If you want to keep cool in the heat at Paléo you could jump in the water of the fountain (near the very entrance to the festival grounds), or you could just simply keep yourself hydrated. There are various places when you can fill water bottles up at Paléo, one of these is not far from the main entrance on the road to the buses and trains, and the other is near the fountains itself. Look out for the "palé eau" signs. Note: There is also potable water in the taps in the toilets Photo above - keeping cool with a fan... at the "Ski Bar". One of the other cool things about Paléo is the possibility of dipping in and out of completely contrasting concerts and being able to check out bands, some that you may have never have heard of before. Tuesday night was a good case in point. At 20:00 you could first catch Swiss band from Zurich, Klaus Johan Grobe playing the Club tent. The trio sang in German, and played to a moderately sized crowd with synthesisers, bass and drums. Their music is labelled rather interestingly as "Romantik Neo Kraut", those more mature audience members who recall some of the music from the 60s' and 70's will have been transported back to those times during this concert. The band themself have toured many European festivals including the Liverpool International Festival of Psychedelia. Photos below - Klaus Johan Grobe The Script playing on the main stage at 21:00 attracted a youngish crowd including many children, dancing and jumping up and down on their parents' shoulders. A complete contrast was the raucous rock of Belgian group Triggerfinger playing in the Detour tent also at 21:00 Despite the heat in and outside the tent, their playing and energy was intense and loud as they thrashed out music which got the crowd rocking, whooping and dancing. Photos below Triggerfinger - All photos - above and below C.Nelson-Pollard

The Morges Literary festival gets bigger and better each year and this year there is a good selection of English speaking authors on the line up either speaking individually about their work, or taking part in panel sessions and debates with other authors. Debates take place at the festival along the lakeside, in the old town or on the CGN ferry boats which cruise up and down the lake. For the full programme (in English and French) click here Authors on the line up this year include the following: Louis de Bernières, Jonathan Coe, Jenny Colgan, Paul Lynch, Elif Shafak, Christos Tsiolkas, Esther Freud and Amanda Hodgkinson. Journée de la Smart Attitude Also on Sunday 6th September, at the Musée du Leman in Nyon it's "Journée de la Smart Attitude". Everything you need to know (in French) about your mobile phone, repairs, etc. Info on "big data" and the telephone of tomorrow. Hints and tips on how to keep your mobile phone for longer. Click here for more info

After two days of heatwave, the whole festival was anticipating the spell of cooler and wetter weather forecast for Wednesday. In true Paléo spirit, people geared up with wellies and raincoats, never letting anything as insignificant as a storm or a sea of mud getting in the way of the concerts. The clouds had been gradually building up, and it was about quarter past six when the downpour started, a few minutes into Arthur H's concert. I had luckily relocated to the press service, where an apéritif celebrating 40 years of collaboration between Belgian culture and the festival was organised. Daniel Rossellat said a few words about the rain, mentioning the unpredictability of the weather- apparently the person in charge of the weather forecast for the festival had got soaked by the sudden downpour, showing just how hard it is to be totally accurate! Over one hundred artists and bands from Belgium have played over the years at Paléo, including Arno this year, and last year's memorable Stromae. Ties between different French-speaking festivals are important, and the different collaborations were celebrated with a beer specially brewed for the occasion! The weather did manage to create a bit of chaos on the grounds, as Angus and Julia Stone's concert was delayed by nearly 40 minutes for technical reasons. There's something quite magical to the sight of all the people gradually flocking to the main stage as the brother and sister struck the first chords on their guitars, everyone forgoing whatever shelter they had found to go and enjoy the concert - obviously the biggest fans had been hanging around under the rain to make sure they got the best view of the concert. From heavier guitar pieces to lighter pop-y songs with a catchy tune on the keyboards, the Stones did their thing, although they weren't super chatty (at least at the beginning of their show!) The opposite can be said of Passenger, whose concert at Les Arches was delayed because of the delays on the main stage. He came on stage apologising about the delay and thanking everybody for waiting in the rain for his concert, starting in a really nice way an hour of beautiful acoustic songs interspersed with jokes to the audience (about how his life had become hell since Frozen came out and everybody now mistakes his hit song "Let her go" with "Let it go") and encouraging people to sing along with him ("It doesn't have to be right, it just has to be loud, and if you don't know the words, then just invent them as you go along!"). Celebrating "the most colourful audience" he'd ever seen, and praising the way everybody had come prepared with raincoats and umbrellas - in comparison to the UK where it rains all the time and nobody ever does anything about it- he made the wait in the rain and the mud more than worthwhile as he enchanted the crowd with his delicately crafted songs, singing fragments of people's lives and their stories, their joys and pains. Managing to push the crowd into a frenzy on gleefully vengeful songs like "I hate", with everyone joining in for the chorus with great gusto, to getting absolute silence as he asked the crowd to not utter a sound as he performed one of his newest songs, "which means a lot to me at the moment"- a beautiful and calm love song, whose strength was amplified by the magic silence of thousands of people in raincoats, hypnotised by a man alone on the stage with his guitar. In my opinion, one of the best concerts of this festival. The evening continued with Mongolian rock-stars Hanggai, who mix traditional polyphonic singing with their own mix of heavy rock and traditional tunes. The main singer had the utmost class with his aviator sunglasses, long hair and chain hanging on his trousers. Their music was catchy and full of energy, and it was easy to imagine yourself riding a horse (or a big motorbike, a Royal Enfield or the like!) through the Mongolian steppe. The main attraction of the evening was obviously Sting, who once again enchanted the crowd with his (bearded!) performance. With a perfect mix of newer material and all the old favourites (the concert ended with Roxanne and Every Breath You Take), Sting gave off the feeling that he was truly enjoying himself on stage. With the knack of surrounding himself with some of the best musicians you can find, and giving them a lot of room to impress the crowd with their talent, Sting not only delivered a enjoyable pop concert, but also some very high quality music.

Saturday night at Paléo was another night for music nostalgia with Joan Baez, Patti Smith and Robert Plant part of the line up. Despite the early time slot of 19:00, Joan Baez attracted a large crowd in front of the main stage and they were treated to a mixture of classic songs from her own repertoire and from other artists. She sang songs by Bob Dylan, Kris Kristofferson, she addressed the crowd in French, sang in French and in Spanish, and her clear voice rang out across the grounds. She later went on to duet with Patti Smith on the the Arches stage. Above - Joan Baez in concert However, Paléo is not just about bringing the big, well known names to the L'Asse grounds, it also encourages new and upcoming artists and in particular, it likes to showcase Swiss artists. Tiziano Zandonella alias "Yellowteeth" (originally from Sion), played the club tent with a mixture of folk, blues and country and a slightly melancholic sound to an appreciative audience. An artist to watch out for. A complete contrast over in the Detour tent was the rap and freestyle of 20 year old French star Sianna, who got the tent jumping early on in her set. Robert Plant is an established name and part of the Rock and Roll hall of fame yet is still experimenting with new music, and like Joan Baez before him he attracted a massive crowd with his band the Sensational Space Shifters in front of the Grande Scène. He gave an eclectic set from blues to rock, including the sound of the riti, a one stringed fiddle from the Gambia played by artist Juldeh Camara. Scenes below from the Paléo grounds, a festival goer sketching the Joan Baez concert, the street theatre musicians in the sunflower field, a mechanical bird moving around the crowd and surprising some of them! Also, away from the main stages if you want to see and hear a radio star in his own country broadcasting live, head off to the area where "Dynacord" (the most listened to presenter on Radio Ndeke Luka Radio in the Central African Republic), will be broadcasting live from the Fondation Hirondelle Tent at Paléo. This association is a Swiss non-governmental organization of journalists and humanitarian aid professionals which since 1995 has been creating or supporting independent, civic-minded news media and radio stations in conflict, post-conflict and crisis zones. The tent can be found amongst the other NGO associations tents near the Forum (see map here) Finally, if you haven't got tickets for tonight's Paléo and maybe just want to experience a bit of the atmosphere and watch the fireworks, why not head off to the Pl'Asse? It's a halfway house between the festival proper and the campsite, and is a free festive area open to the public every day. In addition to craft and food stalls, there are a variety of forms of entertainment on site and it is open from 11:00. to 04:00 the following morning. If you fancy a cup of tea and some Welsh cakes while you are up there, check out stand number 832 ! All photos above and below - C Nelson-Pollard

The Village du Monde, situated in the upper left corner of the grounds, is the area dedicated each year to world music. The concept is to invite a different area of the world to each festival, this year's guest of honour being the Far-East. The Dôme hosts concerts by bands exploring the traditions of their culture, as well as expressing their contemporary identity. It is always a great place to discover smaller bands and artists who are usually very talented, and often at the meeting-point of avant-garde and tradition. Tuesday night saw a succession of Mongolian Folk/Rock complete with polyphonic throat singing (Tulegur), Korean Percussions (Noreum Machi) and Chinese Rock mixed with traditional songs (Second Hand Rose). Noreum Machi are actually playing again on Wednesday, and are worth the walk up to the Dôme. But the Village du Monde isn't just about the music. The idea is create an area with its own visual identity, celebrating the far east through the decorations and the food stalls. If you want to eat a pot of Thai noodles with a delicious coconut sauce, while sitting on the edge of a beautiful Zen garden, or eating Sushis while walking under Japanese arches, this is the place to come to. The decoration team have done a great job decorating the Village du Monde - as they do every year- and it has a very serene feel to it. The Village du Monde is completed by a second tiny stage, with beautiful golden decorations, where some of the bands playing at the Dôme come and do smaller intimate showcases. It's the perfect way of enjoying a band you loved in a different setting, or catching up on one you missed. There are also other animations on such as dancing and DJs. The programme for this stage, called L'Escale, can be found here. As I mentioned above, the many food stalls offer a culinary adventure across Thailand, Tibet, Malaysia, Korea, Japan and more. The Restaurant, situated haflway down the left side of the stalls is the perfect place to eat in a calmer atmosphere, and includes traditional Japanese low tables, where people sit cross-legged on Tatamis to eat. You can book a table and find more information here. If you're looking for vegetarian or vegan food, quite a few stalls do a vegetarian dish, including Owen's noodles (just next to the delicious ice-creams of Le Bougainvillier). You get to choose between 6 different sauces, and it is also gluten free. Another great place is Tashi, where you can eat delicious Momos, Tibetan dumplings and Thukpa, a soup that takes me back to my travels in Ladakh. They have an incredibly spicy sauce you can add on, which is worth the try! If you're looking for something to sooth your parched throat, head right down to Le Palmier. This bar, located right at the back of the Village du Monde, not only serves Cocktails and Granitas, but will be giving all of the profits to charity. You can also try taking part in a karaoke whilst cycling or pumping weights, something of a fad in Asia apparently. Lots of great fun guaranteed! Meanwhile, elsewhere on the grounds Let's not forget the concerts which took place last night! A special mention to Orchestre Tout Puissant Marcel Duchamp, who played early in the evening at Le Detour. Not only do this Swiss band have an amazing name, their music is wacky and melodic, the combination of many different instruments. They play with style and energy, and had every one under the tent grooving pretty fast. It would be hard not to mention this year's most expensive band, Kings of Leon. They apparently managed to bring even more lorries than Robbie Williams, (six!), and provided their own security members in front of the stage. Used to playing in huge stadiums in the States, they weren't daunted by the massive crowd that had gathered to see them play their hits. Basically all of Paléo was in front of the main stage, leaving the rest of the grounds empty and calm. Playing under a huge screen that mixed visual animations and views of the crowd and the musicians, they delivered their concert without really engaging with the crowd. Despite the singer telling the crowd that "we don't have many concerts this year so we're going to try and have as much fun as we can", the Kings of Tennesse didn't seem to be fooling around on stage that much. On an other scale, Alo Wala, the reunion of Chicago-born rapper Shivani Ahlowalia and Danish based Tropical Bass pioneers Copia Doble Systema, who played under the Club Tent, had a totally different attitude to the crowd. Her frenetic flow and the heavy bass delivered by the group had everyone one moving with passion and fire. She frequently interacted with the crowd, making them shout and explaining what a great first time in Switzerland she was having. You'll be reading more about her as I managed to catch up with her before the concert and ask her a few questions for an article which will be up on the site in a couple of days. On a last note, if you are coming to the festival tonight- Wednesday- a storm has been announced, so come prepared!

Although Paléo is now well and truly over (although there were still some tents left in the camp site a few days ago!) it doesn't mean it's the end of the festival season in Nyon and the surrounding area. There are still many events happening locally in August and early September. See below. Note: Living in Nyon will now be taking a short summer break. The next post will be the week beginning the 24th August. There will be no Living in Nyon column in La Côte newspaper on the 13th August, the next column will be published on the 20th August. This photo below of a sign outside a bakery in the village of Le Vaud was taken by a reader last year! Events in August Arts festival On the 8th August the F.A.R festival, the final of the five official festivals begins in Nyon and ends on the 22nd August. F.A.R is the acronym for Festival of Living Arts and there is a full programme of arts and theatre events on at the festival with invited artists from many countries. Click here for further info Rock festival in Vineyards The eleventh edition of the Jval rock music festival will also take place from the 27th-29th August in the vineyards near Begnins. This is a lovely spot for a small music festival, bands on the line up include Pulled Apart by Horses, a rock band from Leeds in the UK and Balthasar from Belgium (see video below). Jval programme here Exotic butterflies to see in Gland Schilliger garden centre has installed a temporary, exotic greenhouse at its shop in Gland. There lots of pretty and exotic butterflies to see in this greenhouse, fun for children and adults alike! Note this exhibition only lasts until the 15th August Free Open Air concerts in Rolle There will be free open concerts (plus cocktails and dancing!) in Rolle on the 21st and 22nd August. Note these concerts are aimed particularly at the anglophone audience ie: you don't not have to understand French to attend them Classical Music in Tannay On the 22nd, 23rd, 27th 28th 29th and 30th August there will be a series of classical musical concerts in the grounds of the Chateau de Tannay. Listen to Mozart, Mendelssohn and much more in this stunning setting. Programme hereFree hikes on the Salève Free hikes on the Salève. Every Sunday a free hike is organised by an excursion leader of the Association Genevoise des Amis du Saleve (AGAS) The hike goes ahead in all weather. The hike is at a gradient of 800 metres with 3 hour hike-up. Meeting at 10:00 at the terminus of bus No 8 at Veyrier-Douane (not at Veyrier-Tournettes, 100 metres from the border direction Switzerland, departure at 10h05 sharp). No prior registration necessary. Depending on the route chosen, you will expect a 5 to 8 hours hike. Departure of the hike from the meeting point. Hiking boots (crampons in winter, hat and solar protection lotion in summer), raincoat or umbrella, passport, money, picnic and something to drink as well as good health are indispensable. Click here for further info Dates for your diary - Events in September English Authors in Morges The "Livres sur les Quais" in Morges from the 4th-6th September is a lakeside book festival, there are authors' cruises, debates, writing workshops and more. Invited authors for the English programme include Louis de Bernières, Jonathan Coe, Jenny Colgan, Paul Lynch, Elif Shafak, Christos Tsiolkas, Esther Freud and Amanda Hodgkinson. Full details click hereJazz in Prangins Jazz au Peuple is a series of jazz concerts which will take place in the village of Prangins on the 18th -19th September. "The Meal" in Nyon - Eating locally, acting globally On September 19th "The Meal" comes to Nyon! The aim of the meal is to gather a large number of people in many places across the planet on one day to eat together and to support rural farmers. Take a look at where The Meal took place last year! "The Meal" will be held in Place due Château in Nyon. More details coming upon this site. In the meantime checkout the Meal's Facebook group

There is always a particular flavour to the moment the gates open on the first day of the festival. The fact that this year marks the 40th edition of Paléo made it an even more important moment, and the people milling behind the gates, waiting for them to open felt like they were part of some historic moment. Coming back on to the grounds for the first time after a whole year, a bit like greeting an old friend, curious of what has changed, or not, glancing over the dry grass and then going off to find some shade and a beer to cool down. Those are an important part of the year for many a person in the region, for who - as you can hear Rossellat saying in an archive from the 80's or 90's- Paléo is a fixed event as surely as Easter or Christmas. So there they were, the true, hardcore fans, who had come up more than an hour before the first concert would start, simply to be one of the first people to tread on the grounds. First of the festival-goers, that is, for a couple hundred volunteers have been busy building this ephemeral city over the past few weeks, and most of the nearly 5000 volunteers who work here during the week had already started working by then. Nevertheless, it was with gusto that the people waiting at the gates took up the traditional count-down before surging towards the ticket-controllers. Some of these were apparently Robbie Williams fans (you can read more about his concert in the other Living In Nyon review for last night here on the site), so dedicated that they went straight to the main stage and braved the very hot weather for the next five or six hours! When you're a fan, you don't count, and it would have been indeed hard to count the number of people who gathered to watch his concert later on in the evening. Also hard to imagine the amount of bruising those pour souls must have undergone during the Caravan Palace concert, earlier in the evening on the main stage (in this reviewer's humble opinion, a concert which had the punch to kick-off this 40th festival with way more style and energy than Mr. Williams). Indeed, the crowd right in front of the stage partook in some pretty violent pogoing. But the very very first audience to the very first concert of this year's festival where the people who had found their way to La Ruche, the area dedicated to street theatre, situated at the very far end of the festival, after the Quartier des Alpes (you know, the area that smells very strongly of cheese). La Comédie Musicale Improvisée de Rue (the improvised musical, street version) showed of their talent for improvising a 20-minute musical based on an idea from the audience. This is obviously a show for a French-speaking audience, but if your French is good enough, make sure you don't miss them, as their capacity of improvising songs that actually feel like they came from a musical, as well as their hilarious sense of humour makes for a great start to the day (they perform each day at about 17:30, and obviously do a completely new show each time!) Also at La Ruche, the Cie Lucamoros present a breathtakingly beautiful show of music and live-painting. Six musician/painters on a piece of scaffolding paint on big Plexiglas boards to the sound of music (accordion, cello, saxophone) and poetry in different languages. Works of art appear magically under your eyes, transforming as they play with the paint, sometimes even projecting animated images over the paintings. A poetic and fragile experience worth the while, like a breath of fresh air and calm in the midst of the glaring sun and blaring music. Backtracking a bit, the first "real" concert was also the first of this band's goodbye tour. Explosion de Caca, the very delicately named band (I won't be translating that) with their very subtle and delicate music had prepared a truly memorable show, a perfect start to the festival and to their last tour. This band, which has developed quite a cult reputation over their existence (they have played on and off for over 17 years) are famous for their absurd costumes and noisy covers of themes from children's television shows. Their concert included two barbers giving free hair-cuts to whoever was brave enough to climb onto the stage (special mention to the young metal fan who had the guts to have his long black hair cut right off!), parkour athletes doing some pretty impressive tricks including a sideways somersault from the stage into the middle of the crowd, kids dressed as princesses and superheroes with water-pistols and last but not least, the legendary Henri Des. For those who do not know who Henri Des is, he is the most famous children's singer, with all of his songs known off by heart by any kid who grew up in the past 30 years. He is also the father of one of the two band members. He came on stage to the delight of the crowd for a very noisy version of "La petite Charlotte" one of his biggest hits. A concert bringing together children favourites, rather weird and edgy behaviour, people doing crazy things and a lot of energy: isn't that a perfect summary of Paléo Festival? Monday night also featured some really top-class music, from Franco-Japanese flautist and singer Maia Barouh, and her mix of electro-pop and traditional ritualistic music under the Dôme (the best place to discover unknown but very talented musicians) to Too Many Zooz and their raunchy balkan-beat flavoured jazz. The trio, who first stared playing in the New York metro, create a mix of jazz and music that sounds like techno but using only a trumpet, a bass saxophone and a drum-kit. A mix of virtuoso performance and explosive beats. The night ended with Gramatik who turned the Arches into a huge open-air club- as has become the tradition at Paléo- with their special brand of electro mixed with live music. From swing to dubstep, they got everybody shaking their bodies in rhythm under the starry night sky. All in all, a perfect start to the week, that can only leave us wanting for more, as we prepare to continue exploring the jungle of music, people, heat and food that is Paléo Festival.

A Very Happy Swiss National Day and Happy Yorkshire Day to all Yorkshire readers ! Click here to find out details of what's happening today in Nyon on this Swiss national holiday. Free Tour of new Nyon hotel The new Base Nyon apart/hotel (very close to the railway station) is due to open in Autumn in Nyon, and the scaffolding has started to come down off the building. More details about this hotel, its on-site restaurant and the hotel's facilities coming up later on this site. A free tour of this new hotel is offered to the first 10 readers that "like" the Facebook page of the hotel itself. The tour will take place on the 16th September at 17:30 and will be a sneak preview of the hotel before it officially opens. Readers who have won a place on the tour will be contacted by Base Nyon directly.

This weekend it's the Fête des Pirates in Nyon, and this year, sees the "Noble Confrérie of Pirates of the Rive" (a local charitable association) celebrate their 50th anniversary. This association organises events throughout the year, and aims to maintain local traditions along the lakeside. Readers may have seen the pirates dresssed in stripey tops and neckerchiefs around the town. This weekend (Fri 21st, Sat 22nd and Sunday 23rd of August), the pirates will be offering free boat rides on the lake on the Nyolue boat on Saturday and Sunday, there will be food stands open from 17:00 on Friday, and from 10:00 on Saturday and Sunday. There will be live music, a mini regatta challenge amongst the pirates and more. Also this week-end, there will be a two day Brocante fair along the lake. This fair differs slightly from the monthly one day marché aux puces (flea market) in Nyon. The Brocante invites over 80 sellers of high quality goods to the lakeside to sell their wares over a two day period.

Here is an eclectic mix of news and events coming up in the Nyon area and further afield. There will be a "Vernissage" at the Roulotte (the converted railway carriage behind the railway station) tonight,Thursday the 27th August at 18:00 featuring the artwork of Jean Claude-Bordier. The vernissage will then be followed by a Blue Grass concert by the band "Crazy Pony". Nyon Regional TV is back on air! After a tricky few months for NRTV as its future was at stake, Nyon Région Télévision (the local TV station) is now back on air and will make its first broadcast tonight Thursday 27th at 18:00. More info on the station coming up later on this site. La Côte's English Column A reminder to readers that the "Living in Nyon" column continues to be published in English in La Côte newspaper every Thursday. The column is a light-hearted look at living in the area from the view of a British expatriate. Castle Wine Cellar Now Open The atmospheric wine cellar of Nyon castle has now re-opened for a new season and it will begin a season of jazz apéros and "raclettes a gogo" in the coming autumn and winter months. Note: this "cave is also available for rent for private groups and events. The Parenthèse (Nyon's underground music venue) has released its music programme for the new season featuring bands from Switzerland, the U.S.A the U.K and more - Click here for the programme Dates for your diary Elevator Pitches at Brits in Business Brits in Business are holding a series of 5 minute elevator pitches on the 8th September at the British Government Offices in Geneva from 18:00 to 20:00. Brits in Business is an informal networking group where individuals help each other to generate business opportunities. It focuses on the British entrepreneur, but is open to all Anglophones in business. Their evening events include elevator pitches, speed-networking, they also invite guest speakers to share their experiences. Click here for more info Nyon's outdoor pool closes on the 8th September - Clinique la Lignière's indoor pool open all year round Nyon's outdoor pool is due to close for the season on the 8th September, however this doesn't mean you can't continue swimming in a lovely setting in the autumn and winter months, as the indoor pool at Clinique La Lignière (just past Gland), remains open all year round. The centre also also holds Acqua Gym classes, Swimming lessons, Jazz exercise, Zumba circuit training and lots more. Click here for info Addams Family spotted in Carouge! Family entertainment The Really Youthful Group section of the Geneva Amateur Operatic Society will perform "The Addams Family" at the Casino Theatre in Carouge on Friday 28th, Saturday 29th, Sunday 30th August. Synopsis below (by GAOS) The musical combines the twisted, macabre and just plain weird with charm, wit and enchantment. Wednesday Addams, the ultimate princess of darkness, has grown up and fallen in love with a sweet, smart, “normal” young man from a respectable family. The Addams family hosts a dinner for Wednesday’s new boyfriend and his parents. Wednesday instructs her family to act normal, but from the moment Lurch ushers the guests into the mansion, Gomez, Morticia, Pugsley, Uncle Fester and Grandmama fail to meet the challenge — with hilarious results. Chaos ensues and Uncle Fester, trying to be helpful, instructs the Ancestors to create a sudden, terrible storm, trapping everyone in the mansion for the night — a night that will change the family forever. The Addams Family by the GAOS Youth Group is a send-up of the traditional horror-story genre — perfect for kids of all ages. For tickets - click here Meet and Mingle Event on September 3rd on board the Henry Dunant Boat Meet new people and/or bring friends to a Meet & Mingle evening on the lake organised by Léman Events Departure from Lausanne-Ouchy at 18:10 and return at 20:20 with the possibility to stay on board until 21:00. *The special price of CHF 20 includes: 1st class cruise, 2 drinks (range of beers, wine or alcohol free) and snacks. More details - click here How to Succeed in Swiss Politics with an accent! BPW, the Business and Professional Women Network will be holding an informative presentation on Tuesday, September 8 th , 2015. Details below

Insurance Questions? It's that time of year when readers are looking to renew their insurance policies for health, household or financial products. There are two insurance companies right in the heart of Nyon and both of them have English speaking representatives that can answer your questions on insurance. Bertrand Jean Daemers from Generali Insurance specialises in helping clients with financial products, mortgages, household and car insurance. He works out of the Nyon branch of Generali and is available for private consultations. He can be contacted via email bertrandjean.daemers@generali.com or give him a call on Tel 078 638 9806. The Generali building can be found not far from the Place du Temps car park and the railway station at Avenue Perdtemps 23. Isabelle Tenaille from CSS insurance specialises in helping clients with their health insurance questions for both individuals and families and through every stage of life. The CSS office can be found in Rue de la Gare 18 (entrance door next to the Brasseurs pub) Isabelle can be contacted isabelle.tenaille@css.ch or you can call her on 079 230 2468

Once a year Uniglobal Union hold a big debate in the centre of Nyon under the headline "Et Maintenant?/ And Now?" These debates are free and open to the public and have covered a wide range of subjects over the years; from discussing the themes of liberty and security, to the consequences of fast growth in the region, to a debate with young people . The subjects discussed are usually of interest to the local population and this year is no exception as the debate this year is entitled "Global Economy/ Local Economy". The discussion will be on the challenges that local businesses face in the modern global economy. With the changes in the buying habits of modern consumers, how can small businesses cope, how can a town attract a variety of retail outlets and how can shops and businesses create customer loyalty? What can the local towns in this area do to encourage more footfall? Living in Nyon will be at this debate, if you have a question or a suggestion on the subject that you would like to put to the round table discussion, feel free to send it to info@livinginnyon.com and if possible, we will ask the question or put forward the suggestion on your behalf. If you would like to attend the debate in person, it will take place on Thursday October 1st from 19:00 - 22:00 at the Uniglobal Union building. See here