Our life has been hard work but privileged. We have friends around the world but there is a flip side. As Internationals we have no roots. Our sons are in Canada and Australia, the rest of our dwindling family in the UK and Schaffhausen. We keep in touch by Facetime and computer. Would we do it again? You bet!
Alex. Maitland. Born in Glasgow, 1939 – i.e. a long time ago.
I was born at the outbreak of the 2nd world war in Maryhill, a poor part of Glasgow, to Ann Nimmo Maitland (household help) and James Hogg Maitland (baker) who suffered from stomach ulcers which plagued him throughout his life. Fortunately, when I became 2, we moved to a better part of town which enabled me later to attend a good state school. The area was better, but there were two huge gasometers at the end of my road, about 100m from our flat. If the enemy had succeeded bombing them, then neither I nor several hundred others would have lived to tell the tale. Having a brother, James, older by 2 years, and a sister, Ann, younger by 5 years, taught me some of the skills needed to survive and get along with the people around me.
What does “poor” mean? Well in my case that meant mostly wearing hand-me-downs and a very modest life style. My parents had to be really creative to keep five mouths fed, but to be honest, it all seemed quite normal then, as the post-war years were difficult for everyone.
In my teen years I discovered I was an epileptic and have had to live with that all my life. I also discovered rugby which became the passion of my life. Unfortunately for my parents I was fairly talented at that sport and was awarded “my colours” – a special status in school which entitled me to wear a blazer that shouted this off the rooftops. It must have cost my parents a fortune, but somehow they managed to kit me out properly.
Inevitably, I discovered the opposite sex – a schoolmate, Janice was her name. I’ll make this next bit short. We planned to get married, I failed my school leaving exams, then my first year exams at university, so it shouldn’t have been a huge surprise when she found someone more reliable and I found myself adrift, extremely unhappy for a couple of years. Until, yes, I met Doreen, who was studying pharmacy and became my wife and soul mate – a most wonderful person with whom I shared my life for the next fifty years. I had learned what it takes to succeed in the academic world and now I had every reason to do just that. I completed my degree course, then my PhD before we moved to Cambridge – all 2.5 of us (Marcus being born there shortly after our arrival). Gavin arrived a couple of years later and, just as we were leaving the UK for Switzerland, Julie made our family complete.
We had no idea what it would be like to live in Switzerland. We had no savings worth mentioning, couldn`t speak German and I knew next to nothing about aluminium, which I hadn`t paid much attention to up `til then. Goodness knows why I was offered the job. To be honest, I was planning to spend only a couple of years in an industrial laboratory before returning to university life, probably in the UK. I had been warned that the cost of living was quite a bit higher than in the UK. Needless to say we stopped looking in butcher shops and, thanks to Doreen`s creative cooking, we survived until things turned for the better by my taking on evening classes teaching English and being offered the opportunity to translate patents for the company in my free time. As a result, my German improved in leaps and bounds. Also, the Swiss Franc leapt ten-fold upwards compared to the pound. Thoughts of returning to the UK faded.
Many years have passed since then. We made lots of friends. I started working for myself as a consultant and had quite a bit of success there. Doreen suffered an accident in 2001, fainting on steps leading to the Munot and suffering injuries which resulted in her spending a year in intensive care, followed by a year in rehab. She survived and we were able to travel especially to South Africa in winter, where we enjoyed the warmth, the scenery, good food and wines as well as some great company. When she died in 2014, she left a huge hole in many hearts.
I have watched my loving family grow up, grandchildren too, found distractions such as good friends, including those in TESCOS, cooking, baking, cycling, reading and writing. Yes, life has been and is still being kind to me – and I am grateful for every minute of it.
Alex
TESCOS 