For those readers heading off to the talk on Swiss schooling tonight, a reminder that the closest parking is at La Combe shopping centre. The Perdtemps car park is approximately a 10 minute walk from the Uni Global Union. Nyon train station is a 5 minute walk from UNI Global Union. For all parking options in Nyon, see link here UNI Global Union is at 8-10 Avenue Reverdil, 1260, Nyon. See link and street view here

The MANHATTAN SHORT film festival will be in Nyon's own cinema on Thursday October 4th at 20:30. Ten films will be shown in their original version with English subtitles and after the screening, members of the audience will get to vote on which film they think is the best. Each film is around 10-15 minutes long. Over 100,000 people in over 300 cities will also be viewing and voting on the finalists films this same week. The mission is to unite audiences across the globe for one week via the most compelling short films submitted each year.There are films from the Netherlands, Norway, the UK, the USA, Spain, Peru, Russia, Romania. See site here to see the films that will be shown on Thursday.

Woody Wade is a futurist and author. In his role as a consultant to Swiss organisations planning their future strategies, his role is to help them visualise how their business environment might change, depending on how trends and uncertainties unfold over the next few years. “I help managers of companies get ready for changes they might face in the future by first, recognising what those changes could be,” he says. “That’s already a big step.” Living in Nyon asked Woody, a native of Indiana, how he came to be living amongst the vineyards in Grandvaux (a village with a population just over 2,000), above Cully in the heart of the Lavaux wine-growing region. “The Reader’s Digest version of the story,” he says, “is that I came to work in Switzerland intending to stay ‘for three years’ – that was in 1982. As happens with so many people, Switzerland quickly got its velvet claws in me, so thirty years later, I’m still here, very happy and in no hurry to leave. For the first seven years, I lived in the German part of the country, but then I had a chance to move to Lausanne, and I’ve never looked back. Where I live now, in Grandvaux, I’m perched 300 metres above the lake with a panoramic view that is always changing, always energising. It’s a wonderful place to live and work, an easy drive to Lausanne, Vevey, or the Geneva airport. Peace and quiet, some good restaurants and caveaux nearby – I’m really very privileged.” In Woody’s new book Scenario Planning: A Field Guide to the Future, he explores several ways the world might be different a decade from now – and he makes the case for using a structured approach called scenario planning to try and foresee how the changes could arise – and how different the world may be if they do. What is an example of a trend that could change companies’ competitive footing in the future? “One of the biggest changes going on all around us, but so slowly we almost don’t feel it, is demographic,” Woody says. Birth rates have dropped. So a world with fewer young people than a generation ago could realistically change the “landscape” 10 years from now. This has huge implications for anyone that wants talented young people to join their organisation – and that means just about everybody. When Woody gives presentation to companies he often illustrate the challenges ahead by using the Swiss Army as an example of an organisation facing a shortage of human resources in the future – although he is quick to point out, we will all be in the same boat, not just the Swiss Army. “We will be living in a world where the pool of talent will be shrinking ,” he says. Simply put, lower birth rates mean fewer kids. A little further down the line, fewer kids mean fewer graduates, fewer apprentices, fewer new hires – and for the Swiss Army, fewer 19-year-old recruits. So what can the Swiss Army – and any organisation – do now to get ready for this situation? Woody shows alternative ways the army might address the problem, from forging rather unusual strategic alliances to outsourcing military bands. “I make light of it this in subject in my talks, but it’s a serious issue, and companies really do need to be thinking about it today,” he says. You can find out more about Woody's work and contact here via his own website.

On Saturday 6th October it's the Autumn fair in Nyon. It's always a colourful event with autumn produce on sale, special events and stalls placed around the centre of town ( Place du Midi, Rue Juste Olivier, Place Martin, Place Bel Air etc). Also on the same day, it's the Fête de la Vigne (the wine fair) this will take place in the Place du Château with a full programme of events and music into the evening. See here for more info Over in Morges, a reminder that it's the Classic Car show which also has a full programme of events see here. At the show there will also be the opportunity for members of the public to partake in a traditional English high tea from 11:00-17:00 in the band stand in the Park Independence in Morges. This is organised by the tea shop and tea room La Bôite a Thé in Rolle. Reservations recommended for this - Email morges@laboiteathe.ch or Tel 021 801 1286. La Bôite a Thé offers delicious high teas from time to time from its Rolle shop and tea room. Elegant sandwiches, cakes, scones, cream and jam, and more, all served in china cups and by a butler! The Living in Nyon editor can definitely recommend it!

Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, author of “Raising Multilingual Children” and five other books on the brain and learning, will be visiting various destinations in Switzerland in November to present her dynamic workshops. These workshops organised by Know it All Passport are very popular so book early to avoid disappointment! See details below. Also coming up on the agenda, is a Gala Dinner on the 31st October organised by "Friends of India". The guest speaker at this dinner will be Lord Paddy Ashdown, diplomat, humanitarian, international envoy and author. Details below. Raising Multilingual Children: Foreign Language Acquisition and Children by world-renowned specialist in education and neuroscience, Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, Ph.D. Tracey is half Japanese-American, half Irish-Native American and is married to an Ecuadorian. Her 3 children aged 19, 17 and 15 speak fluent English, Spanish and German and some French. Tracey says there are ten key factors which influence every student’s success with new languages: 1) Timing 2) Aptitude 3) Motivation 4) Strategy 5) Consistency 6) Opportunity 7) Language Typology 8) Siblings 9) Gender 10) Hand-use. Each person will combine these “ingredients” together in their own unique “recipe” for learning. This workshop will familiarise teachers and parents with the factors and suggest tools for enhancing those which are shaped in the school context. Tracey will also explain how children learn languages and answer your questions. For example: * Is it OK to have 2, 3, 4 languages at the same time or is it better for children to learn languages consecutively? * When should your children learn multi-literacy skills? * Who should speak what in order to maximize the best language skills? * Should you learn a foreign language alongside your children? * Raising your child multilingualy has worked so far, but now your child is growing up and you have different questions about identity, literacy, strategy, etc. * Come with your own questions and be prepared to share your own concerns about the best way to raise multilingual children. 18:00 Registration and welcome drink 18h:30- 20:00 Ten key factors which influence every student’s success with new languages 20:00- 20:30 Break with drinks and food 20:00-21:45 How children learn languages and Q&A 22:00 End The workshops will take place in the following locations. VERBIER, November 13, LAUSANNE, November 14, GENEVA, November 15, ZURICH, November 16Reserve early as spaces are limited. See here Gala Dinner 31st October with Lord Paddy Ashdown as guest speaker, For full details see Friends of India

Next week Shakespeare comes to Coppet with a production of "As you like it" by GEDS, (Geneva English Drama Society) at the Thèatre de Terre Sainte. This is a lovely theatre with a nice bar for that pre-theatre drink ! Read on for a description of the play and for booking details. As You Like It is one of Shakespeare’s light-hearted comedies -- a real fairy-tale (though without the fairies!). There is the expected well-stirred mix of poetry and philosophy in this much-loved play and everyone lives happily ever after, but not before going through a bit of mild torment. There is sibling rivalry, betrayal and banishment — but song and laughter too — and over all the dappled sunlight of the Forest of Arden…where things are not always what they seem. Frances Favre has assembled a strong cast of newcomers and familiar faces to bring this delightful play to life — a great start to GEDS’ 80th anniversary year — don’t miss it! Tickets: CHF 30 (seats numbered) Students CHF 20, ONLY at the theatre on the evening of the performance, subject to seat availability and on presentation of student card. Book now at Theatre in English, choose your own seats, pay by credit card or bulletin de versement or e-banking and print your own tickets. Special school group prices Wed. & Thurs. contact: webmaster@theatreinenglish.ch Book at a Swiss post office using a red bulletin de versement payable to Theatre in English,1214 Vernier CCP 12-20568-3. Give in the ‘motif de payment’ box the date and number of tickets required and your daytime phone number or email. Call from 29th Oct. on +41 22 341 51 92. Weekdays between 11.00 and 12.30. Buy tickets at the theatre (CASH ONLY) on the night from 60 minutes before the show (check seat availability by phone or on the website). Tickets neither changed nor refunded.

Here's a great little interview by Jonas with Chris Parson, the English translator at Paléo. Read on to find out why he was given Neil Young's harmonica, how Joe Cocker loves Shepherd's Pie (and hates broccoli!), what happened when Oasis played at the festival and how the Stranglers didn't like being served white wine out of small Swiss glasses! Chris Parson is the English translator for the Paléo festival in Nyon (which starts next Tuesday the 23rd July and runs through to the 28th) It's thanks to him that you can read both the programme and the Paléo website in English. Chris has been working at Paléo since 1988, when the festival used be at Colovray by the lakeside. Chris posing with Neil Young's harmonica and signed LP Chris was born in Dublin and raised in Preston, Lancashire. After studying philosophy and literature at Bristol, he did a degree in teaching and then went on to work in the civil service. He left his job (not long after Margaret Thatcher arrived on the scene) to go travelling in Asia, where he eventually met his Swiss wife, trekking in Nepal. A few years later, he moved to Switzerland. He now teaches Adult Education at Geneva University, in the Faculty of Psychology and Education. He is also the president of the association of L'Elastique Citrique, (note they are on tour next week read more here). Chris is also involved in several local associations including the Usine à Gaz. He likes to cook, travel and listen to great musicians like Neil Young and Leonard Cohen. (Full disclosure he also happens to be my dad!) I met up with him to discuss his time working at Paléo. I first started in 1988. At the time the festival was still at Colovray. I was living in the same small apartment block as Jacques Monnier < > co-founder of the festival and head of programming> and at the time I was giving English lessons to him and a few other friends from Paléo. Jacques asked me if I was interested in running the backstage hospitality area at the main stage, as he was looking for someone who could speak English and French and had some notions of diplomacy. I said: “Ok, why not”. Yeah, I hardly knew anything about the Festival, and I found myself in charge of the dressing room area, where all the big-name bands playing on the main stage were being looked after before and after their shows. I was told to read all the technical riders attached to the contracts they'd signed and make sure I delivered everything that was asked for by the artists. For instance, my first year The Stranglers asked for two litres of fresh orange juice to be ready as they went on stage. I mistakenly provided orange juice from a bottle, only to find out that when the manager didn't have freshly squeezed orange juice in jugs he threatened to call off the concert. We had about half an hour to find some oranges on the festival site (at the end of July...), and squeeze enough out of them to fill the jugs. I suppose that was my baptism of fire (you might say baptism of orange juice!) I spent a long time reading the rider for Carlos Santana < > who will be playing this year at the festival>, he had apparently asked to be given food and drink every fifteen minutes. We prepared everything and approached him every quarter of an hour to offer him food, juice, fruit etc... Every time we offered him anything, he politely refused, saying he didn’t really need anything. He probably only drank a couple of glasses of water all evening. This was when I realised that a lot of the demands made on behalf of the artist were formulated by their management teams and didn't necessarily reflect the demands of the artists themselves. On the evening before the festival, we went out to eat ' with The Stranglers and their record company. Several members of the band were horrified to be given tiny little wine glasses in which to drink their white wine, they felt it was bad for their image, and asked for them to be replaced by beer glasses. They also asked for a rowing boat because they wanted to row across lac léman! That was on my first year. Otherwise, I was also asked to give a massage to the female violin player of the Wooden Tops, she had overheard someone saying I was good with my hands < > chuckles>. I also remember when we hosted Julien Clerc at l'Asse (the Paléo grounds) in early '90s, his staff were very keen to have a bottle of "pastis" for their aperitif, but Julien Clerc forbade them to drink alcohol before the concert, so we had to procure a bottle of pastis on the side and serve them under the table... Perhaps the funniest incident involving alcohol, when the legendary guitarist BB King came to the festival, it was stipulated on his rider that a bottle of Cutty Sark whisky had to be placed on his dressing room table. This particular brand of whisky was not to be found in Switzerland, and we had to send a driver into France to find a bottle, which took him several hours to locate. As by now I was also acting as a translator for the festival, I was asked to serve as an interpreter for an interview with a regional newspaper. On entering BB King's dressing room, he asked me if I'd like a drink (this was after the concert). I noticed that the bottle of Cutty Sark was standing unopened on the dressing room table and asked him for a glass of whisky, so he opened the bottle and served me a glass! I am pretty sure he never touched a drop. One of the artists I've probably had the most to do with at Paléo is Joe Cocker. His rider always starts with the . There then followed a long list of things Joe can or cannot eat. In fact, Joe always eats the same thing: shepherd's pie. We were provided with the recipe each time, which required several dollops of HP sauce, something rather difficult to find in Switzerland at the time... All the kitchen staff involved in making the shepherd's pie would then come to his door and present it to him and ask him to autograph the recipe! We once had to provide a three-course dinner with silver cutlery for 75 musicians and technicians working with Paul Simon. The kitchens were a quarter of a mile away, at , and we had to carry everything back to the main stage. During the meal, a stocky little man in a white T-shirt walked up to me and asked me for a piece of Gruyère, saying, in a rather surreptitious way, “ ”. I then realised that this was the great Paul Simon. For the past fifteen years or so, I have been translating the programme, the press pack for the press conference that takes place in April, and the Paléo website content into English. This means that from February onwards, I am one of the handful of people who knows the festival line-up, which is revealed to the public round about the end of April. During the Festival, I am also responsible for organising press conferences, and for providing an interpretation service for the media who wish to interview English speaking bands. I also have to deal with the record companies and the artists' managers. Probably the most notorious incident concerning the press, a band playing at Paléo and a record company was with Oasis. We knew the Gallagher brothers were in the middle of a bust-up and the band left the stage twice during the first half an hour of concert and never came back on, in front of a sold out crowd, claiming they had been pelted by coins and various other objects, including a urine-filled condom during one of their numbers. This was obviously an extremely sensitive situation, and the band demanded the British embassy in Bern provide them with an escort out of the festival. But the director of the festival, Daniel Rossellat, insisted that they should stay until the last member of the public had left the festival site after the last concert. Oasis who were one of the leading pop bands in the world at the time, were thus forced to stay until the early hours of the morning. A press conference was then held at 1.30 am, and before the Festival could give their version of the events, Oasis' record company rushed in, and read out and distributed a somewhat biased statement to all of the journalists there. I got to speak with a BBC world service correspondent, who was by chance on holiday in the area. When he heard the news, he hastily asked for an accreditation to the festival and asked me for my version of the events. As the English interpreter, I was faced the next morning with calls from breakfast TV shows and different English media who wanted to know what had happened. My nephew, who was having breakfast in the UK, suddenly heard my name as the official spokesperson for Paléo on Breakfast TV as he was having his breakfast! I think we made the front page of the Daily Mirror and the Sun. Yes, for me Neil Young is certainly one of the greatest folk-rock musicians of the last forty years. In 1993, the night before my 40 th birthday, Neil Young played on the main stage. At the end of the concert, as the clock struck midnight, my colleagues in the backstage area cracked open a few bottles of champagne and started singing "Happy Birthday". It was the 22 nd of July, and my 40 th birthday. The tour manager hearing the singing and asked whose birthday it was, and when pointed in my direction, came up to me, handed me the harmonica Neil Young had played with that night, and wished me a Happy Birthday! I had also given him an album (Young’s first solo LP) to autograph, although he had told me that Neil Young never signed anything. I got it back duly autographed. Perhaps what impressed me the most was that he always toured with one of his very handicapped sons, who watched the show in a wheelchair in the wings. When it was time to go, I was asked to give a hand carrying his son to the car that was waiting to drive them back to the hotel, and found myself carrying the boy with his father, Neil Young himself. A great musician and a good guy. I am obviously looking forward to seeing him again this year…he will be playing the day after my 60 th birthday this time, so I’d better polish up the harmonica! All photos- Courtesy Jonas Parson

Rocking Paléo- Danko Jones, Arctic Monkeys and Smashing Pumpkins Several generations of rock legends united last night as 90's band the Smashing Pumpkins mingled with their younger colleagues of the Arctic Monkeys. Varying from metal to calmer pop, all the bands on stage had a resolutely rock feel to them. The Arctic Monkeys. Courtesy Paléo / Boris Soula On the main stage, Canadian rock band Danko Jones opened the show, trying to get started an audience that stayed rather calm, despite the energy and brawn of the lead guitarist. They were followed on the main stage by the main act of the night, Arctic Monkeys, the Sheffield rock band who have shaped rock music over the past ten years. This was their second time at playing on the grounds of l'Asse, and it was plain to see the band had gotten much more confidence than when they came in 2007. Whilst their first concert had lacked any contact with the crowd, a visibly intimidated band coming on, playing their music and then leaving the stage without a nod to the crowd, Alex Ferguson was far chattier this time round. They played all the favourite songs, from “I bet you look good on the dance floor”, “Fluorescent Adolescent” to the songs which will feature on their next album, due for this Autumn. The crowd was pretty mad, and there was quite a bit of dancing (and its slightly more violent version, “pogoing”) going on. Quite a few people, who hadn't reckoned with the heat and the crush you find at the very front of the crowd had to be taken out by the security staff, pulled over the barriers in front of the stage. This tends to happen quite often, as enthusiastic but inexperienced fans wander into deeper waters than they can manage. Paléo takes good care of its festival-goers, and glasses of water were handed out several times during the show to the sweaty fans at the front, to prevent any dehydration, something that can happen all to easily with such heat and an hour and a half a frenetic jumping about. From high-pitched pop to roaring metal Aficionados of high-pitched soaring pop gathered in front of the Arches to listen to Asaf Avidan, the Israeli singer known for his distinctive voice. The rasping, high-pitched vocals enraptured the crowd, who enjoyed a great musical experience. Smaller bands played too last night, including Dorset native Merz, who unfolded his mix of electro, folk and world music under the club tent. School is Cool, a Belgian pop band, delivered their joyous and cheeky pop under the Détour. I should also mention the high-octane performance of Mass Hysteria, a French band who combine heavy metal music with hip-hop like vocals. They played with the crowd, inviting people to dance on stage, climbing down to play in the crowd, or initiating a "wall of death" (for people who have never been to a metal concert before, this is basically a moment where the crowd parts facing each other, leaving a huge gap in the middle, and at the start of the next song, hurl themselves at each other in that space). Mass Hysteria Street theatre around the grounds Street theatre isn't only to be found in the Ruche (the Hive), as the artists such as bees collecting their precious pollen, wander about the grounds, collecting bits of laughter and a few smiles wherever they go. Look out for the several troupes who walk the grounds every day, for moments of visual poetry or outrageous comedy. Street performances are all about occupying the space around you, and interacting with passers by. La cie Tonne have a very interesting way of doing this. This couple, inspired by a couple of love songs and animal documentaries on mating, tease each other, courting wherever they go, totally oblivious to the surrounding crowd of slightly bewildered people. Clad only in white underwear, they stay really discreet and silent, weaving their way through the crowd, sometimes hiding behind a tree or climbing on a table. Suddenly, they might be lying on top of each other on a table top in the middle of amused drinkers. Courting in public.... La cie La Passante are slightly more visible, but just as silent. These unsettling women, clad in black and veiled by tent-like umbrellas, walk around the grounds in groups, waltzing around the people in high heels. If you are lucky enough to get invited inside,you will live two or three minutes of intimate poetry, as a lipsticked woman quietly recites you a story in the dark. But try entering without their consent, and you will get pushed away, as they evade contact with people who approach them to brusquely. I myself spent a couple of minutes in a slow dance with one of them, as a sort of introduction, before going under the veil. What a great experience! La Passante, and their intriguing veils You might also meet three boxes with ping-pong like heads walking around the grounds. When they stop, Les frères cartons become live jack-in-the-boxes. These three awkward, monstrous characters, with their terrible haircut and abominable dentition will clumsily try to seduce you, or maybe play a nasty trick on one another. Wandering music A few musical acts also wander the festival, such as Grand-mère indigne, and their energetic brass band, and the all-feminine orchestra “Mlle Orchestra”, who sport a mixture of music and comedy. La Grand-Mère Indigne You can see all of these acts across the grounds all week. Just keep an eye out! The Paléoblog issues a best-of of the previous night each day, here is Tuesday's video.

On Tuesday night a new cinema club launched in Nyon with the aim of showing a variety of international films twice a month at 20:00 on a Monday night throughout the year, at the Capitole cinema in the heart of town. The programme begins on the 10th October and continues through to 26th March 2012. Andrea Bachmann-Helbling, club president spoke to Living in Nyon about the new club and the film choices the club has made to kick off the new season. Committee members of the new cinema club. L to R Tanja Mayr, Manu Zirnheld, Serge Roguet, Sophie Page, Olivier Mayor ( Nyon municipal representative for culture works and environment), Andreas Bachmann-Helbling, club president and Jennifer Siegrist. Andreas - " We know there are lots of film fans here in the town, and Nyon is obviously already firmly on the map with its annual Spring documentary film festival "Visions du Réel" . However, we wanted to give film lovers the opportunity to see high quality films throughout the year, to offer debates after each film, hopefully those debates will continue in the bar downstairs afterwards! We are beginning the season with a silent film called "The"Artist" on the 10th October (see description of this film at the end of this article below). Films from Korea to Sri Lanka to a Coen Brothers film There are six of us on the committee, we have had an interesting time and many discussions choosing the films for the programme, we all have different tastes. Ultimately though we think we have come up with a good variety from around the world to suit everyone. Amongst the choice there is a film from Korea, a film from Switzerland, a Coen brothers film ("The Barber"), and a comedy called "Machan", a film about a Sri Lankan handball team which is a true story about a false team! Films will be shown in the original languages either with voice overs or subtitles in French. English speakers are most welcome to join the club of course, it's not only a good opportunity to see interesting films and meet new people, but also it's a chance to practice and understand the French language a bit more outside of the classroom". Jennifer Siegrist, a member of the programming committee continues: "The other advantage of this club is the possibility to see a style or genre of film that you wouldn't normally see in the mainstream cinema here in Nyon. We have a phrase in French - "A coté de la Plaque" (roughly translated - "off the wall"), some of these films fall into that category but they are all good and interesting films". The club has a website with the full programme of the coming up this season. For 90 chf per year, club members get to see 10 films, they also will have the advantage of a reduced price on tickets on the mainstream films at the cinema (14chf instead of 16chf per ticket, apart from weekends and official holidays). Membership also includes one free ticket to one mainstream film at the cinema and an invitation to an Avant-Première film. Details of membership are on the club's site or you can sign up at the cinema itself on the first screening on the 10th October. See site here Wikipedia entry on the film " The Artist" below. "The Artist" is a romance film directed by Michel Hazanavicius, starring Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo. The story takes place in Hollywood between 1927 and 1931 and focuses on a declining male film star and a rising actress, as silent cinema grows out of fashion and is replaced by the talkies. The film is itself a silent film and in black-and-white. Dujardin won the Best Actor Award at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, where the film premiered. Semaine de la Mobilité - 16th - 22nd September - Try out an electric bike for free tonight! Residents of Nyon may have seen posters around the town advertising the Semaine de la Mobilité. During this week there will be lots of events on offer to encourage the citizens of the town to get out of their cars and to use alternative forms of transport, not only for the benefit of the environment but also for their health! The official opening of the week begins this evening Friday 16th at 18:15 (at la Roulotte, the temporary café on the St Cergue side of the railway station). There will be the chance to try out for free electric bikes, Segways etc, and a solar powered car! For the full programme of events from family walks, conferences on fitness and health, bike rides, and exhibitions linked to the week Click here.

Photo above: Commuters at Nyon railway station. Here's a round up of some of the local news taken from La Côte newspaper, plus a selection of local events coming up in the region. Don't forget there is a Living in Nyon English column published in La Côte newspaper every Friday. It is a light hearted look at living in this area from the viewpoint of an expatriate. News - Wine from Perroy a winner. Demonstration against closure of Novartis on Saturday. Amphitheatre of Nyon stays under covers. CCTV cameras in Nyon. Head coach of Nyon Basket Ball Club resigns.Wine winner Jean Marie Roch from the vineyard "La Vaudoise de Quatre Vents" in Perroy, a village just a few miles from Nyon, has won first prize in the best "chasselas wine" category in "The Grand Prix du Vin Suisse 2011" . There are other winners from La Côte area on the winning list too! No to Novartis There will be a demonstration in the Rive-Est area of Nyon at 10:30 on Saturday 12th November. This is to protest against the announced closure of the Novartis factory in Nyon, with the resulting loss of over 320 jobs for its staff and knock on effect on local businesses. Recent local council decisions The Roman Amphitheatre of Nyon look set to stay under dust covers for the time being as there has yet to be a decision on its future due to budgetary and planning considerations. There will be CCTV cameras installed in the place de la Gare (South and North) and the Rue des Marchandises. Music/Culture For children - Puppet show at the Usine a Gaz (Nyon's official music and cultural venue) "Les Trois Amis" by the "Les Bamboches" theatre group next Wednesday 16th for children aged 4 upwards. Ticket office opens at 14:30 Show at 15:00 For Adults - Also at the Usine Saturday 12th November Music - Bernie Constatin featuring the Mother Rockers Gang (Rock). Sat 19th November Grand Pianoramax Feat Black Cracker CH-USA and Dog Almond (future funk /jazz /spoken pop). Hear the Dog Almond track "What I hide" here See Usine a Gaz for more info and booking and future concerts coming up. Photo above - Dog Almond Culture - Exhibition at the Chateau beginning 15th December through to 10 March 2012 - "Old posters and New porcelain". New acquistions of the chateau;f posters of Nyon from the 1930s and Nyon porcelain. Vernissage the 14th December 17:00-19:00 Sport There has beeen a surprise resignation by Jon Ferguson,the American Head Coach of BBC Nyon (the basket ball club of Nyon). La Côte reports that this his resignation is due to health reasons. Nyon TV Did you know that Nyon has its own TV station called NRTV? Check it out here. The station carries programmes and interviews with local businesses, artists and citizens. The programme " Texto" is useful to watch if you are learning French as it consists of a roving reporter asking local people the same question, you can play the answers back again again until you understand them! Here's a programme from the 21st October. The question was "Do you have any advice as to how to keep warm in winter?" Texto du 21 octobre 2011par nyonregiontv

Tuesday evening in Nyon saw the official launch of the book "Living along Lac Léman". Thankyou so much to all those who came to the Villa Thomas at the COV for the vernissage/launch. Photos above. Happy book fans! The venue in the stunning lake side setting made it the perfect place to launch the book. It also gave readers of this site, La Côte newspaper, and other members of the public a chance to mingle and enjoy a glass of local Swiss wine, along with tasting some British cheeese from the British Cheese Centre of Switzerland. Photo above: the Villa Thomas along the lake side. Note - there will be a jazz concert at the Villa Thomas on Friday 7th Oct see COV for here for full details There were also representatives at the event from the various local festivals (Paléo, Caribana, Visions du Réel etc), from Nyon town council and Nyon tourism giving those there the opportunity to find out more about the three festivals and local issues. Photo above - Checking out the book at the vernissage About the book - The perfect company gift, birthday or Christmas present.Packed with columns articles and photos the book is is a light hearted look at life along the shores of lake Geneva and contains a selection of columns which have been published for the last two years in English every Friday in La Côte newspaper. This weekly column is a conversation is about the people, places and events in Vaud as seen through the eyes of a British expatriate. Photo above: left C. Nelson-Pollard author of "Living along Lac Léman", right Contessa Pinon - editor of La Côte newspaper With observations on unusual Swiss customs and on the peculiarities to be found in both the French and English languages, it also comments on other subjects such as the jargon that estate agents use when advertising houses for sale, the difficulties of making a fondue, or trying to say a telephone number in French. Image above - article from book called "Figuring it out" With other articles on local festivals, the Désalpe and more, and packed with photos that capture the colour and essence of the Léman region, the book makes a perfect gift for someone who has just moved to the area. It will also delight those who have lived here for a while, whether expat of Swiss, in recognising the slightly side quirky side of Swiss life whilst acknowledging the beauty of the Léman area. Image below - Article from book called "A saisir!" (on estate agents' jargon) At just 29 CHF, the book is available to order through this site, just click on "Living in Nyon" book on the top side bar to order. Free delivery in the Nyon, Coppet, Rolle and Prangins area. From Tuesday 11th October, the book will also be for sale at Nyon tourist office Opening hours Monday-Friday 08:30 -12:30/ 13:30 -17:30 Special book signing - The author will be signing copies of the book at Nyon tourist office on Friday November 4th from 16:00- 18:00. An ideal opportunity to pick up a copy and find out about events and winter activities happening in the Nyon and St Cergue region. Photo above and below - Selling the books left to right. Anna Hiller Bedlington, Suzy Nelson-Pollard, Nicola Bedlington. All photos of the vernissage - Catherine Lewis photography see site here

Here is the second in the series of interviews given by local artist Stephanie Fonteyn (see first interview here). In this article Stephanie speaks to Uli Van Neyghem, a German painter living in Céligny. Note: Uli will be holding an "apéro" in her art studio on Friday the 4th of November from 17:00 to 20:00 Address: Route de Trelex 8, in Duillier. This event is a shared event with Uli, Stephanie and artist Simone Monney. Stephanie helps to run these collaborative art workshops between artists. The apéro is an opportunity to have a drink, soak up an arty atmosphère in an artists studio et in a bohemian style loft! Over to Stephanie. Capturing atmospheric scenes - Uli Van Neyghem Uli van Neyghem is a charming German painter who lives in a converted farmhouse in Céligny beautifully decorated with her paintings. Her art studio is a luminous bohemian loft based in Duillier. Her father and aunt are both painters and she grew up surrounded by her father’s paintings. Uli is a self-taught artist, with a passion for interior decoration and creating ambiances. Her paintings capture calming and atmospheric scenes that would look beautiful in both traditional and modern homes. Living in Nyon: “When did you first discover your artistic talents?” Uli: “ I was always creative and painting. When I was fifteen, I produced my first real painting on canvas to decorate my bedroom. It was inspired by Gauguin”. LIN: “When did you decide to become an artist?” UvN: “It happened gradually. After university, I was working for an international company for 15 years. When my children were born I had my own translation business for six years based in Germany and Switzerland. I had always painted for my own walls. When I was living in Luxembourg, a neighbour asked if I could paint something for their home. After that, it was a snow ball effect; neighbours, friends and expats in the area were buying and commissioning still life’s and scenes from Luxembourg as a special souvenir of their time in the country.” LIN: “Describe a real life situation that inspired you?” UvN: “I am very much inspired by the beauty in the little things. The beauty that can be found in everyday life, like the light catching on the lemons on the kitchen counter when I get home from shopping, or the light reflecting on the water when the boats are moored for winter. It’s like the promise of the summer to come. I love to learn and research Swiss customs and reflect them in my art. It is a way for me to paint my new home country (Switzerland) and make me feel at home, since I did not grow up here. My paintings inspired by Switzerland help me to get to know and feel close to the place. We are very happy to be based here permanently. I am also inspired when I travel on vacation and have painted typical French scenes such as the “Boulanger”, “Kiss in Paris” and “Jeu de boules”. LIN: “I hear you paint a lot of commissions, can you tell me about this process?” UvN: “I work with customers who like my style and like the idea to have a personalized painting that matches their tastes in colour, size and topic. Using my passion for interior decoration, I can help guide my clients through the creative process of creating a personalised painting for their home.” LIN: “Can you give me some examples of commissioned paintings you have created?” UvN: “Yes. There was a couple that asked for a painting of Venice because he proposed to her there. The painting is a visual memento of this special event. Other customers are enthusiastic about the lake and sailing and ask me to reflect their passion in their in paintings. Sometimes people leaving Geneva ask for a special memento of their time living here and have commissioned paintings of the “Jet d'’eau”. LIN: “Can you explain your technique?” UvN: “If I am creating an atmosphere painting or interior decoration, I always look for harmony and peacefulness. To achieve this, I use a carefully chosen palette of colours for each project. I started using acrylics because it was practical when I had small children in the house. Now I appreciate them because I love their versatility, easiness to blend subtle nuances, matte effect and they dry quickly. Since 2010, I have been using collage in combination with acrylic (a mixed media approach). I start out with acrylic, and then I partially collage the painting. I love this technique, as it obliges the observer to take a step close, so that their eye passes slowly over the canvas to see all the details. It also gives me the opportunity to hide small messages and creates interesting structures. I use any material I find from special paper, tissue paper, music sheets, poetry book pages, magazines, sewing thread, hand made paper, bitumen, pastes and structure gels. After the collage is finished, I blend in more acrylic to unify all the elements. (Photo 3 Air et lumiere in collage) LIN: “What would be your dream project?” UvN: “Obtain and offer to create art work for a hotel and restaurant near the lake or mountains. Create a poster for one of the Reine des Alpes fights or Bol d’Or event. Create a wine label for a great bottle of regional wine; Dole, Gamay or Pinot Noir. Permanent exhibition in a castle. Walk a client through the interior decoration process including some of my paintings for the family home.” LIN: “You have exhibited at fairs such as UniCrea and Comptoir Suisse, what is that like?” UvN: “What I like is the compassion between the artists. The beauty of these events is getting to know the people, sharing the passion about creating no matter which field (painting, jewellery, and sculpture). It also encourages encounters with people who would not necessarily enter an art gallery and we have interesting discussions about art and what speaks to them, and how my artwork has touched them. I often perform live demonstrations, which enables the visitors to watch the creative process instead of just seeing the end result being exhibited. This is a great opportunity for the public ask questions which are triggered public to ask questions that are triggered by viewing the demonstration. This exchange opens up relationships with people in a way that they visit our art studio in Duillier for private aperitifs which usually leads to them commissioning or buying a piece of art.”