Throughout the year Living in Nyon receives many local retail questions and particularly in December on where to by a turkey for Christmas. Most large supermarkets and the Manor supermarket in Chavanne centre sell turkeys (turkey/une dinde in French), however, Living in Nyon's favourite place to shop is the Marc Deblue  butcher in the centre of Nyon. Their meats and products are always of excellent locally sourced quality, they sell lard grillé too, (smoked bacon) which is always a hit with its British customers. Plus, the staff in this shop and the owner of course are very friendly! See a review here on Yelp by a customer from Austin, Texas. The shop itself has been hidden away somewhat recently whilst there has been construction of the new Mcdonalds extension next door,  but they have always been open for business, so give them a try!  If you want to buy a turkey, you need to order it  in advance, just decide how many kilos you want , leave your name and it should be ready to pick up on the day you want. Address: Rue de la Gare 22, 1260 Nyon.  Téléphone :0 22 361 28 04 Friendly Pierre in the Deblue butcher Late night shopping in Nyon and Sunday opening There will be two late night (nocturnes) shopping days in Nyon over the Christmas period, on Friday 20th and Monday 23rd December, the shops will be open on those days until 22:00. On Sunday 22nd December, local family run shops will be open in Nyon from 10:00 to 18:00

Every two years, the IWCN (International Women's Club of Nyon) holds a big bazaar in the centre of Nyon and the next one will be on Saturday 25th October from 10:00 -16:00.  The proceeds of this bazaar go to both local and international charities. The bazaar itself is a great opportunity to buy second hand English books, both non-fiction and fiction .  There will be stalls galore at the bazaar selling home made baking and Christmas decorations,  second hand sports gear, toys and games, jewellery, accessories and more. There will be a  brocante, tombola , a chance to have a cuppa or a bite to eat at the "Bistro" on the day. Bring the children too, it's a fun family day out and entry is free!  If you have any questions about the bazaar, contact Kay Bond: bond.kay@gmail.com Not only is this a good chance to support local charities, but a chance to meet some new faces too!

Photo above - Parents waiting for their children to pass by in the Nyon "end of school" year parade. A question that often gets asked on this site is "How do working parents manage the long free lunch hours that children get in local schools?" Photo above - Children in the end of school year parade.  Living in Nyon posed this question to Michelle who runs the site called "Moms in Vaud". This site includes some very useful articles for parents including; " Car seats in Switzerland", "Water Safety", reviews of  parenting magazines, links to other sites, babysitting swopping services, moms' nights out etc .   Check it out here  .   We also asked Rowan, a mother who has children in the local school system. They both gave these helpful answers. Michelle says;   "Not all public schools in the area have a cafeteria/lunch club and even those who do, availability of places is based on if one/both parents work, etc.  This means the child might get a place one day a week, but still have to figure out the other three, or whatever.  Parents who aren't available at lunch (and whose schools don't have cafeteria or clubs are full) and can't send kids to family/friends use a lunchtime "maman de jour", which you can apply for through the reseau des enfants de Nyon (for Nyon region) and for the other reseaux elsewhere (Rolle, Terre Sainte, etc.). Most private schools (Montessori, La Cote, La Chat, GES, CDL, Swedish School, etc.) include lunch in their daily programmes, but these schools are usually wait-listed by this time of year ( June) as sign-ups are normally by March/April for placement in September. Each public school is different.  So really, it's important if   a parent wants to go the public school route to find a place to live to be able to register with the school and if you want to go private, to get the child's name in at all the private schools in the area".  Michelle suggests that readers with similar questions join the site Moms-in-Vaud and they pose family parenting questions there in order to get responses from parents from the whole area. Rowan says; "Primary school hours in Nyon run from 8:30 to 12:00 then 13:30 to 15:05, Mon-Fri for older children (1st year Primary onwards) except for Wednesdays which are mornings until 11:00 or 12:00 depending on the child's timetable. Children in first year infants (age 4 - called CIN1) attend school in the morning only, and not at all on Wednesdays. Children in second year infants (age 5-6 - CIN2) have school in the mornings and afternoons, but again, not at all on Wednesdays.   Unlike many Swiss towns, Nyon has a system to support families with children aged 0-10, where both parents are working, called the Fondation pour l'accueil de jour des enfants. There's more information on this on the Nyon town website - here .  They co-ordinate nursery places for the very young, child-minder services and 'parascolaire' around-school support. For a child at infant or primary school, this means that it's possible to arrange to drop them off before work, often from 07:30, have them picked up at midday and given a healthy hot lunch and supervision for their homework, then be picked up again after school, and looked after until 17:00 or later. Fees are means-tested according to income, but places are limited and in high demand. And once again, provision depends on where you choose to live". Living in Nyon also says;  "Don't forget to get a copy of "Know it all Passport" (link  on the side bar of this site). The book is the original comprehensive guide in English for parents and is packed with information on schools, family, shopping etc. It also has a section called "Day care explained" and a section called "Au Pair oh where?" on finding au pair and it explains the duties of an au pair according to Swiss law.

Looking for something to do next week? Here are a few things going on in the area over the next ten days. Cinema Both Cinéma Capitole in Nyon and Cinéma Rex in Aubonne offer special English speaking screenings. The next English films you can go and see in these two cinemas are: Cinema Rex, Aubonne: - 3D Monday 28 th October, 20:30 With Sandra Bullock, George Clooney You can watch the trailer here . Cinéma Capitole, Nyon Monday 21 st October, 20:30 With Naomi Watts Watch the trailer Thursday, Friday, Monday, Tuesday, 18:00 With Cate Blanchett  Watch the trailer Music From Schubert's Lieder in Gland on the 24 th to metal and pop rock this weekend at the Usine à Gaz with the 6 th edition of Nyon's On Fire , but also Fado in Bonmont abbey and the traditional Thursday night Jazz apéro under the Chateau in Nyon, the music offer in the area will please everyone's tastes. Thursday 24 th October, 17:00, Théâtre de Grand Champ, Gland : Schubert's Lieder performed by the Atelier à Coeur Joie. Friday 25 th , Saturday 26 th , Usine à Gaz, Nyon : For the sixth year running Heimathome , an association which promotes alternative music from the area, is organising Nyon's On Fire at the Usine à Gaz. After the success of the last few years, and a 100% Swiss headline, they have decided to tackle larger game this year. Friday night will be aimed at metal and hardcore lovers, whilst Saturday night will see the venue resonate with the electro-pop tunes of We Have Band, as well as other rock and electro bands. This will be We Have Band's third time in Nyon, after a gig at Paléo Festival and another one in the Usine A Gaz. You can check out an interview Living In Nyon did with the band last time they came here. More info and line-up on the festival's website Sunday 27 th October, 17:00, Abbaye de Bonmont: Katia Guerriero will play Fado (traditional Portuguese music) in this 12 th century Cistercian abbey with wonderful acoustics. Tickets cost 40.- for adults, 30.- for students and pensioners, and 20.- for children (8-15 yrs). Book on www.bonmont.ch Thursday 31 st October, 18:00, Chateau de Nyon: Provinyon's traditional jazz apéros. Come and enjoy a nice Swiss apéro with local wine whilst listening to the Entrance costs 5.-, please book on http://www.provinyon.ch/site/fr/contact Other The Swiss rugby championship will be held in Colovray on Sunday the 27 th of October . Entrance is free. The ecological association “ Sol à Tous ” regularly organises walks in the area to clean up the nature and pick up rubbish. Their next expedition will be in Duiller on Saturday the 26 th . The rendezvous is fixed at 14:30 at the "Duillier, centre communal" bus stop. (You can take the n° 820 bus to St-George in Nyon which leaves at 14:21). A new cookery school, “Les Papilles à la fete”, has opened in Nyon, and classes are available in English! Check out the website for more information, or read a more detailed account in English on knowitall.ch

There is a strong Bise wind forecast for today Wednesday 4th February and tomorrow Thursday 5th February 2015.  CGN, the lake Geneva ferry company have cancelled all ferry crossings for these two days. See here     The strong wind can often whip up a storm across the lake and create some interesting ice formations! Sirens today at 13:30 A reminder that as this is the first Wednesday in February, it's the day when all Sirens across Switzerland are tested. This will happen at 13:30 today.You are not required to  do anything during this time. You can read an explanation of this annual testing on the Swiss government website here

Spring is in the air and many people are clearing out their cellars, attics, and cupboards. So it's not suprising that posters are beginning to appear around town saying "Troc" or "Vide-Grenier". What are these? Well a "troc" is the equivalent of a secondhand market and the proceeds from them are often used to benefit local charities or to contribute to village funds. It's often a good opportunity for a buyer to pick up bargains too. There are specific trocs for bikes, children's clothes and toys, trocs for books etc and there is usually one going on somewhere in the area in the Spring. A "Vide Grenier" means "Emptying the attic or loft " where a greater variety of goods are put up for sale. These events can either be held in a private home or the contents of a whole village's "attic" will be up for grabs in the local salle communale. The nearest equivalent to this in the UK would either be a jumble sale, or perhaps a car boot sale. In the U.S it would be a garage sale. These events are advertised well in advance so if you want to take part and sell items, or hunt for a bargain, keep a look out for posters around the towns and in the villages.

A reminder that there will be another "male trailing spouse" meet up tonight the 12th April in Les Brasseurs pub in Nyon at 20:00. If you are a male accompanying spouse and you want to meet others in the same situation, then either just turn up at the pub or email Michael Shevlin who is organising this event (michael at sandboxdesign.co.uk) for more information.  Read a previous post here about the very first event back in February of this year.   A reminder also that Paléo tickets go on sale at midday on Wednesday 13th April. The latest news is that Amy Winehouse has been added to the line up of artists to play at the festival that runs from 19 to 24th July 2011.

The circus school Lelastiquecitrique in Rue des Marchandises (near the central car park) is well known and very popular for its children's courses. Often you can be walking by and see children outside the school riding a uni cycle or rehearsing for a show. One of these shows is coming up next week (from the 11th -16th August) in Nyon and is called "A Thousand and One Marvels". This show includes over 20 artists aged from 5 to 67 years old and. will "take the audience on a journey from birth to death via the language of the circus" with acrobats, jugglers, monocycles and more. For this particular event, six artists from the Superior school of Circus Arts of Brussels (two of whom are previous pupils of Elastique Citrique) will be joining the company. I have been told that this is a superb production and one to watch out for! See Lelastiquecitrique for full information. Performances Tuesday 11, Wednesday 12, Thursday 13, Friday 14 at 20:30 , Sat 15, and Sunday 16, August at 17:00 Tickets prices: CHF 25 Adults. Students A.V.S etc CHF 15 Children up to 12 inclusive CHF 10

Vineyards, Etiquette, and French (but not as you know it). These last two subjects in the slightly bizarre title, refer to two topics that newly arrived expats may want to be aware of when they arrive in Nyon. A reader wrote in to suggest these based on her own experiences. Firstly, the etiquette thing. On the whole the Swiss are very polite, you will often hear a friendly "Bonjour" or "Bonjour Madame/Monsieur" in many instances: when you get into the lift/elevator; when a neighbour passes you in the street; and as I recently discovered, in the dentist waiting room when all the other patients greeted me even though I had never met them before. This makes day to day living very civil indeed. So as a hint to help you, say Bonjour back! This is not meant to sound patronising, but sometimes expats struggle if they are not used to being so polite in their own language, they don't realise a simple "Bonjour" at the start of a conversation, (particular when asking an assistant for a product in the supermarket) this will really pave the way to make folk want to help you. The politeness hasn't quite stretched to staff helping you pack your bags at the checkout, but we can always hope.... The politeness can also be found in the local schools where it is not uncommon for the entire class to have to stand up when a teacher walks into the room and each child has to shake his/her hand on entrance and exit, there is one teacher who insist his students look him in the eye when they greet him too. Marvellous stuff. The French thing So you think you know your French, and then you ask the price of something in a market or shop and you hear "that will be deux, septante." What's this? Well here the number Seventy is not the "sixty plus plus ten" that most of us are taught in school, it is 70 = pronounced "Sept-ante", 80 = "Huit-ante", 90 = "Non-ante". This is just a regional difference and here are a couple more. You don't put your groceries in the plastic bag or a "sac". Here you put them in a "cornet" . Better still, take your own bag with you. When you order wine in a bar or restaurant unless you are plumping for the whole bottle, you will then be asked to decide what size glass you want. Here it's ordered by the decilitre, so two decilitres is "deux decis", three decilitres is "trois decis" etc. Talking of wine, the "vendange" (the harvest ) is now well under way and the colours of the local vineyards are looking particularly spectacular at the moment. It's worth getting out and about into the small wine making villages near Nyon on the Route du Vignoble (wine route) to see them in their full glory. The Route du Vignoble site has information in English and the Nyon tourist board produces a handy pocket sized map for this route which includes opening times of the all "caves" (wine cellars) along the way. One suggestion I have is either to take a bus, or drive and park in Bursinel, and then walk up the hill up out the village. With the church on your left hand side, you will eventually come to this noticeboard with suggested short walks amongst the forests and vines. Finally, take a look at the side bar at some future events coming up in Nyon. Also at the end of this month there will be an interview here with the founders of the very successful Nyon Au pair link , another interview with a small craft business operating out of a Crans workshop, and information on living in Commugny and Coppet. We now have another date for the next "Living in Nyon" evening too -the 13th November. There will no posts now until approximately the 24th October as it's the Autumn school holidays in Nyon. Any correspondence about this site will be replied to after that date. Enjoy the lovely Autumn weather, and as they say here, "Bonne Vacances!"

A reminder to all readers that the Open Air cinema in Nyon launches tonight!  The summer programme that continues right through until the 26th August will be showing many films in "Version Originale" (in the original version) and in many cases, in English. Films start at 21:30 but the bar and "restauration" are open from 19:00 onwards.  Free parking in the Centre Commercial La Combe (la Combe shopping centre) from 19:00!   Tonight's film (in English) is the new Batman film "The Dark Knight Rises" starring Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway and Tom Hardy. The open air cinema has a website - check it out here!  The cinema is located in Esplanade "La Combe" in Promenade d'Italie (opposite the Roman Columns) See Google Map here. Agrandir le plan

The band Vagalatschk gave a superb performance last night down in front of Café Latino. Their lively and entertaining music rounded off the final night of the Rive Jazzy (free) concerts for this summer. This six piece multi-instrument playing band gave their all, including one member going into the audience to play his trombone, a real crowd pleaser. Congratulations to the Rive Jazzy organisers for organising these free musical events, they are always popular with locals and tourists alike. Last night the weather was superb with a clear moon lighting the lake making Nyon look beautiful.

Two events are coming up in Nyon this weekend. The first is the local elections when the citizens of Nyon vote on Sunday (along with other issues) for their new mayor. This is the culmination of months of campaigning by all three candidates including a public debate last week. Bernadette Nelissen was at the debate and has written about it below. The result will be anounced here on Sunday. The second event is Noviodurun This a run through Nyon where adults, families and children follow a course through the town and down by the lake. The objective of the run, now in its second year is to encourage folk to get out more by walking, running and exercising. The first phase starts off with families running from Place du Marché at 11:00. See the Noviodurun site for inscriptions and further information. That final debate before the vote - by Bernadette Nelissen. The three candidates Daniel Rossellat , Fabienne Freymond Cantone and Claude Dupertuis met in the Usine à Gaz in front of a full house. Isidore Raposa, editor in chief of La Côte led the debate. Daniel and Fabienne fought for attention on different subjects. As all candidates are left wing a member of the audience asked who would be the best candidate for a voter that usually vote for a right wing candidate. Will the red and the roses win over the public? Fabienne explained that she would always work from a socialist point of view but through her work in auditing and banking she would have no problems communicating with people from other political horizons. Daniel stressed he has worked as an employee but also as an employer, He stressed that good ideas have no political colour and that he could operate far better than the two other candidates, in the political centre. Claude said that as mayor he would automatically be the syndic of all Nyonnais. It was great entertainment to watch the three of them and to see which candidate could think on their feet and which candidate lost itself in the details and lacked a global vision. Or will the green and the sunflowers convince them? And the end of the debate Isidore asked who the candidates should vote if they could not vote for themselves. Claude said that he would throw a coin in the air, because he has no preference. Fabienne said that she wouldn’t need to vote since she will finish first in this election anyway. Daniel said that in the past he had voted already for Claude and for Fabienne but that they had never voted for him and therefore should do so. He also said that if he had to choose he would vote for Claude because he would like to take over Claude’s current job (urbanism) and was less interested in Fabienne’s current job (Finance). The evening ended late with a drink at the bar and with everyone in excellent spirits. Editor's Note: You will see above that all three candidates now have their own websites (Rossellat was the first on the scene with his). It's worth taking a look at them to see the different styles of each candidate, the questions and answers, and foind out about their biographies and backgounds.