Should add, Tony, if you're still managing a pub, where is it and are you looking for any staff?......

i suppose i am not actually an unskilled worker but a skilled manual worker,how big a thing is using natural stone(wet or dry)in switzerland. www.butestone.tumblr.com

In Ticino, very common, and there are probably jobs available, as fewer people are doing it nowadays.

Tom

nice one,thanks for that,i take it ther is not much demand for it in an urban/architectural context?

No, just in old rural villages, but there's plenty of those around here!

I know someone who is one of the few that can do the traditional roof, but when he rebuilt his own home (which was originally done with stone), he used tiles due to costs!

But, there are still plenty of people who will pay for the stone roofs (as did a friend's father).

Tom

so,would there be 'find a tradesman' type websites for ticino,where folk like builders and such list themselves and people post up the type of jobs they need done?

Not that I know of, but I can ask around.

Tom

thanks tom,much appreciated,are there real estate agents who specialise in selling second homes in ticino(or other alpine areas) to city dwellers and would they put people in touch with local tradesmen in order to facilitate repairs or developments?

hello again tom,you mentioned the stone roofs,i have seen these,is it possible the guys that do them would consider training an apprentice,i work stone,but would love to learn how to make a traditional stone roof,just saying'stone roof' gives me goosebumps!

i may well have mentioned this before so apologies for repitition,i did some work in exchange for accomodation some time back in ticino,a seat and a stone stair,pics on butestone.tumblr.com (some of the captions are needing changed as my web assistant had a bad line when i was talkin him through them!)

I am swiss, have my own retail business and want to get a part time job in an office as a balance.
I have enough language and computer skills to do normal administration work or maybe front desk work but because I have a retail degree and not an office degree, it's nearly impossible for me to get in... that's one of the downsides of this country...

hope you will get in to the fachhochschule with your nanny experience