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~ The Journey to Middle School Spanish ~ |
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Curriculum Vitae |
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Haz cliq para español |
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Part 2
Part 3
Part 4 |
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Home Page |
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Cliquer pour le français |
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SWISS SONGS |
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Um, yeah I have a Myspace - doesn't everybody? |
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Chant de l'Escalade
Schweizerpsalm
Le Vieux Chalet |
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Marilyn Gorgas-Cahill |
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People often ask me how I ended up teaching Spanish, particularly as I was born in New Jersey, with a Danish, Greek, and PA Dutch ethnic heritage. Well, here's the journey.... |
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My father was an international businessman by profession, and a gifted linguist. He apparently acquired his Spanish on the streets of New York, and at the age of 22, helped found a Spanish-speaking church in the city. He had many Spanish-speaking friends who came to our house, and in my preschool years I remember him conducting Spanish lessons in our dining room at night after I went to bed. Once he bought me a coloring book of Spanish vocabulary words like "manzana" and "muñeca".
Maybe because of my father's interests, or my grandmother's stories of Denmark, or just because of my own personality, I have always been fascinated by life in different countries. One of my greatest treasures was a set of books called "Children of Many Lands," and my biggest childhood fantasy was that of being in a foreign country. |
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When I was nine, that fantasy became a reality; my father was transferred to the Geneva office of his company, RCA. Until then I had pictured Switzerland as nothing but snow-covered Alps, chocolate bars, and cows! That illusion was shattered the first cold, gray February day in Geneva. Nonetheless, I was thrilled by all the new sights and sounds - French everywhere - and I couldn't wait to spend my Swiss francs in the first "Tabac" or candy-store newsstand I passed! |
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My passport - issued in 1966 |
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After a few weeks of staying in a hotel, we were ready to move into our house in Confignon, a small vineyard community near the French border, about 25 minutes from downtown Geneva. It was also time to go back to school.
I wasn't too worried about not speaking French (despite a few Berlitz lessons before leaving the States) because we were supposed to attend the École Internationale where all the American kids went. But in the middle of February there were no openings at the school, so we were enrolled in the local school, a small building in the townsquare where every classroom was a multiage... and no one spoke English! |
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La Maison Gorgas - The Gorgas Home
168 Route de Chancy, Confignon, GE
Switzerland |
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...continued... |
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Some more Swiss pics |
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