Today we celebrated one of Geneva’s most charming traditions in the Boarding House — the breaking of the chocolate marmite! The girls gathered together to smash the chocolate cauldrons, and inside we discovered colorful marzipan vegetables, symbolizing the legendary soup that saved the people of Geneva in 1602.

According to tradition, during the night of the attempted invasion by the Duke of Savoy, a local woman—often called Mère Royaume—spilled a pot of hot vegetable soup onto the attackers climbing the city walls, helping alert the citizens and defend the city. To honor this act of bravery, Genevans recreate the moment each year during the Fête de l’Escalade by breaking chocolate cauldrons filled with marzipan “ingredients.”

It was a fun, cozy, and meaningful celebration with the girls — a sweet way (literally!) to connect with a piece of local history.