Wolfsberg

We finally made the trip to Zurich to visit Prabhu Guptara, someone we'd met years ago in Minnesota. Prabhu is an executive director of Wolfsberg, a Union Banque Suisse (UBS) think tank/cultural center designed to train - "add value" to - world executives at a stunning castle complex on Lake Constance, which borders Switzerland and Germany.

The view from our room (a floor-to-ceiling wall of glass); a pastoral landscape unlike the dramatic meeting of Alps and lake waters in our region.

Took a little while to clue in, but, in some ways, Wolfsberg is a finishing school for high-powered execs who get exposed to complex world issues, ranging from ethics to culture. Our purpose was holiday, but I was also introduced to the Swiss directors during a private breakfast meeting - a small price to pay for getting to stay at a castle with an indoor pool! Michael and Jack (and their parents) were thrilled to have the run of the place all weekend.

If you're interested, I link to Prabhu's NPR interview, The Gods of Business, discussing business ethics and religious world views. He turned out to also be a fantastic stand-in grandfather!
We ate and played well; this park in the town of Constance had everything, including the most impressive play area we'd ever seen - Michael rafted forever.

Jack, too!

The crocuses were blooming.
We visited the main cathedral and...

the John Huss House, where the Reformer - a contemporary of King Wenceslas (subject of my favorite Christmas carol) who also predated Luther by 100 years - was burned to death.
After visiting the International Protestant Church in Zurich on Palm Sunday - the largest Sunday School in Europe (200+ kids; we contributed 2) - we spent the rest of the day with "Dennis Anderson."

A current Wolfsberg scholar leading think tank sessions on technology and sustainability, DA is a Korean immigrant who hit the glass ceiling in the East Coast, so changed his name. Reaching the interview stage for a provost position at two Ivy Leagues, upon arrival, he always got "the look." In exchange for not pursuing legal action, he received formal, written apologies and promises to reform hiring practices. He moved on to carve out a role as an international consultant in technology initiatives, acting as liaison between groups such as Microsoft, the EU, and the UN.
Back to that breakfast meeting. I was invited back in April for presentations by the designer and founder of the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art - China's first contemporary art museum - as well as a visit with the "Constance Circle" of local professors. I was also invited to speak at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva on the topic of Asian modernity. I'm getting out more.

Round-up: Free holiday? Networking among globetrotting PhD bankers and their ilk? During the weekend, kind staffers would remark, "We don't usually see children around here," watching M & J race around, and the reality check sank in. Our world for these past several years: Paradise Cove, Whidbey Island, Lanikai, Saas Fee, the turtle pond at the Commons, any puddle, bath time.

And indoor pools.