"Children don't seem to receive many letters or parcels in the post any more " says Belinda McBride, one of the founders of Le Castor Bleu , a local craft kit enterprise based in the pretty village of Crans. “So, to get a packet by post and addressed purely to them (and not to their parents), is fun and exciting. They never know what will be in it, as the contents vary from month to month”. In the mystery parcels are creative kits which a child can construct via English or French instructions. The day I visited the Castor Bleu team in Crans they were surrounded by hundreds of orange and black beads, reams of paper and string, as they were in the process of constructing a “batmobile” for the October parcels for Halloween. They explained “We send the kits out round about the 25th of each month and the children have come to expect this so we don’t disappoint. We have the whole of our kit ideas planned for 2009 in order that we can keep to schedule. Some ideas work, some don’t, so we try them all out many times before we decide on the optimum one. They must fit our criteria of the child being able to do the kit on their own, perhaps with a bit of help from a parent who isn’t far away. We have six children amongst us, so we have had plenty of “hands on” experience!" The team are three business women, Belinda from the UK, Pamela a Swiss Canadian and Natalie from Switzerland. All have art related backgrounds so perhaps it was inevitable that they would get together to create an art based business. Belinda lives in Crans and loves the village. She says, "There is a library, an village shop, a butcher, a pharmacy and a Post Office, so the village is well serviced. Plus there’s a modern village school. There are over 47 different nationalities in the village amongst its 2,000 citizens young, old, married and single". she also says: "As to the business we all work together as a team coming up with ideas, creating the kits, and then parcelling them up to send them out. We work on them each morning, sometimes we get so involved and carried away with the work, we are in danger of forgetting to go to our other afternoon jobs”. "With the busy Christmas retail season coming up, we will now be working full tilt to exhibit at markets and get ready for orders. Parents, grandparents and friends can order a year of creative kits for a child so it makes a good Christmas present and they are popular as birthday party gifts". A year into the business the threesome have found that the business is growing surely, but surely. They source most of their materials from Swiss manufacturers which helps to guarantee the quality and keeps down costs. Kits can be bought from their on-line shop , at CHF 8 individually, or through a 12 month subscription of CHF 96.They also offer a small choice of kits designed especially for Birthday parties. Castor Bleu will be at the Christmas market in Bellevue Saturday and Sunday 29th and 30th November

If you enjoying playing rugby did you know that along with being a very successful club (the club has won various competitions),  Nyon Rugby Club  runs two senior men's teams, has a ladies' team as well as a junior section?   The club is a member of l'Association des Sociétés Sportives Nyonnaises . (this is the association of sports clubs in this area). The 1st XV play in the National League and were Swiss champions in 2008 and in 2005 they completed the double by winning the Swiss cup for the third time!  The 2nds play regularly in a reserve league and also play many friendly matches.The junior section welcomes children from the age of 6. The club plays at Nyon's Colovray sports complex (the new home of football's UEFA). Training Training sessions for the senior men takes place at 19:00 - 21:00 every Tuesday and Thursday. English is widely spoken and the club has players who have some from all corners of the world. See the club's own website for full details and contact info. The main info section on the site is in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.

Photo above: Musicians playing outside post office in Nyon.   Living in Nyon is delighted to announce that not only does it have a new writer (Francesca Brewer-Krebs) on the team, but it is also introducing a new section to the site for newly arrived expatriates. This section is called "Back to Basics" and will attempt to explain in simple terms some of the basic steps when carrying out everyday tasks here in French speaking Switzerland.  Tasks that are second nature to Swiss citizens but can be confusing for  newly arrived expats and for those not yet familiar with French words and phrases. Fransesca starts off this new section with how to post a leter or parcel at the post office. "If  like me, you haven’t sent out those Christmas cards as you should have two weeks ago, (and perhaps the reason lies in the fact that you simply don’t want to embarrass yourself bumbling over an English-to-French dictionary as you hold up a line full of fluent French speakers), do not worry.  I’m here to tell you the basic steps and phrases you’ll need to know in order to communicate to the post-master and get those Christmas cards and gifts off to their proper destinations ".  Step 1:  Take cash.  Swiss post offices don’t accept checks or credit cards, which is a major and often surprising difference from the American postal system. Step 2:  There are several different classes of mail, which determine how fast your mail will be sent and how much it will cost to send.  You should determine the class you’d like your card or package to be sent in before you get to the window.  Find what you’re looking for on the Swiss Post website located here: Step 3:  Now comes the scary part:  the post-master’s window.  Good manners will get you far if your French is lacking.  Always give the post-master a kind, “Bonjour, Madame/Monsieur,” before you start.   a) To send a letter, slide your envelope through the window opening, the post-master will check the destination address of your letter, and ask you how you would like the letter to be sent to determine the rate.  Based on which class you’ve chosen, you will reply accordingly: "Je voudrais" "I would like"  fill in the blank (Lettre Prioritée or Lettre Économie for international; Courrier A, Courrier B, or Expresse for domestic) s'il vous plaît, Madame/Monsieur. b) To send a parcel, place your package through the window opening on the counter.  The post-master will hand you a small green card that you must fill out indicating what the general contents inside the package are (books, chocolate, clothing, et cetera).  It is permissible to fill this card out in English.  Sign and date at the bottom where it says “Signature/Date” and hand the card back to the post-master.  The post-master will check the destination of your parcel, weigh the package, and ask you which class you’d like to send the package in to determine the rate.  You will reply accordingly:  Je voudrais fill in the blank (Internationale Économie or Internationale Priorité for international parcels; Priorité, Économie, or Encombrant Économie for domestic parcels) s'il vous plaît, Madame/Monsieur.  The post-master may or may not ask you if you’d like to utilise their Track & Trace option, which for an additional fee will allow you to track the status of your package to its destination electronically. If they forget to mention it and you’re interested you can say:  Madame/Monsieur, je voudrais acheter le Track et Trace pour ce colis, s'il vous plaît.  (Madame/Monsier, I would like to buy Track & Trace for this package, please). Step 4: The post-master will tell you how much you owe, and you will hand him your cash through the window.  Always remember to thank her/him with a polite, “Merci,” and if you’re feeling festive an additional, “Joyeux fêtes!” is always appreciated at this time of year.  Et voila!  Now you know the steps to sending out your Christmas cards and gifts in a Swiss post office.  For any additional information the Swiss Post has a wonderful website that has a fully translated English feature:  as well as a virtual interactive post office that will give you a good idea of the many services Swiss post offices offer:    Good luck and Merry Christmas! Francesca Brewer-Krebs is freelance writer who recently relocated to the Lausanne area in Switzerland from New York City.  She was raised in the coastal town of Rye, New Hampshire and graduated from Miss Porter’s School, a prep school in Farmington, Connecticut, where she developed a strong interest in English and French.  She attended St. Lawrence University, a small liberal-arts college in Canton, New York, and there she focused her studies in British Literature and French Language and Culture.  She is excited for the opportunity to share her experiences as a young expat exploring life in Switzerland.  In addition to writing, her interests include reading, athletics, attending live music events, travel, film, shopping, and spending time with her friends and eight siblings.

The weather forecast isn't looking so good for the next few days but there are still plenty of activities going on in the area over the weekend to keep you entertained. Living in Nyon has selected a few of these activities for you here but for a full listing you can check the "Agende section on the Nyon official site. The first activity is the classical music concert at 17:00 on Sunday at the Conservatoire. Brodziak, Bettens, and Zimmerman. Suites and sonatas (English and French pieces). See the Conservatoire's website for more details. Friday the 24th September at the Usine a Gaz there will be a Blues and Cajun music evening with two bands playing on the night: Hell's Kitchen and Mama Rosin. Doors open at 21:00 concerts start at 22:00 Living in Nyon has often written about the band Mama Rosin (when they perform there is usually a good night guaranteed!) See the site for more details. Over in Morges this Saturday there will be an Autumn market in Rue Louis de Savoie from 08:00-17:00 with bio produce on sale. Also in Morges on Sunday there will be a "Vide Grenier" in the Halles CFF from 08:00- 18:00. If you enjoy Rugby you might like to know that on Sunday there is a Rugby match going on at the Stade de Colovray in Nyon between Nyon Rugby Club and the Rugby Club of Avusy. Match starts at 15:00. See Nyon rugby club site On Sunday back in Nyon it's the weekly flea market along the lake side during the day. Big Australian Festival in Gex (just over the border in France past Divonne) Finally, over the next eight days there is a massive Australian festival going on over in Gex. This festival is the first of a kind with an excting agenda planned from family fun days, to an Australian film festival, to an exhibition of work by Australian artists and photographers to professional storytellers. Audiences will have an opportunity to share their own experience of Australia and learn about the role and form story telling takes in indigeneous Australian culture. There will be an Australian comedy night, and dinner and on Sat 25th Sept at the Vesancy Chateau there will be a Grand Final Breakfast at 08:00 with an opportunity to watch the Grand Final of Australian Rules football with (according to the website) Australians attempting to explain the game's finer points... Vegemite on toast plus a full Australian style breakfast. More details here Full listing of events of the Australian festival on the site here

The film "Star Wars - The Force Awakens" will be screened in 3D and in English at 20:45 on Monday 21st December in Nyon at the Capitole  Cinema in Nyon. Tickets can be purchased in advance for this film at the box office of the cinema. Trailer of film below.

Photo above: New sculptures outside Nyon chateau as part of the Visarte Vaud initative There is a new Nyon council  leaflet which has been published for its residents and distributed around the town. The leaflet is a handy reference to many of the free local events coming up in the area until the end of September. For example, on the 29th May it's the "Fête des Voisins" (Neighbours'  Day) in Nyon. On the 2nd June, it's "Journée du vélo" (Bike Day). This day is an opportunity to take part in lots of biking activities around the town and to buy or sell a second hand bike. On the 2-3 June its the Fête de L'Interculturelle and looking ahead to the 8th September, on that day it's the "Journées du Patrimoine" when all the museums in the area offer free entry with guided visits. Scottish Country Dance in Nyon! A more recent event coming up in the town (this is not a council event) will be a Scottish Ceilidh - a Scottish Country Dance complete with Scottish live band on the night for a fun night of some Scottish country dancing!  This event is organised by La Côte Anglican Church.  Full details below.  La Côte Spring Fling!  Enjoy traditional Scottish dancing, with the well-known Loch Léman Ceilidh Band and caller – no previous experience necessary! Sat. 12 May, 18.30-23.00, at the Salle Communale, Place Perdtemps, Nyon.  Food & drink available. Entrance: CHF 20, under 16: CHF 5 Click on the link here to buy and print your tickets online. Further enquiries  Tel. +41799591698

There's a new section on Living in Nyon called 1260+  This is a selection of  useful and interesting articles, news, features and radio interviews to be found on other English websites across Switzerland. We'll give you the links to each article or programme for you to click through to keep you up to date with all things Swiss!  Why 1260? This is the post code/zip code of Nyon. In this selection there are articles on fun street signage in Switzerland, fondues in Geneva, a news item on tougher road restrictions, links to a consumer advice radio programme,  advice on renting skis and more. 1260+  Nyon, Geneva, Lausanne Useful articles - Two articles on Know it All Passport . The first is on a unusual Christmas gift idea   -  presents made from authentic Swiss Army Blankets.   Click here The second is on Insiders Tips to Geneva . From flea markets to fondues, this is a particularly useful article for newcomers and visitors to the city.   Click here Two articles on Moms-in-Vaud  The first is an article on the various outdoor ice rinks that have now opened  in Geneva and in the Canton of Vaud Click here The second is on the   Garbage/ Rubbish bag tax which will be introduced on the 1st January 2013. Click here  News and Features on Geneva Lunch News item entitled   Tougher Road Measures in January Spelled Out . Click here   Feature series on Refugees and Asylum seekers in Switzerland. Click here  Two articles on Newly Swissed A Primer on Renting Skis,   In this article the author refers to a ski shop in the German speaking side of Switzerland, however the information is still very useful for anyone who is about to rent skis this season. Click here Funniest examples of signage in Switzerland - We love this one!  An article with great photos to make you smile! Click here Diccon Bewes author of Swiss Watching  Fun feature on The (almost) Swiss President of the United States - Click here Radio Interviews  World Radio interviews available to listen again - Series of radio programmes on consumer advice. From pollutants in outdoor jackets to travel insurance tips . Click here

Latest news - April 1st Caribana first night Wed 9 June now sold out! (this is not an April fool's joke) Comfort at Caribana The Caribana music festival, due to take place at Crans sur Nyon from 9-13 June, has revealed its full line up of performers for the five day music fest by the lake. On the agenda are Deep Purple, Madness, Hell's Kitchen, Sum 41, Micky Green, Faithless , Yodelice, The Asteroids Galaxy Tour, Sean Paul, Mama Rosin* Polar, Thomas Dybdahl, Neil Halstead and many more bands and singers, plus a special guest still to be announced. A still lake by the Caribana pitch last week This year Caribana celebrates its 20th birthday and to mark the big occasion, the organisers have decided to put the emphasis on comfort for the festival goers.  There will be fewer tickets sold to provide more space on the pitch; there will be a series of "unplugged" concerts within a quiet area called Scène de la Plage, right on the lake side; and the concerts on the different stages will be timed so each group's music doesn't run over and clash with the other bands on other stages. Also there will be more seating near the food stalls to allow festival goers to enjoy the different food in comfort. Caribana last year, music amongst the trees and by the lake. Caribakids day Sunday the 13th is Caribakids day (from 13.00-18.00), where there will be lots of activities for children including a quiet corner for them to listen to stories read by volunteers from the library at Crans. There will be a workshop for children held inside a yurt, including an opportunity for them to make music. As ever there will be a boum (dance/disco) for the children and face painting, bouncy castle, climbing wall and a mass release of balloons. Caribana on iPhone New to Caribana this year is the availability of the programme on an iPhone app. Also, ticket holders will be able to use regional public transport free of charge to and from the festival from the Wednesday to the Saturday (including the NStCM train) Buses to Geneva and Lausanne will be available for a special price of 10 chf per journey. Environment Around half of the buses that will bring in the sponsors and artists to the festival will operate on natural gas. This year as in the last two years, there will be a deposit of CHF 2 on the gobelets (the drinking containers) when purchasing beers/drinks etc. This is to encourage less rubbish in the ground and to enable the containers to be recycled. It promises to be a fabulous festival, more details on the daily line up will be posted here on Living in Nyon nearer the time. Tickets are now on sale . The Caribana website has details of all the ticket outlets, and you can also buy them online. Tickets don't sell out as fast as they do for the Paléo music festival but they do sell out, so don't leave it too late! * Living in Nyon has been following Mama Rosin since they first played in Nyon many years ago in the small venue in the old town called Club 1306. See previous post. They are superb live! Check them out. News from Nyon's film festival - Lou Reed coming to Nyon Latest news from Visions du Réel is that the singer (and now film maker) Lou Reed will be coming to Nyon to present his first film called "Red Shirley" for its world premiere. (note there are still a few places left for the talk by Mr Perret director of Visions du Réel on 6th April here in Nyon, see post below) This is what VDR's press release says about the film. When Lou Reed, the singer of the group “Velvet Underground” and author of the albums Berlin and Transformer, stood behind a camera for the first time at the age of 68, one might have thought he would seek to probe the world of music. Not at all. His first documentary film will focus on something else: the face and the narrative of his cousin, on the eve of her 100th birthday. Sitting next to her, sometimes even kneeling, whispering his questions close to her ear, Lou Reed, assisted by Ralph Gibson, records the story of an incredible destiny. Often showing amazement, like a child, at the events Shirley has lived through, laughing at her quirky, frank or irritated replies, frequently asking her to repeat just to make sure, he films an affectionate and moving portrait, interspersed with some photographs. While Shirley’s narrative first touches on the ordeal of two world wars and the disappearance of her family  “whom Hitler took care of”,  it takes an unexpected turn. We learn that she left Poland on her own in 1938 at the age of 19 years, with only two suitcases and a few dollars in her pocket to travel to Montreal – where in six months she learnt not French but the mandolin before finally slipping off illegally to New York, buried under the goods on a truck. There she was to become a dressmaker and to lead the workers’ demands  hence her nickname Red Shirley, which gave the film its title. An extraordinary figure of women’s emancipation, captured in all her authenticity. The film will be shown on Tuesday, April 20 at 20:30 at the Théâtre de Marens.

Football Love it or loathe it, you wil not be able to miss Euro 2008 here in Nyon. There is a lot planned such as big screens erected down by the lake side so we can boo and cheer the refs collectively. Turkey and Portugal play their opening match in Geneva on the 7th June. Many fans are expected to stay in Nyon. Expect emotions (as the publicity says). More details to follow.

On Tuesday night, by the time the Kaiser Chiefs came on stage and sang "When the heat dies down", the temperature had started to cool down a little but the atmosphere in the crowd hotted up quickly. With a setting sun over Mont Blanc, and a great line up that night, the crowd were treated to a great start to the week. Gossip kicked off the festival in style and to quote another "Kaiser Chief's" song "There are good days and bad days" and this was shaping up to be a very good one indeed. Mama Rosin in concert at Paléo However, the beauty of Paléo is that it's not only the big names that are crowd pleasers. Away from the big scene, other bands play with equal enthusiasm and while Prodigy were getting the audience jumping on Wednesday night, the crowd in La Detour tent were positively rocking to Mama Rosin . This group from Geneva gave an absolutely electric performance of Cajun Rock and Blues. It's an interesting combination to those who aren't familiar with this music, but it works so well, particuarly for live audiences. Quite a few people came into the tent just to see what they were about and they ended up staying the whole time as the music and atmosphere hooked them. Living in Nyon first spotted this band way back in 2008 when they performed for a very small crowd in the 1306 club in the old town in Nyon. See previous post (under "my personal favourites"). At Paléo the crowd was much larger and the group deserved the applause as they put their all into their performance, they are energetic, and have heaps of enthusiasm. The group Cyril "Jeter" Yeterian on melodeon, vocals, guitar and Robin A. Girod on (guitar, vocals, banjo) and a drummer vocalist (name unknown for the moment!) are superb and definitely a band to watch. Not only for their music, these guys are very easy on the eye indeed annd with it they attracted quite a few female fans. A brilliant, superb concert to be written into the Paléo history books. Another band to watch (although I understand they are already have sold out shows in Belgium) are the two piece group The Black Box Revelation. They gave a small short performance for the press yesterday in the early evening before their main performance in the Club Tent last night. This Belgian group write their own music and sing in English. If the song such as "I think I like it" and other melodic original numbers are a small example of their work, they are going to go far. They certainly have the all the right ingredients with lead singer Jan Paternoster in impossibly tight skinny jeans, great voice and dark shades and a talented Dries Van Dijck on drums. Coming plans are a recording an album in Konk studios in London followed by a British tour. Keep an eye out for them in the future.

Paléo 2012 came to an end last night having attracted over 230,000 festival-goers over the six day period. There will be more reviews and photos of some of this year's concerts coming up on this site, in the interim, here are a few facts and figures about the festival itself. Since 1976 there have been 36 festivals, 2,586 artists, 3,246 shows, and a total of 5,016,154 spectators In 2011 the festival involved the following: 211 shows on 6 stages.  4, 405 volunteers and 55 salaried staff (43 full-time employees) were also involved.   8,000 campers each day, 207 stall- holders and 48 bars, 609 journalists, photographers and media representatives. 222 newspapers, websites, magazines, record companies TV and radio channels, 24 Swiss and International Television and 20 record companies. The festival is held in an area of 84 hectares (this includes the camping and parking).   Spectator Profile  Origin Nyon district 30%   State of Vaud (without the district of Nyon)  20% State of Geneva 29% Other French Speaking States 8% German speaking part of CH and Ticino 2% France 10% Other countries 1% Age  Under 20 years 17% Between 20 and 29 years 43% Between 30 and 39 years 15% Between  40 and 49 years 10% Over 50 years 15% Average age of the spectators is 32 years. Half the spectators are younger than 28 years of age Loyalty  10% discover Paléo for the first time 79% of the public have already taken part in more than 3 editions of the festival. 98% of the public is considering as a certainty (85%) or a possibility (13% of coming back the following year) Respecting the environment 985,000 washable cups produced by Paléo since 2009 Over 50% of those present used public transport to get to the festival (in 2011) 43% of the waste was sorted in 2011 (15% in 2000) Paléo uses 100% green energy The 2012 Paléo budget. Expenditure - CHF 23.5 million Bars, Restaurants and Stalls 13% Concert Costs 27% Construction Costs 16% Part of operating costs 19% Volunteer Staff 11% Promotion and Press 8% Reception and Security 6% Budget 2012  - Receipts CHF 23.5 million Stalls and Merchandising 7% Ticket Sales 45% Sponsors and Advertising 18% Miscellaneous receipts 10% Bars and Restaurants 20%

A year after performing at Paleo, L'Elastique Citrique , Nyon's circus school will be going on tour next week down the Vaud lakeside. The circus troupe, made of about 20 artists who train at the circus school several times a week will be on tour for a week, but there's a twist: they'll be touring aboard a boat! La Demoiselle is a replica of an old sailing ship that used to transport rocks from quarries on the lake during the 19 th century. There are for ships of her kind sailing on Lake Leman, including the Neptune in Geneva. The boat is run by an association called “La barque des enfants”, and it is used for pedagogical outings and camps on the lake. La Demoiselle was built over 15 years in Montreux and Villeneuve by workers on the dole, and is now used by schools and groups. As the association has quite strong social values, the boat is offered to associations and groups for half the price it actually costs to sail her for a week (which is 10 000 francs!), and they make the missing money by also renting the ship out for private venues and corporate outings. The ship itself is 30 meters long, weighs 75 tons, and has two large Latin sails. It is fully equipped with a kitchen, toilets and 24 beds.   You may have seen the artists from L'Elastique Citrique at Paléo last year, clad in red, or performing in the streets of Nyon for Vision du Réel. This is part of their new project, “Famille de Cirque”, which is a much lighter project than past shows, and involves a lot of improvising and street theatre. For the tour, they have created a 40 minute show which they will play in the ports they land in along the lake. Using very little material (a large red circle, some juggling balls and two unicycles), they will offer a 360° show to the people come to see them. In the spirit of street performances, the show will be free, and the audience will be able show their appreciation of the show by slipping a few notes in the hats passed round at the end of the show. The show, called “La Vie en Rouge” will be all about relationships and passion. Why red, might you ask? Well, it's the colour often associated to circus, and to different passionate feelings like love, anger... It is a recurring colour for L'Elastique Citrique.   The tour will start on Sunday across the lake in France, in the private settlement of Port Ripaille, on the 14 th of July. La Demoiselle will then slowly make her way down to Nyon via La Tour de Peilz, Morges, St-Prex, and Geneva. You can find all the informations about the tour (dates, locations and time of the shows) below. Nyon Région TV, Nyon's local television chain has done a video on the tour, which you can watch here . (first five minutes) You can come and see L'Elastique Citrique on the following dates: 15th July  - La Tour-de-Peilz - 20h30 at theBains-des-Dames 16th July - Morges - 20h30 at the Port du Petit-Bois 17th July - St-Prex - 17h et 20h30 at the  Place d'Armes 19th July - Genève - 20h30 near the Jet d'eau opposite the Pierres du Niton 20th July - Nyon - 17h and 20h30 near the crane (east side of Rive)