It is OUR loss

Voiceless art speaks volumes about a culture of courage. When made silent the message screams ferocious fear.   This is a shadorma which I wrote after reading the following quote, In this latest video, an unidentified man says Islam calls for the destruction of all idols. The museum worker was dismissive of this piety, saying the...

Limericks on being Indian in Switzerland

  If I had a Cent or better a Franc For every person who after they drank Imitated the Indian accent (As if it was sexy to be Saxon) I'd be richer than all these Swiss banks!   I come from a tropical land you see A country that's cottony balmy breezy Then you put...

Meeting strangers on the Swiss rails

Here's my confession: I have travelled about 10 times around the earth on Swiss rails. Approximately 400,000 km. I have spent more time on these trains than I have with my friends and family. I can't go into the Whys and the Hows. It wasn't an easy life but it surely was an interesting ride....

When I see my portrait

Laura Zimmermann is a talented Parisian artist who I know because of good fortune: One of my husband's best friend had the good sense to date her or we would have never known this outwardly shy but inwardly bold and resolute young woman. She also has the distinction of being the only vegetarian French person...

The Swiss sense of humour

Example 1: Swiss men are hilarious A group of Swiss french-speaking men, from the canton Valais, were on a flight with us; returning from what appeared to have been a drunken boisterous company weekend in the south of Spain. This is what we overheard, Man 1: I had my dog's tail cut off. Man 2:...

A Request for The Three Knots

According to Hindu wedding rituals, the act of marriage, akin to the exchange of rings, is sealed with the tying of the Mangalsutra, which in Sanskrit means 'Sacred Thread' ('Mangala' - sacred; 'Sutra' - thread). It is also known as Thaali or Mangalyam. It consists of a gold pendant with chains on either side, which...