Lugano: A Homecoming

Of all the places we were to visit during our time in Switzerland, I was most looking forward to Lugano, which is a sort of homecoming for me. I moved to Lugano in 1972 when I was 15 years old to attend The American School in Switzerland, or TASIS, as it is known. I lived there until I graduated in 1975, spending holidays and summers in Libya with my family.

Since graduation I have returned to TASIS only once, and that was just a year or two later. So for me, this visit was a long time coming. Of course I wanted to see the school campus, but also the town of Lugano.

We arrived in the pouring rain and made our way to the only aire in town. It is actually called a sosta, which is what aires are in Italian and Lugano is in the Italian part of Switzerland, right on the border with Italy. The sosta only has designated spaces for eight motorhomes and when we wheeled in, we got the very last one. We got ourselves settled in and by nightfall the place was packed! There are only eight spaces with electricity, but that didn’t stop at least a dozen or so more from squeezing in for a free overnight stay. The payment machine requires that we enter a space number, and those parking on the perimeter had no number, so they simply didn’t pay. At times it felt as though there were two dozen rigs all dotted around the place.

Given how expensive campsites are in Switzerland, this sosta was a bargain at 20 Swiss Francs per night for those of us in designated spots.

We were quite happy with our spot and very comfortable. The view right outside our door was Monte San Salvatore, a peak from which, on a clear day, you can get a stunning view of the mountains and lakes surrounding Lugano and beyond.

View of Monte San Salvatore right out our back door! That line you see going up the mountain is the funicular to the top. Gorgeous views from up there!

On the day after our arrival the rains stopped and the sun came out to warm things up. Steven and I took off walking into town. At first we used Google Maps to guide us in the right direction, but once I got my bearings, I was able to find the things and places I was looking for. I remember a photo of me taken along the shores of Lake Lugano where I was standing on the base of a sculpture of chain links. I found it as we walked toward town, but was surprised that it was now nearly covered by an overgrown tree! I don’t recall there even being a tree there, so I’m guessing it got planted much later.

This tree was not there in the 70s when I lived in Lugano.

The surrounding communities have grown over the years and the hillsides are dotted with homes, but the small, central downtown of Lugano is pretty much the same as it was when I lived there. Shops have come and gone, replaced by more global brands, but some places never change, including one of my favorite restaurants, Federale. I wish I had a nickel for every pizza and pasta dish I have consumed in this place! It was our go-to when we were in town.

The famous Federale, where I spent many a Saturday enjoying pasta and pizza!

We made our way to the narrow, cobblestoned streets in the center of town. As a TASIS student, we had quite a bit of freedom to come and go off-campus. We would catch a bus right at the school gates and make our way to downtown. Years ago in the big square there used to be a store called Innovazione and it’s where we spent an abundance of time. It’s where we bought inexpensive clothes and whatever else we needed. My daughters loved going to Target and I guess this was my version. Many times we ended up at Federale for a pizza or pasta snack. And a beer.

Technically we were supposed to have a teacher or supervisor with us in order to drink alcohol, but that wasn’t always the case. If we saw a teacher walk by, we’d holler, “Hey Mr. So-and-So, we’re having a beer!” and that seemed to be permission enough. We also smoked freely on campus, in fact, some dorms even had smoking lounges! We were required to have parental permission for drinking and smoking, which was a bone of contention in my family, but I eventually got the drinking part, never smoking. But because I did it freely and acted like I had permission, I got away with it until two months before graduation when I bragged about it to my teacher-advisor and she busted me. LOL, I guess I deserved that for being so dumb as to admit my transgression. My punishment was that I spent a week picking up cigarette butts around campus. And, they sent a letter home to my parents letting them know I had been a bad girl. My Dad still has that letter in my “file”. LOL, talk about permanent records!

Steven and I found the department store easily, although it is now a different company. Since it was Saturday there was a market going on in the square and lots of unmasked folks were milling about, so we skipped going in and instead made our way to Federale. It is still one of the most popular places in town and we had to wait for an outdoor table. My favorite baked ziti dish was no longer on the menu, so we split an order of lasagna, which is baffling, because neither one of us is all that fond of lasagna. It was just okay, but we enjoyed some wine and the atmosphere. Afterwards, we walked around Lugano and the lakeside promenade. It’s still such a gorgeous town.

The former Innovazione is now Manor department store. Downstairs there is a fabulous grocery market and prepared food section and it’s where we did most of our food shopping during the week.
Steven is listening to all my TASIS stories as we wait for our lunch to be delivered to our table.
Gabbani is one of the most famous places in downtown Lugano. It has been there for decades. It’s a butcher with wonderful salamis and smoked meats and cheeses. It also offers takeout, hearty lasagna, roasted meats and veggies. So delicious, and I was happy to see it is still here!
We used to take a little funicular to get up this hill, and I think it was this one which is now decommissioned. There is a new one that goes up directly to the train station, which I think replaced this one.
View of Lake Lugano from up a hill.
Lugano is a gorgeous town built around Lake Lugano and surrounded by mountains. It’s very near the Italian border and as the crow flies, not far at all from Milan. It is considered to be the “Riviera” of Switzerland because of its subtropical climate.

TASIS is up on a big hillside overlooking Lake Lugano, but we nonetheless decided to ride our bikes up to the school the following day. The weather was gorgeous and we figured since it was Sunday, traffic would be light. There is a long stretch of uphill road just before we rounded the corner to the school which I recall being much longer than it actually is. There were more buildings now, less open space, but it’s still gorgeous. We stopped at the beautiful Parrocchia di Sant’Abbondio, where in the cemetery across the road is the grave of Herman Hesse, the poet, novelist and painter. (An overachiever by anyone’s standards.)

This, and the photo at the top of this post, is the beautiful Parrocchia di Sant’Abbondio.

One of the most prominent buildings at TASIS is the Villa de Nobili. As you round the corner and come upon the school, you can see the corner of this building. As it is painted orange and yellow, it’s design checkered, you cannot miss it. This villa is the heart of the TASIS campus and I lived in the de Nobili dorm my sophomore and junior years of high school. I was so thrilled to be there once again.

Checkered orange and yellow may sound a bit odd, but it works on this villa. Italian architecture is very colorful.

Since it was Sunday the school was very quiet. In my day anyone could walk on campus, but nowadays there is a guarded gate and entrance is only allowed to those with the required I.D. We had a proper tour scheduled for Monday, so we’d be back to see it all. So while we were there on our bikes, we also checked out the house where I lived when I was a senior. We then went further up the hill to the little town of Montagnola where after school we’d hike up to a hole-in-the-wall bar called Augustina’s. There we’d have a Feldschlossen beer, slices of Gruyere cheese, crusty bread and mustard as our afternoon snack. To this day Gruyere is still my most favorite cheese.

This house was named “Mirabello” and it’s where I lived my senior year with my roommate Suzy. We had a room for three, but somehow we managed to keep It just the two of us. We had a balcony that overlooked Lake Lugano. The house was only a part of TASIS for three years or so, it is now a private residence.
Suzy and me. I love this photo of us.
From Mirabello we had this view of Lake Lugano. So gorgeous!
This is the outside seating at the modern day Augustina’s, which is a heck of a lot more upscale than when we went there.

On Monday we left our bikes at home and took the bus back up the hill for our tour of TASIS. We were greeted by Yvonne Procyk, a longtime TASIS employee and Director of Alumni Relations. Yvonne took us on a wonderful tour which sadly could not include the dorm rooms because of COVID. I would have loved to have seen my old room in de Nobili! Another time, perhaps. Anyhoo, rather than ramble on, let’s take a photo tour of my school, shall we?

The spectacular 17th century Villa de Nobili. It houses administration offices, a dining room, and dorms. Off that balcony on the second floor, the second set of French doors from the right was our smoking lounge. I lived above on the top floor, with my room on the backside of the building.
Mary Crist Fleming, the founder of TASIS, lived in this house. She was a formidable woman and we all loved her.
The armory was there when I went to school here. This section of the main floor was where our food was served, with the kitchen located just through that open door on the right. We lined up, got our food then sat at the tables. These days the food is prepared in a larger kitchen elsewhere, and now there are two dining areas to choose from. In this photo you can see how they have prepared for the Coronavirus, with plexiglass between dining tables.
This used to be the salon, where we had all-school meetings and generally hung out. It had green carpet, which was removed not too long ago. That same green carpet is still in Mrs. Fleming’s house!
Leaving de Nobili, Yvonne and I are heading into the little village where our school is located, which is now mostly campus and less village.
This is the backside of de Nobili. Where that car is parked is where the laundry used to be, although now it is done off-campus. My room was three floors up, and I could open my window and drop my bag of laundry right down. The path on the left eventually leads to Augustina’s.
We got an allowance of $10 per week, which was around 40 swiss francs. Many of us spent the majority of it at that little yellow store on the right, which was Angelo’s. He and his mother, “Mama” to all of us, made the best ham and cheese sandwiches ever. We lived on those things. Angelo is now retired and lives above the store, which is now an architect’s office. These days, 40 S.F is about $44!
This is looking at the back of de Nobili. My room was at the tippy top about third from the right. This was where I lived my sophomore year, and possibly my junior year, too, as I have zero recollection of any other room I might have lived in.
This sculpture was donated by a former student from Turkey. I love the whirling dervish and the poem by Rumi. It may be called the American School in Switzerland, but it was quite international even when I was there. Today, the student body comes from around the globe.
These are two of the newer buildings on campus. TASIS still teaches theater, music and the arts. The education is very well-rounded.
View of Lake Lugano from the courtyard at de Nobili.
That badge I’m wearing says “Alumni” on it and it is mine to keep! Supposedly it opens doors to the main areas of campus. I also got a little swag bag. It all made me very happy.
On the path to Augustina’s!
We said our goodbyes and left campus to make our way down to Lugano. This restaurant is at the bottom on the hill. When Suzy turned 17, her Mom had a little party for her here. She bought us Dom Perignon champagne to celebrate. As we were enjoying ourselves we looked outside to see a lone tire rolling down the hill at high speed right toward the restaurant! It caused a bit a excitement, but it bounced off into the courtyard so we continued celebrating. Funny the things we remember.

So, there you have it, my school. Pretty gorgeous, huh?

In all we spent nine days in the sosta in Lugano before moving a few kilometers away to a proper campground. Our reason for staying there was that we were waiting for the delivery of a replacement debit card. Prior to leaving France after getting work completed on Bijou, Steven lost his debit card which meant we had to request a new one. In spite of Steven’s absolute diligence in making sure the folks at Charles Schwab knew we were traveling in Europe and were not at our address in the States, they still sent out the first card to my parents’ address in Texas instead of my friend Zarina’s address in Switzerland as we had specified. Since we had now moved on to Lugano, we changed the delivery address to TASIS, which Schwab said was fine since the second replacement card had not yet been sent out. As we sat in Lugano waiting, FedEx attempted delivery of a second card at Zarina’s house! At this point, we figured we might as well move on to the campground and catch up on chores while we waited for the third replacement attempt, which we figured might take a couple of weeks depending on how many more times they got it wrong. But lo and behold, on our second day at the campsite, our card was delivered to Yvonne at TASIS! The next morning we packed up, drove to the school to pick up the card and hit the road. Venice, here we come!


NEXT UP: Beautiful Venice


Previous Post
Next Post

15 Comments

    1. 2chouters

      There wasn’t a bad view from anywhere at that school. I feel very lucky to have had this experience and education. And the pizza and pasta was yummy, too! 🙂

  1. Paulette

    Wonderful photos of a stunning location. What a lucky girl to have been at school in such a stunning location. Happy travels and looking forward to hearing about Venice.

    1. 2chouters

      I would have loved to shown you around beautiful Lugano! This is the best I can do for now, but hopefully one day the world will become a safer and healthier place and we can travel freely again! Then we’ll do our Europe trip together!

  2. Linda

    What a beautiful place and wonderful photos. I have never been to that part of Switzerland. So enjoyed your story. I would love to go there someday. Thank you for sharing and making it so real.

    1. 2chouters

      Thanks so much for your kind words. For such a small country, Switzerland really has very distinct areas that are quite different. Lugano is well worth a visit and I hope you make it there someday when things calm down! Thanks for taking time to comment!

  3. What an amazing experience to have so young in life!! I can hear the joy in your words at being back to see your old school and to remember all the fun and excitement. I bet if was fun for Steven to see the places he’s heard about. Those views over the lake are incredible!! Love all the beautiful colors and the Rumi poem.

    1. 2chouters

      Isn’t that Rumi sculpture wonderful? I love that the words are written on the swirling garments. We hope one day to get to Turkey and see the Whirling Dervish in person!

    1. 2chouters

      I have always loved that photo of Suzy and me. I got our yearbooks in a PDF file and it’s been loads of fun to look back and see how young we all were!

  4. Pingback: Istrian Peninsula, Croatia - The Chouters & Bijou

Comments are closed.