The Lunar New Year is here, and with it comes a chance to celebrate new beginnings, reflect on the past, and embrace hope for the year ahead. For our boarding school community, it’s a wonderful opportunity to come together, share traditions, and connect across cultures.

This year, as we welcome the Year of the Snake (2025), we are inspired by the snake’s symbolism of wisdom, adaptability, and resilience—qualities we encourage in our students every day. From decorating with red for good fortune to sharing festive meals, this celebration reminds us to honour diversity and look ahead with optimism.

Welcome back to the boarding house, everyone! We hope you had a wonderful holiday season filled with joy, rest, and plenty of festive cheer.

As we kick off Semester 2, it’s time to refocus, set new goals, and embrace all the exciting opportunities ahead. From fun house challenges to personal growth milestones, this is your chance to make it a memorable start to 2025.

Let’s work together to support one another, build our house spirit, and create an amazing community where everyone thrives. Here’s to another fantastic semester—let’s make it count!

#WelcomeBack #Semester2 #BoardingLife #NewYearNewGoals

This past week, CDL proudly celebrated Excellence Week. Throughout the year, we embrace the different pillars of our school motto, R.I.S.E., which stands for Respect, Internationalism, Spirit, and Excellence.

While our Boarding Awards recently highlighted many achievements, last week was an opportunity to nominate students who consistently go above and beyond, embodying the commendable qualities of a boarder. Olympus Boarding House is fortunate to have many outstanding candidates who excel in diverse areas. Among them are students with exceptional academic achievements, boasting GPAs above 4.00, others demonstrating sporting excellence by representing national teams, and many who engage in exemplary charity work. These are just a few examples of the remarkable talents and contributions within our community.

For Excellence Week, we are thrilled to acknowledge Ikuma for his exceptional contributions and achievements.

Ikuma excels across multiple domains: personally, within the boarding community, in the local Geneva area, and even on an international level. As an IB1 student, Ikuma demonstrates academic excellence with exceptional grades, achieved through his dedicated and disciplined approach to his studies. Within the CDL community, he represents the voice of Olympus House as a member of the Dining Hall Committee, ensuring that students’ perspectives are heard and valued.

Ikuma’s impact extends beyond the school. Locally, he volunteers at a supplementary Japanese school in Geneva, assisting with marking and supporting classwork. His commitment is evident, having dedicated five Saturdays to this meaningful work. On an international level, Ikuma has shown entrepreneurial ingenuity through a food truck project in Seoul. This initiative introduced fusion onigiri featuring popular Korean ingredients like Bulgogi and Pork Kimchi, creatively bridging Japanese and Korean culinary traditions. The project was not only a testament to his innovation and cultural appreciation but also provided freshly made, delicious meals to the local community.

Ikuma’s dedication, creativity, and community spirit make him a shining example of excellence at CDL. We are proud to celebrate his achievements and look forward to seeing his continued impact within and beyond our school community.

This pillar is championed by Mr. Callum and Mr. Victor, who are guiding us on this meaningful journey.

Imagine a world where everyone was exactly the same—identical in appearance, wearing the same clothes, eating the same meals, and speaking the same language. It wouldn’t take long for things to feel monotonous, right? What makes life vibrant and exciting is our differences. Diversity is simply the recognition of these differences.

At CDL, we take pride in celebrating the rich diversity that defines our community. It’s essential to approach others with tolerance and understanding, especially when their “normal” may differ from our own. By fostering acceptance and showing kindness to one another, we actively create an environment where bullying has no place and everyone feels safe and supported.

Our first step is to open an honest conversation about the perceptions of bullying within our boarding community. Does it occur? And if so, what role can each of us play in supporting one another and building a united, inclusive environment?

Too often, it’s easy to use labels without considering the harm they can cause. Instead, let’s focus on uplifting and encouraging each other, creating a community where everyone feels valued and respected.

@thatboardingvibe CDL Boarding Winter Dance #thatboardingvibe #winterdance #christmasparty #schooldance #cdl @Collège du Léman ♬ Christmas Rock Party – Beat-Hoven

Every December, Geneva celebrates L’Escalade, commemorating the city’s 1602 defence against the Duke of Savoy. This vibrant tradition unites the community with colourful parades, costumes, and also an Annual Run

Another traditional highlight is breaking the marmite, a chocolate cauldron filled with marzipan vegetables. This ritual honours Mère Royaume, who defended Geneva by pouring hot soup on invaders. As families smash the marmite, exclaiming “Ainsi périssent les ennemis de la République!” (“Thus perish the enemies of the Republic!”), they celebrate resilience and unity.

Within the boarding house we celebrated this during our Weekly Meeting. Traditionally the youngest (Maksim) and the oldest (Stanislav) of the family join hands and smash the Marmite.

Clubs are a vital component of our Boarding Activity Programme, offering far more than just an opportunity to participate in an activity. They provide a chance to become part of a close-knit community united by a shared passion for improving skills and learning together.

The Climbing Club is a shining example of this ethos and has become one of the most popular clubs. While Saturday mornings feature a climbing activity open to all, the Climbing Club takes it a step further. This elite group meets three times a week—on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays—to focus on advancing their climbing skills and pushing their limits.

This past week, our Climbing Club showcased its dedication and talent at the Climbing Cup. We are incredibly proud to share that Artem from Olympus emerged victorious, taking first place! Congratulations, Artem, and kudos to the entire club for their hard work and commitment.

@thatboardingvibe Happy Thanksgiving everyone from CDL #happythanksgiving #schoolmeals #thanksgiving #cdl ♬ Happy Thanksgiving (The Thanksgiving Song) – Vasti Jackson