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Okay….. just have to tell you this story. Several years ago I was helping to coach the Swiss Junior National team with my friends here.

It was an amazing experience!

But during the visit I spent a lot of time with Christian Krattiger who was our General Manager. He did a fantastic job of putting a coaching staff together and they in turn built a very solid team.

For me this was the beginning of me falling in love with Switzerland and more importantly the people of my second homeland.

The friendships I built with Giorgio Volpi and his family, Chris and his family, Stephan, Fulgenzio, Michel, Daniel and on and on make my episodes in Switzerland.

However Chris taxied me all over the place … one weekend we went to watch a game in Winterthur where the Warriors played against the Basel Gladiators. It was a great afternoon of football.

Met so many new friends … drank some beer, ate some hotdogs, drank some beer and sat in the stands and drank some more beer.

Sometime during the third period of the second game I noticed something peculiar about the 50 yard line area. The distance was certainly not ten yards between the 50 and 40.

I mentioned that to Chris as he handed me another beer. He laughed and said “Wondered when you would notice that!” He then explained since these were soccer fields built inside of tracks – they were too short for a US football field configuration.

So rather than cut the end zones short … in Europe – the distance was taken out of the middle of the field – between the 50 and 40 yard lines.Just when you thought you were learning a lot about football in Switzerland… here comes another “gotcha” moment.

Pass the beer!

Hah, what a life!

Well, my Tuesday travel episode saw me setting out to one of my favorite places in Switzerland.  The beautiful municipality of Fribourg (or could be Freiburg from what I understand).  A city I was introduced to by my friend Chris Krattiger.

Chris, his wife and their young daughter showed me a fantastic afternoon in the beautiful place.  Since that first time four years ago I have spent several other days in Fribourg/Freiburg because it is just an interesting place.

The city was founded in 1157 (hmmm … Europe is just a little bit older than the US) and is located on both sides of the river Sarine. The “Old Town” part of Fribourg was established on a peninsula on the river and has cliffs around three sides and the river on the other.   This made it a great location for a fort and the city that grew up around it (Fribourg means “Free Fort” in German I guess).

Regardless of the history of the name and the date of establishment – it is beautiful.  A great place to visit and wander around.  The views are really outstanding and the people there have shown me such kindness in my visits.

Unfortunately, the photos I share won’t give this lovely city the justice she deserves.  (Oh yeah here in Europe we don’t do the pronoun stuff – a city is a “she” because of the great respect for women we have and not for any socio-political reasons.  PC stuff did not follow me across the Atlantic.)  Ooops! … a little off the track there.  The reason for the somewhat lousy photos – ahhh …  rain!

That brings me to the story.

I get up Tuesday morning saying to myself.  “Great day to visit Fribourg – don’t you think??”

Oh yeah, let’s go Donny the C!  – time to have a walk through one of my favorite places in Switzerland … take some pictures – eat in the same place I sat with Christian and his family … then the same place two years later the boss (wife) and I sat at as well.  Will be a great day!

A beautiful sunny and temperate day.  Some variable clouds hanging around – but seriously a very nice late June day.

Start down the hill (I have given up calling where I live in Gwatt a mountainside due to pressure from friends here).  At about 100 meters (yes, I am becoming European with measurements as well) I stop.  Well, could it rain???  Yeah it might.

Reverse course up the STEEP incline to Strattlighugel 46.  Walk inside grab my rain jacket from Concordia University St. Paul Baseball …. Hmmm should I take the umbrella??  Nah, come on show some bravery here.

Left the umbrella behind (Dumbass!!).

Down the hill – jump on the Bus #1 from Gwatt Deltapark to Thun Bahnhof.  Sun is out wonderful day – going to be just awesome.

Leap off the bus at the Bahnhof.  A few minutes later grab a seat on the Train to Fribourg/Freiburg and settle in for the hour-long ride to my destination.  Since I am rereading all of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher books – I start in on his second novel “Die Trying.”

OK … here is where Donny the C becomes his usual dumbass self.

I’m reading and looking out the suddenly clouding up and sprinkling skies.  I hear Fribourg on the announcements – pack my I-pad, grab my coke, my rain jacket and step around the gate to get off the train (without falling by the way).  Easily get off – train pulls away.

Ahhh scheisse!  Not the Fribourg I remember.  Then it starts raining – and HARD!  Rain jacket on … dumbass Donny the C you scheisse head – should have brought that umbrella along.  Walk around and find a map on the train stop wall.

I got off just one stop away from the Bahnhof in Fribourg … do I trek through the rain or just walk over to the opposite track?

I am not that much of a scheisse head to wander around in the rain – probably get lost again.  Stick to what you know.  Go under the bridge …  up the stairs on the other platform … board the next train into Fribourg – finally!  There I am!

Yup, me and a giant thunderstorm!  Do you think you could find a place to buy an umbrella??? Yeah, dream on!

Anyway, the rain does let up and even stop for a while and I retrace my path of my last several visits.  Down through “old Town” passing the shops and restaurants.  Walking through the wonderful architecture and then back out
and across one of the bridges.  Snapping shots along the way.  I’ll certainly have to come back again on a sunny day.

But, here are the shots I could capture of one of the beautiful cities that sits on the border of the French and German sides of Switzerland.  What a beautiful blend of the people of Switzerland in this historic city.

By the way I did drop a story into the blog at konkretekidinfootball.com.  This one about starting out in coaching at Kutztown State (now Kutztown University but still the same place).

There are many things I am thankful for in football.   But there were two important things that really started me off on a good path.

First, I played for some good coaches.

In Northampton, Pennsylvania from little league on thru Freshman, Junior Varsity and finally Varsity football as a Konkrete Kid (Yeah the name of my Blog konkretekidinfootball.com – guess where that came from??!!) we had very good coaches who were also solid role models.

Then in college at Muhlenberg a very good coaching staff who helped not only me, but so many others stay on the right path (OK, admittedly I veered off that path here and there – OK, quite a lot in fact).  Frank Marino and Sam Beidelman were the only full-time coaches and they allowed us to grow up, but they kept a careful eye on us and knew when to pull the leash tight as we went through those college years.

Another big influence was that I was fortunate to start out coaching at Kutztown State College.  I was surrounded by very good coaches and we were led by one of the finest men I ever met – George Baldwin.

****

The little league coaches were all good men – they taught us football from a fundamental standpoint – more importantly they were solid people.   Rich Derkits, Bill Beidleman, John Legath, Bouncy Zepp, Hosh Herschman – well even Mertz!  They gave so much more than they got back.

****Well I have to say Rich Derkits did teach me some good cuss words.  I consider myself a professional in this area and I credit him with my success.****

Even the Junior High coaches we had made the game fun.  Hell, our freshman year I don’t think we won a game (Have to check with my pal Eric Butler though because he would remember since we went through elementary, junior high and senior high school and then college playing together football together!).  We were pretty bad that ninth grade year.

Having a coach like Donnie Carbone however did make things interesting and despite our shortcomings on the field he kept things light.

Early in the season Carbone said that our team played like a bunch of Italian sailors  … “Chickens of the Sea.”  Nowadays the PC police would have probably

been bitching at him.  But in the late 60’s what we said on the field stayed there.  In fact, a bunch of us went home and took the labels off of the tuna cans in our cupboards.

We taped them on our helmets and many of the guys on the team were wearing “Charlie the Tuna” proudly.  Donnie Carbone took great delight as we proclaimed ourselves “Chickens of the Sea!”

Carbone and the rest of the coaches who worked with us younger players did prepare us in the basics of football and by the time we played for the varsity we were pretty good.  It really does come down to learning and executing fundamentals – that never changes – from little league thru college and into professional football it depends on blocking and tackling, throwing and catching, running and kicking.

Lou Wolf our varsity coach at Northampton was really a down to earth man and a very good teacher.  I know that some of the players and parents didn’t always think he was a good guy or a good coach.  But, in him I saw a man who really cared about us and who truly loved coaching.  Plus, we were very successful on the field.

I really wanted to find a job like he had – because he always seemed to be happy on the field.  Once he and I were talking after a game and he told me it was the only job he ever wanted – being the coach.  The extra bonus was being the coach in his hometown.

There was a time when I thought it would be phenomenal to be the head coach in Northampton to return to lead the Konkrete Kids.  But, as I aged I realized all of the crap you have to put up with when you were in your hometown.  Everyone knows you and certainly everyone knows how to do your job better than you do.

Sprinkle in the parents  …  yeah the parents may be the biggest drag on high school sports.  Everyone’s little Johnny or Mary is going to be a sports star.  But, I am off the track right now – plus don’t want to go down that road.

Frank Marino our head coach at Muhlenberg gave me the final push into the coaching world.  We often spent time bullshitting about our current teams, coaching philosophies and the game itself.  We would spend hours just exploring hot button topics in athletics – oh yeah – a lot of this happened while I was supposed to be in class.  (Me …. go to class … ??  Too many other fun things to do.)

****Remember what Mark Twain said (yeah, but understand I was an English major) …”Don’t let the books get in the way of your education!”****  (Honest!  I can’t make this shit up!)

Coach Marino told me one afternoon that coaching football was the only thing he ever wanted to do.  HMMM …. So much like my high school coach Lou Wolf said it was the fun part of his career – Frank was doing the same.  He told me that I should think about getting into the profession …. “you won’t make a lot of money.  But, you will make a lot of friends and find it a lot fun.”

Well, I missed a lot of classes talking about football – might as well take advantage of the things I learned in the classroom of football.  I wasn’t very smart, but I was just smart enough to stumble into an awesome (mis)adventure for life!

*****

Starting my coaching career off at Kutztown was also a very important fork in my path through the coaching profession.  The coaches and players that I worked with during those first two-years were critical in my deciding to move on and figure out my life and chase my dreams.

No one was more instrumental in my decision to make coaching my livelihood than George Baldwin the head coach of the Kutztown State (I know it’s now Kutztown University) Golden Bears.  He was an amazing man who truly was a leader of young men.

He was also a very grounded person.  Married with children, religious and a former US Marine.  Yup, he sported the GI flattop and stood ramrod straight at the playing of the National Anthem.  I truly admire this man and his values to this day.

Well then of course, he did convince me to work for twoyears without pay (well, he hoodwinked one of my closest friends –  Scot Dapp to do it as well – he’s not real smart either.)  But, it was well worth the experience.

Rarely, if ever did George lose his temper.  He never swore (I mean never!) and although he had some old-fashioned ideas for the late seventies – he had the respect of everyone.   From players to coaches, administrators, opponents and boosters – I rarely if ever heard anyone say a bad work about Coach Baldwin.

We were in a period where earrings, facial hair and young people questioning authority and experimenting with drugs had become the norm.  During those years – the seventies – well it was a very interesting time.

I was pretty much a middle of the road guy – Long hair, mustache.  But Coach had his values and he was sticking to them.

While George was willing to accept his players and coaches having a few beers and raising some hell – he would not suffer fools.  But, while he could be tough it was his complete honesty and sincerity that affected us all so deeply.

Like most successful leaders George had very few rules.  Pretty much common-sense stuff.  Don’t be late for anything, respect your coaches, teammates, classmates and teachers.  BUT WAIT and no earrings or facial hair for anyone with Kutztown football – players but us COACHES as well.

What did you say – no facial hair??  No earrings??  Yup, if you wanted to coach or play at Kutztown State (OK – Kutztown University) you were going to look clean and didn’t need jewelry.  Come on it’s the seventies! (You know … Sex Drugs and rock and roll – throw in some mustaches and earrings as well.)

The seventies – the decade of rebellion and awareness!  The Age of Aquarius!  Pass the joint and let’s hear about that sexual awaking we all were waiting (hoping) for.

But George, who as I said  was a former Marine complete with crew cut, was able to impress his values upon all of us.  He was able to bring everyone together – to not only have a common goal of winning – but to become as close to a unit as possible.

Coach would say he wanted us to be “Americans!”

When anyone would question why he wanted these things done he would say ….  “I don’t get it, does that mustache make you coach or play any better?”  “Is that earring going to make you tackle those backs any better?”

Football is American – you don’t need mustaches or earrings to be an American!

But we all bought in – I shaved off my mustache (never wore an earring so it wasn’t an issue).  Got cleaned up and was a Golden Bear!  I was an American!

To this day those of us who coached and/or for George still tell Coach Baldwin stories.  Stories that reflect how much respect and love we had for this great man and his standard of becoming an “American!”

Being that former Marine (still with that flat top look) George would continuously regal us with quotes like.  “That guy plays like an American – look at him block”  “That Quarterback throws the ball like an American!”  He would see a guy loafing or laying on the ground during a play and not hustling – “That guy is not an American – he’s staying on the ground!”

The one I caught him on was “Well gosh darn it – Any American can tackle!”  “Come on if you are an American you can tackle!”

So, one of my favorite experiences as a young coach with George was when I pulled the old “He’s an American” and reversed it on him.  It got a lot of chuckles from the entire coaching staff when it happened.

We were closing out our season in my first year as a coach.  Coach Baldwin had put me in charge of kickoff team for that year.

Now, if you were on the kickoff team in those days – you were coached to stay in your “lane” run down the field as fast as possible and tackle the guy with the coconut.  Not a difficult assignment – but to get it done meant you had to navigate the opponents who were trying to knock your head off along the way.

One of the keys to the kickoff team was having a good kicker who could put the ball deep and high so the coverage team could run down under it and get the return man on the ground.  The other is to have some pretty rugged dudes who would run down the field full speed!  The bigger and faster the better.

Like I said it was one of the last games of the year – perhaps even the last game.  We had lost a key guy on the kickoff coverage team and we needed a replacement.  So, as a staff we were kicking (hmmm…no pun intended I guess) around a few names – trying to find someone who could help the kickoff team.

Now we had a freshman offensive lineman named Jimmy Bennett.  Jim was a local kid from Allentown PA who had played at William Allen High School.  He was a backup at guard and he would go on to be a great player at Kutztown before his career was over.

Jim was big at 6-3 and 235 pounds and he could really run … OK I get it, he doesn’t seem big by today’s standards … but in 1977 he was a pretty big dude.  He was also really fast and he was very tough.  I loved him and where he was going!

In the meeting when we talked about the kickoff coverage team I brought up Jimmy’s name.  I think everyone pretty much thought it was a pretty good idea.  But George did not agree.

“But Donnie … I like Jimmy Bennett a lot.  But come on he is a freshman (George did not like to play freshman) and he is an offensive lineman.  I don’t know if he can tackle … he’s an offensive lineman.”

I knew I had him, with a grin I said …  “But Coach he’s an American.  Everyone knows if he’s an American he can tackle.”

The whole room cracked up and George just started laughing and I had him.  Jimmy was now a member of the kickoff team.

By the way he did a great job!

Sorry a long and winding road (wow, that might be a good name for a song??) to tell you a simple and probably silly story!

Well, we had a great day here in the Bernese Oberland!  First of all its a great day to be an American – Fourth of July.

Perfect weather for a game with the St. Gallen Bears at the Lachenstadion in Thun.  Initially we have some problems, but then we adjust to the pace of the game and gain control.

Our offense is humming along and we play well throughout the game.  Defensively we are able to control the visitors and we come away with a convincing 28-3 win to put our record at 3-2.

The stadium played the US National anthem in honor of the many US citizens who are part of the community and also the Thun Tigers.  That was pretty thoughtful and gracious of our host nation – I was certainly touched.

Then a great treat as we ll go to the Antulovitch house in the mountains where he and his wife Marianna run a bed and breakfast (Haus Schönegg) .  It is in an absolutely stunning area and this place is simply amazing.

A truly amazing family – Brad and Marianna have five children … three daughters and two sons.  I am not completely sure about this part of the story…. but I will try to get it right.

Bradley is from Trenton, Michigan – transplanted to California.  A Pastor, he then ended up in Russia – then to Jerusalem where he met Marianna (again not

sure about the timeline).  So, his children have all been born overseas.

His travels then led to Switzerland where he continues to be the international director for the  “For Zion’s Sake Ministry.”

He is a fantastic man – and he and Marianna have truly raised an awesome family.  Along the way they ended up running this beautiful Bed and Breakfast in Kiental, Switzerland in the canton of Bern.

Well, anyway we are invited to a Fourth of July party … it was outstanding.  Most of the coaches and their families were all there for a great hamburger feast served up by Bradley.  Everything was decked out in Red White and Blue.  What a fantastic day.

The people you meet throughout my (mid)adventures in football are truly amazing … just love it.  Such nice people and how they have welcome me!

Football has truly allowed me to explore the world and meet so many great people.

Let me suggest this as well – you want to visit Switzerland – take a day or two in the Kiental area and stay with the Antulovich family at Haus Schönegg!  I promise if you want to decompress – well here is the place!

On this week’s journey throughout the Alps I decided to travel over to the French area of Switzerland and visit “Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline.” Hey, that’s a catchy line. Might be good for a top-ten song.

Come on guys – Deep Purple memorialized the 1971 fire that burned down the Montreux Casino. A fan set the Casino on fire and “burned it to the ground” when he/or she shot off a flare gun during a concert there. The late great Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention were playing at the time. Go ahead you “unhipsters“ – find the song by Deep Purple called “Smoke on the Water” and you will learn the story.

So off to Montreux I go.

Alright those of you who have been following my journeys through Switzerland know that whenever I make a trip to a place – Bern, Fribourg, Spietz, etc … it is raining by the time I get there. So, I have gotten smarter.

Pack a sweatshirt, rain gear, towel and even an extra pair of socks in my backpack before I leave. As I walked down Strattlighugel to the Gwatt Deltapark Bus stop the sun was shining and it looked like a promising day (but I kept thinking should I bring my umbrella – Nah!).

I jumped on the #1 bus … it slipped through the midmorning traffic and I was dropped off at the Thun Bahnhof for my two-hour train ride to Montreux. (By now you all should have some German vocabulary … Bahnhof = train station!)

The lyrics from “Smoke on the Water” kept spinning around in my head as we sped across the beautiful Swiss landscape. You all know what it is like when you get one of those soundtracks rolling around in your head. Now, imagine my case – not much in this old brain anyway – so several days later the song is still with me!

After a train change in Visp … we complete our second half of the journey. As we traveled into southwestern part of Switzerland (no it is not like Arizona in the US southwest)! It appeared to my inexperienced eye to be more agriculture in regards to orchards and vineyards. I actually don’t know this for a fact. But, it did look that way.

Obviously looking back from this direction the mountains look different as well. Still as stunning – but just not the same.

As you enter that final leg of the journey there are several smaller stations the train stops at. The last one before Montreux is in Aigle. After leaving there I thought I saw the famous island castle – Chateau de Chillon (If that’s not French – well, I don’t know what would be) sitting in the lake.

No problem, when I got to Montreux (the next stop) I’d find a way to get back there and see it. Oh yeah, by now it is raining – in fact been raining on and off for the last half hour of my ride. Well why wouldn’t it rain on the day that I explore my second homeland??

By the way the Chateau de Chillon is very famous and one of the most visited castles in Switzerland – and in all of Europe for that matter. There is some written evidence that it existed in 1005 – that’s a long time ago.

Built on an island in the lake it guards the entrance to Vaud River which connects to Germany, France and Italy. So, militarily it was advantageous, but also commercially it was as well since the location would allow the castle to charge a toll on passing ships. (Wikipedia can make you look smart.)

Sadly, I didn’t make it back to the castle on this trip. But, I will at some point.

We get to the train station (think Bahnhof). I jump off – no falling off this time! – head down a large stairway to the walkway along Lake Geneva. Some really unbelievable views out across the lakes at the surrounding Alps. Even with the rain and low hanging clouds it was really cool.

I explored this lower area around the lake for a long time. There is no doubt that the city is aching to get back to the world-famous Montreux Jazz Festival. They have posters, tributes and advertisements for it. I think it is usually happening in July … but I am not sure when. With Covid who knows if it will take off on a normal schedule.

Standing with your back to the lake and looking up at the city (25,000 or so people live here) the architecture is definitely not like the cities of Bern, Thun, Basel, Zurich … it is described as Bell Epoque. OK – I get it, that’s French – but have no idea what that means.

It is pretty in the rain and probably spectacular with the sun out.

Just in case you didn’t know … Lake Geneva is the border of France and Switzerland (yeah check your geology … or is it geography?) I can never remember – but you all have smart phones – do some work on your own. This area is known as being part of the “Swiss Riviera!”

Freddy Mercury (“Queen”) lived in Montreux for several years and the group recorded a lot of music here. There is a statue in his memory right on the lakefront – see the pics.

The famous composer Igor Stravinsky spent many years in Montreux and completed several of his great works here. There is also a sculpture of him along the lake as well.

And for one last time those lyrics from Deep Purple come back …. Maybe, just maybe they will go away. Well, hell I kind of like that song anyway.                                

We had a fun afternoon traveling to the beautiful Swiss town of Zweisimmen.   A fantastic ski area in the canton of Bern.  Our Thun Tiger offensive coordinator Chris had organized an arrangement with the community to conduct a football camp for the local children.

So, I hopped in the van with Chris and two of our U-19 players Angel and Joel.  They had already loaded up the gear we needed for our demonstration.   We began a picturesque drive through the beautiful countryside.

Despite the rainy weather (I think I have jinxed my second homeland – it has pretty much rained on and off every day since I arrived two months ago!) Honestly the beauty of this place will knock your socks off.  It’s like driving through a post card.

I do have to say – the rivers running into Lake Thun from the mountains are nearly overflowing due to the enormous amount of rain …  the entire river is rapids from the mountains to Lake Thun.  Looks really dangerous to be honest with you.

Well we got a break – the weather held off for most of the three-hour training session with the youngsters.  Two of our other U-19 players also joined us – as Shawn and Omar arrived right before we started.

What great young men we have in the Tigers organization.  Willing to give up their afternoon and battle what could have been a really rainy day.  But, luckily as I already mentioned – the rain fell on and off, but never really very hard.

By the way Chris is a doctor and a surgeon who specializes in hip replacements.  (I know he has been eyeing me up – but my hips are fine…some other parts not so much).  Naturally he is very organized and he really had everything worked out for our camp.

He and the four players did all the work!  I did my usual cheerleading.  Now, although I speak very few words of Swiss German and these youngsters pretty much speak no English.  We all had a great time!

I imagine the kids all went home and told their parents about some grey haired lunatic clapping, high fiving and blasting out a “Whhheeeeww! (Ala Worldwide Wrestling Federation’s Ric Flair!)

But, really a big thank you to Chris, the Tigers, and these fabulous young men who helped these youngsters appreciate the game of American Football!  Just another episode or (mis)adventure in my football wanderings!

Get the day started with some Swiss chocolate and a cup of tea.

Start down the hill from Strattlighugel 46 to lift some weights at the gym – “Self-Fitness.”  Well actually I am not sure I would consider it lifting weights anymore – more like exercising with weights now!

I get about a quarter of the way down and I realize that I don’t have my wallet.  Which means I don’t have my gym card … nor do I have any money to go to the grocery to get lunch … hmmm … beer as well.  Not so good

Oh, by the way did I mention it is raining.

After a little internal debate, I hang a U-Turn, walk back up the steeper part of my trip and return to Strattlighugel 46.  Unbolt the doors … find my wallet and reverse action again.

Yup, still raining!

Well, it was quiet at the gym, so was able to get through a good workout.  Whip across the street, pick up my beer (I mean groceries … well, they are technically groceries – right?)  Back up the damn hill through the rain.

OK enough of my complaining.

About a week ago I went back down into Thun to visit the Thun Castle (Schloss Thun) after some encouragement from my friend Nic.  He told me it is awesome to wander around up there and then get into the museum.

Well, although the museum was still closed due Covid restrictions … I guess there are no germs in restaurants – but they hang out in museums???  Hmmm …. Go figure.

But, the walk around the Schloss was really pretty cool.  Here are some shots of the place.  Oh yeah, the cannon.  Well come on it is a castle!

This week my journey in Switzerland took me to the nation’s largest city – Zurich.  The city itself is around 430,000 according to the 2018 census – but the entire surrounding area of Zurich is probably closer to 1.5 million or so.

Many non-residents may find that they are wrong in thinking that Zurich is the capital of Switzerland (Bern is the national capital).

The city is located on one end of Lake Zurich in the north central area of Switzerland.  It has a beautiful airport with some outstanding views of the Alps that is the busiest in the country.  The rail station is also the most active and Zurich is a natural hub of travel to and through my second homeland.

Now, this is an old place – it is over 2000 years old.  Settled in 15 BC by the Romans.  The architecture does reflect the age of the city and it is a blend of modern and old buildings – making it very interesting for the many visitors it entertains.

The river Limmat flows from Lake Zurich and the “Old Town” is built around either side of the river.  It makes for some really picturesque scenes.  Views of really old buildings, churches and clock towers built amongst restaurants and shops.

Obviously, everyone knows that Zurich is a big center for the financial sector of Europe – well for the world for that matter.  I mean we are all aware of those so called “numbered” Swiss bank accounts.  Those accounts no one can get to see.

Well, I think I still have some money in one of those accounts from one of my earlier visits.  No wonder the IRS is always holding up my tax returns!  Hopefully they never find those gold bars I buried in the yard.

With all of the visitors, the size of the city and also the international business done here there is definitely more “hustle and bustle.”  The city is busy and the pace is different than most other parts of the country.

I have been here several times and I am always amazed at the constant movement along the shopping district with some really pricy places.  The “Bahnhofstrasse” is a long stretch of shops and restaurants that can but a dent in your wallet.

As you come out of the massive Bahnhof – which has a really great shopping area as well. You step right onto the Bahnhofstrasse – and away you go … spending money to your heart’s content.  Better bring a lot of $$ when you slide on down that street.

Anyway, was a good trip and like everywhere else in Switzerland – the chocolate and beer (die schokolade und bier) – well pretty good here as well.

Made a trip to visit my friend Chris in Winterthur this week.  Chris is the defensive coordinator for the Warriors who play in that city.  We met several years ago at the Swiss National Football camp and have spent a lot of time talking football via emails, zoom and now we have a chance to see one another in person again.

“Winti” is located in the Northern part of the country and is a town of about 110,000 or so (That makes it the sixth largest city in the country).  Compared to a lot of Switzerland it is relatively flat – but there are a lot of parklike areas and Chris told me that the city likes to consider itself a very “green” city.

We wandered around the downtown area – and like Zurich there is definitely more hustling around.  There is a large shopping area as you leave the Bahnhof and head through the market place towards “Old Town”.

Like many other Swiss cities the “Old Town” area is made up of cobblestone streets with fountains and nicely situated restaurants where you can sit outside and eat or drink a beer (“Ich trinkt ein Beir.” – German for “I drink a beer” …  See I am learning a little of the language here and there – plus I think it was actually three beers!)

Which by the way we did.  We had a nice lunch coupled with a few beers as we did what we always do.  Talk about football and our respective teams.  We exchanged thoughts about where football is and where it is heading in Switzerland.

It was great to see Chris – now there are no professional football players or coaches in Europe.  Let me add an asterisk to that.  There are some “import” players and coaches.  The “imports” are compensated in the amount a football club can afford.

Like anywhere else some clubs have more sponsorship (think bigger cities) and therefore more money than others.  So, some clubs will get an “import” player or coach who is compensated.

The compensation is not going to make a player leave the NFL, or a coach from the US quit his job.

Most players are from Division II and III, or NAIA teams.  Yes, there are a few QB’s who were backups at bigger schools – but not so many.  Consequently, the players who are brought over to Europe are basically guys looking to continue on playing football because they like it.  (I will emphasize that this is certainly not a path to the NFL!)

Most of the hired coaches are either real young guys with little experience but have a lot of piss and vinegar and are full of energy.  Or they are like me – old and have a lot of experience (not all of it good!) and are willing to share it.

Europe is a great experience for players who want to keep playing and also enjoy learning a new culture.  The same for coaches.  It is certainly not for everyone.  But for guys like me it is an absolutely amazing experience.  Now – I have to admit I hit the jackpot when I was introduced to football in Switzerland.

A little about the salary structure.  Usually, coaches and players who are “imports” are the same in regards to pay.  Generally housing is guaranteed – it is sometimes a shared apartment or flat.  It is livable, but don’t confuse it with staying at the Plaza Hotel.

The financial commitment depends on the strength of the club – but anywhere from $2500 – $3500 before taxes.  Often one meal per day is included – but not always.  Depending on length of stay you will have insurance.

Also, many clubs will give you a European cell phone so you don’t go broke with your US plan.  Gym memberships are common as is transportation (often you are better off with a bicycle or an all-city or country public transportation pass than a car).

Oh, and don’t worry about a language barrier.  There is none – English is used pretty much everywhere.  (I cannot guarantee that about Japan where they have tremendous football – you have to talk to my friend Greg Gregory who is coaching there right now.)

Most European seasons are three or four months – so that is the extent of your commitment.  You will not get rich!  But, you will meet some truly amazing people.  Both on and off the field.  That I can guarantee you.  Then there is the ability to see so many things.  It truly is amazing.

So, anyway it is truly a great summer job for a player who wants to keep playing – or for a coach who fits a special niche.  I love it and have recommended it to many of my friends.  I also recommend it to players from a school like Moravian College (a Division III school in PA where I work) if they want to experience a great time before they enter their 40+ years of real world work that they will be facing!

Damn, how did I get so far off the track with my meandering around?

Back to Chris.  He is a truly gifted coach, and I can see that whenever we talk via zoom or finally more in person.  Chris is one reason why I have so much faith in the great leaps in improvement that football has made in Switzerland.

Yes, the players continue to improve – case in point players from our small city of Thun – the Harvey brothers are playing college football in the US – Johns Hopkins and Washington and Lee.  Danny Antolovich (all 6-7 and 300 pounds of him) is on a scholarship at UCONN.

There are players here!

But, there are coaches here as well.  They continue to get better – obviously this propels the athletes forward.  I am so impressed with the intensity and the seriousness of the coaches in Switzerland. (Our staff in Thun is one of the best in the country – I am sure of that).

I just love it!

OK – let me finish up with this.

Chris – in life away from football is an airline pilot!  Yup, he flies all over the place.  Now I ask myself (“Self”) would you rather roam around flying a jet or worry about stopping a particular team’s offense or defense?

I’m voting for “the friendly skies”

Anyway here are some shots of Winterthur!