Our young granddaughter will be moving on from her Montessori nursery school in England, in a couple of months. The quality of her education this year has been exceptional, due in a large part to her class teacher who is also the Headmistress. Life skills are many and varied and her overall education has really set her up for the future.
We’d like to give her teacher a present (up to about 20 CHF) that is typically Swiss, not tacky and not all chocolate! Any ideas would be gratefully received.
I dunno about others, but when I taught, I didn’t like school supplies, coffee mugs, or the like.
I did like photos, drawings/letters from kids and families, and never turned down a bottle of wine.
Cutest present ever, at Christmas, received a box full of chocolates with brandy and such in them, while not a fan of such chocolates, I loved the sentiments as the six year old announced to all present in the staff room “Mr. Sox, you’ll like these, they’ve got liquor in them. My mom says we kids make teachers want to drink.” That box was finished by the other staff within an hour after school ended.
I’m not Japanese nor is the teacher (to my knowledge). At Christmas, I gave my daughter an engraved floral pattern Swiss Army knife, she claimed it as her favorite present.
I once gave a very posh swiss army knife to a Japanese gentleman. While thanking me profusely he told me that to give a knife often meant that the recipient should use it. We both had a big laugh but after that he always looked at me with suspicion.
Scissors and knives are forbidden as wedding presents in Japan. Implies separation. Most other occasions, totally fine. Anyone in Japan who receives a Swiss Army knife from a Swiss, or resident of Switzerland and isn’t thrilled, is likely being difficult. Unless they are yakuza or a gangster and you’re their boss.
The idea of giving a small coin for a knife in exchange (thereby buying the knife) is a tradition/superstition among some western folks as well. An engraved Swiss Army knife shouldn’t hold such notions.