On December 18^th, the Kohane group got together to celebrate the holidays with the annual Swiss tradition called L’Escalade, or Fête de l’Escalade.  The annual Escalade festival is held in December in Geneva, Switzerland, celebrating the defeat of the surprise attack by troops sent by Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy during the night of December 11, 1602.

To celebrate the Swiss victory, a chocolate cauldron called a “marmite” is filled with little vegetables made out of marzipan along with other chocolate treats.  Dinner and dessert were served, while Dan made a speech explaining the holiday and the lab’s growth over the years.  After dinner, the children gathered to take turns smashing into the marmite and splurging on the chocolate within.