Respect Week at Old Portena has been off to a fantastic start.

On Monday, our girls came together to kick off this special week by creating a captivating poster that not only promotes the values of RESPECT but also delves into its deeper meaning. In a close-knit boarding community like ours, the question of how respect grows is particularly poignant. It flourishes here through daily interactions, open communication, and a shared understanding of each other’s unique backgrounds and perspectives. Respect is the foundation upon which our community thrives, and this week is a wonderful opportunity for all of us to celebrate and strengthen that core value that unites us.

While some girls stayed on campus this weekend, Kate, Mira, Radi, Karen and Lisa went off on a trip to Europa Park with other boarders. Even though the weather wasn’t on their side with it being wet and rainy, they still had a lot of fun enjoying the rides and attractions. Check out some photos below!

The girls enjoyed some homemade crêpes this afternoon. A good way to enjoy this wet and cold Sunday afternoon!

This cold autumn day didn’t stop Miyuki from going to Geneva. It is always nice to get out of campus to explore the city, and Miyuki always looks forward to it every Saturday!

For our weekly meeting last night, we had a Kahoot to see how much of the girls know about the house rules, and they also continued to fill in their yearbook with pictures!

We also talked about the second pillar of the wellbeing programme, which is Protecting Against Bullying and Protecting Diversity. For this session we talked about similarities between roommates.

Each year we have a pumpkin carving competition, in which each houses attempt to transform pumpkins into works of art. The girls got their creative juices flowing, and we are very happy with the end result!

Yesterday we celebrated Halloween, and the whole boarding community transformed into a lively hub of ghoulish festivities, all in the spirit of Halloween!

The girls got dressed up, enjoyed a Halloween-themed dinner in the Leman dining hall, and went trick or treating to other boarding houses. It was certainly a night full of spooky delights!

One by one the girls are finally arriving in Old Portena after the break, and are once again filling up the house with their presence. We can’t wait until everyone is back!

Old Portena is open and we are looking forward to welcoming you back to the house! We hope you all had a lovely October break and feel refreshed and ready to take on this second half of the semester!

Tonight we had dinner at home, a monthly a occurance that happens and one in which the girls always look forward to. For this we do not go out to the Leman cafeteria as usual to eat dinner, we simply have the food delivered to the house. We had Mexican burritos, tortilla chips and corn. The girls enjoyed it! Thank you especially to the kitchen staff for doing this!

It is also our last dinner together before the October holiday. From tomorrow the girls are going away to enjoyed a much deserved break after a busy first half term of the school year! Enjoy the break and see you in two weeks!