École Beau Soleil - Following in my father's footsteps

This is the school my father attended 50 years ago. 

This is the view from Villars-sur-Ollon looking down to the valley below.

So I biked quite a ways to visit my dad's old school, over 2200kms.  It was the final destination on my trip through Europe, and for good reason.  Not only was it where he spent time as a ten year old, it's also one of the seven locations around the world where he wanted his ashes spread over water.  Maintenant je comprend pourquoi.  This spot is without a doubt one of the most beautiful areas in Switzerland, maybe the entire World.  Called the PreAlps this school is nestled in between glacier mountains, and beautiful soaring peaks.

When my dad first showed me the top photo, I knew right away I wanted to be in that spot.  I made a promise to myself to take a photo in that exact location.  To make it to this stone staircase years later after his death, and stand where he stood, put shivers up my spine.  I was quite emotional after, not something I expected, but the last time I looked at this photo was with my dad when he was still alive.  Even though the sky was grey, and the air was wet with rain, I felt nothing but love inside.  It just felt so good to be where he once was, even though the damp stone stair felt hard and cold against my feet, it pushed heart warming memories of my father back up into me.  It was an experience I will never forget.

My dad talked a lot about the skiing.  The school is at the base of the hill and is literally a two minute walk to the chair lift.  Turns out skiing has come a long way since the equipment used to be made of wood!

Here is a photo of my dad with a few friends.  The sign isn't there any more, but you can see the real grass football pitch in behind.

Update to 50 years later, it's now artificial turf.  Not a bad location for a game of footy.

 These are some shots of inside the school.

I had sent an email to the school about a week prior to my arrival.  I just asked if it would be possible to have a quick tour of the school grounds.  My only expectation was that I might catch a glimpse of what my father's school looks like in present day.  The photos above are from that tour.  Eva was extremely generous with her time, and she was full of information, merci beaucoup!

I really didn't have any plans other then to walk around the campus.  As I started to learn about the history of the school, it became very apparent to me that the students, teachers, and alumni are like a big family.  There were former students working there, and it was quite common for alumni to return years later.  I heard one story of a man that was living in Alaska and he had built a house modelled after the Swiss towers you see here.  There was a strong sense of community as well among both the faculty and the student body. It was very refreshing to see all these bring young minds being nurtured by the staff.  It felt so positive and I understand why it touched my father so much.  The amount of activities both in Switzerland and abroad was astounding.  Trips to Kilimanjaro, skiing expeditions, hiking, the list went on an on.  Not only were these kids being educated in the classic subjects, they were also receiving experiences of a lifetime through their outdoor education programs.  It was truly incredible to see the passion this school puts into their curriculum, and as a result they send these wonderful kids out into the world!  Bravo!

After a tour of the school, I was told to go across the street to meet with a woman who was at the school when my father attended.  It was a beautiful swiss chalet and she was very welcoming.  It was totally spur of the moment, and she invited me in for apple juice and we traded some stories.  I showed her the photos of my father, and we talked about the progress the school has made in the last 10 years.  It was really neat to gain her perspective of the family feeling at the school, it was quite evident that the son of a former student was family enough to invite into her own home.  Super!

After, meeting with Yula (spelling?), she told me to go back down to the school because Eva had some more news.  When I rode back down to the school, Eva asked if I had any plans?  I said no, I was hoping to do some hiking, but other then that I would look for a place to camp!  The generosity continued, as Eva offered me a room in the "Manoir" house for the weekend.  I was ecstatic because this was such a hospitable thing for them to do, and I really didn't expect it.

At some point in the tour Eva had asked me about my bike trip.  This usually comes up at some point or another when I try to explain the itinerary.  I let her know about my father's wishes and told her about my journey, I think the story moved her a little, but I didn't realize that until later.  After returning from my visit across the road Eva had asked the Director if it would be possible for me to do a presentation about my journey.  The answer came back the next morning, and it was a yes!  I graciously accepted as I really felt it was my opportunity to give back to the school that had given so much to my father.  So I had approximately 4 hours to put together a Prezi detailing my trip with photos and videos.  All my Prezi training in the last few years led me to this moment, I was ready to step up, take the challenge, and blow up this presentation.  So that's what I did, I hammered it out all day at an internet cafe.  It wasn't perfect, but I felt like it was solid by the day's end.  I thought she wanted me to speak in front of a class, that was the impression I got when she first asked, but when she mentioned meeting at the Theatre, I started to understand that this was going to be a little larger than I thought.

I want to touch on something here.  I had known Eva for maybe 20 minutes, we definitely connected, and there was a mutual respect that was quite evident from the get go.  However, by no means did I reveal that I was adept at Prezi, or that I had done many talks in the past.  To be honest, I think she took a bit of a risk with that invitation, I could have been any crazy walking in off the street, but she trusted her instincts and I'm ever grateful for that.  I like the synchronicity of her invite, because I was charging and ready to give that presentation when 5pm rolled around, game time!

I took my fully loaded bike from my place, up a staircase, down a staircase, around a corner, into the theatre, and finally to backstage.  I was very sweaty and hot when we arrived...but it was worth it!  So up I went on to the stage.  I hauled my fully loaded bike out into view, Leo on the back, and my bike gear on.  I got a few murmurs from the crowd as they tried to figure out why this bearded Canadian guy with a bike was in front of them.  I started by introducing myself, and explaining why I was there.  I played to the crowd of kids by throwing out candy if they answered geography questions correctly...capital of Canada, capital of BC, and my "name that location game" with my photos.  It was quite a lot of fun and we had some great laughs.  The kids were very receptive and I think in the end, it went well.  In hindsight, and after the feedback I received, I think I'll elevate that from "it went well" to it was a WIN for everyone.

This was my opening slide showcasing the 7 locations.

That's Christina on the left who set up the tour, merci!  I'm not sure how many people were watching, there were people standing up top as well, I think word got out about the Canadian guy from BC.   Let's just say there was more then a small classroom of kids!

This picture is amazing.  That's the Director on the right, and this is the slide where I revealed essentially the purpose of my journey.  It mentions my father passing away, death isn't an easy topic to talk about, let alone to a group of teenagers, but I was ready.  His expression captures what most of the crowd looked like on this slide.  They had no idea what was coming, but I really believe it's healthy to speak about dying.  In the end, the only certain thing in life, is death.  So we should talk about it!!!

Honouring my father in the form of this presentation and showing it to his former school was very special for me. I didn't cry, but I choked up, it was again very emotional for me.

I ended the presentation by encouraging any questions from the kids.  This is always a bit of a tense moment when presenting, either you connected with the crowd, or you didn't.  It was a leap of faith, and it was very quiet to start.  Soon though, a student put up their hand and then the rest followed suit.  "Where do you go to the shower?  How heavy are your bags? What's the lion's name? Have you ever thought about doing an Ironman Triathlon?  One after the other...it was really fun.

I finished by inviting anyone up to see the bike, and of course take some selfies with Leo.  I think he was in 3 photos, and I was in 5...he may have a mane, but I have a man beard.  I stayed for at least another 20 mins to answer questions. Kids came up to see the bike, they wanted to know where the ashes were, they asked why I had two water bottles.  One of them wanted to sit on the bike.  It was pretty funny because he wasn't even strong enough to stand the bike up off the kickstand, and then he couldn't reach the pedals!  I think they started to understand that it's not all sunshine, rainbows, and unicorns on the road, as mentioned here.  They were full of questions, one young man told me that he was going to try a long bike ride one day.  That was inspiring for me to hear, this little guy thought it was pretty cool that I had everything I needed on my bike.  Keep in mind that these kids have EVERYTHING in their lives away from school.  They are some of the richest families on Earth, and to hear him talk about how he found it so interesting that it was really simple to bike and camp...that was really an "ah-ha" moment for me.  It was then I realized that even though I was amazed by these kids, I think the feeling was also going the other way.

The amount of praise and support that I received was a little embarrassing at first.  I think this is the natural Canadian reaction to attention, or at least it is for me.  I had staff members come up to me later in the hallways and thank me for sharing my story.  People I didn't know shaking my hand.  I probably spoke to 5 staff trying to get the bike out the door.  I had kids waving at me down the streets of town.  The Director invited me to his house after the presentation and I got to learn about his home town in Murren.  We talked about Kinesiology and snowboarding.  He then invited me to eat with them at the school "cafeteria", which was pretty much a gourmet restaurant with full salad bar.  Just a little better then the chicken fingers and fries at WL Seaton.  It was really interesting to sit with the profs.  There was a French woman teaching Math, and a lady from Ontario as well!  We had some great conversations about Canada which led to snowboarding of course!  Everyone who works there is a skier or snowboarder, I think it bonds the community together, making the school experience even tighter.

One moment stuck out in particular and that was a young man who approached me as I was leaving the campus.  He said he had been at the school for 5 years and he had seen a lot of "lame" presentations.  Most were boring he said, he didn't like most of them.  The he told me that by far mine was the most interesting and the best one he's seen during his time at school.  He told me that my father is smiling down on me and that he would be very proud of me.  I swallowed, I breathed, I thanked him for his kind words and I walked away in tears.  This was a moment for me that I won't forget (so many of these adding up on this trip), this student was probably 14 years old, and he didn't have to say that.  He could have walked right by, but he took the time to share his thoughts with me, and I was ever grateful for that.  I'm starting to understand more and more that what I'm doing isn't only a very personal journey for me, but that it is touching lives as I go along...wow

After dinner I was invited to go for drinks with some of the tutors, and profs.  There was 8 of us in total and we gathered in a pub for $12 beers, that's not a typo I paid $12 for a beer.  Switzerland is very expensive.  It was humbling once again to walk into a group of strangers and have them already know who I was.  Some were at the presentation, and some had already heard about it from others.  Word travels fast in a small town, because it was only a few hours earlier.  They had lots of questions for me, but I had more for them!!!  They taught outdoor education to kids in the Alps!  How great is that!  They get paid very well, and all year round.  So they have 2 months paid vacation every year...I tell ya...an Education degree is looking mighty appealing right now.

Without a doubt visiting my father's school has been the highlight of this trip.  I didn't think anything could top this...until I went hiking.

Just a casual shot down one of the small streets in Villars-sur-Ollons.

This was the start of my 1000m descent to Lac Leman.  It can be seen here!