"Go Go Penguin" from Manchester and Arthur Hnatek (Swiss drummer/ artist) will be playing at the Salle Communale in Nyon on Saturday 11th May at 21:00  Details here. This is a Usine à Gaz production. The Usine à Gaz (Nyon's main arts and cultural centre) is currently under renovation so concerts are currently being held in various venues across the town.

The Château of Prangins currently has a new exhibition called “À table ! What does Switzerland eat ?” In this exhibition you can find out about Swiss culinary culture and how it has changed over the years. Discover the country's regional specialities and its food heritage. Check out the butcher's shop which has been completely knitted out of wool by the famous Madame Tricot, (see photo below) find out about all the cheeses in the country, how the apple first arrived in Switzerland, or take a look at the photo of a group of Swiss having a picnic on ice in St Mortiz in the late 19th/early 20th century The exhibition's panel displays are in French, however, there are information packs in English available on site. The château has a lovely outside terrace with café open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10:00 to 17:00. Full details in English all on the château's website.

Nyon Région Television  and La Côte newspaper are currently featuring a series of portraits of local people in a series entitled,  "Nyon seen through the eyes of...." This week, it was the turn of Catherine, the editor of Living in Nyon. In this six minute video below, you can hear about some of her favourite places in the town, an historic moment that she remembers in Nyon and what she hopes for the future of the town. This is the 6th and last portrait of local people. There will also be an accompanying written interview published in La Côte newspaper, which we will publish next week. Check out the other portraits on the station, such as the directors of the Elastique Citrique circus school, to the President of the Basket Ball Club of Nyon and more - l ink here  or on the station's Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/NyonRegionTV/videos/1173405269498176/

Spring is here, the wisteria is in full bloom around Nyon and gardeners were busy working away at the Château of Prangins on Tuesday afternoon (see photos below). For those readers who love gardens, and who also like to visit them, there is a new book out with chapters in English, French and German called, "Gardens Schweiz/Suisse/Switzerland" by Hester Macdonald and which features 52 gardens across the country. Botanical gardens, Alpine gardens, wheelchair accessible gardens, gardens with sculpture and art, camellia collections, urban gardens and much more are covered in this book which includes five gardens in Canton Vaud and four in Geneva Canton. The book also gives helpful visitor information and how to get to each garden via public transport. For more details and where to purchase the book see link here to Bergli Books (a great resource of Swiss related books in English). Photos below - Wisteria around Nyon.

The Bibliotopia Literary Weekend will take place from the 4th to the 6th May at the Jan Michalski Foundation in Montricher. Some events are in French, others in English or German. See programme here. If you have never visited this literary centre/foundation, it is the most extraordinary modern building set high up in the hills in the village of Montricher (above Morges), it has a library of over 65,000 books and is well worth a visit. It is also a residence for writers, see site here. Also coming up on Saturday 25th May is a Geneva Writers' Group workshop entitled "Point of View and Voice" with Anne Korkeakivi. Details here

Once a year, CGN holds a big naval parade on the lake. On this day, a fleet of Belle Epoque Paddle Boats gather together at a lakeside town for a grand "parade". See video (aerial view) of a previous event below. This year it's the turn of Rolle to host the parade (the town itself is celebrating its 700th anniversary with lots of activities planned between April and October 2019). Member of the public can take part in this spectacle by boarding a boat at Geneva, Nyon, Rolle, St-Prex, Morges, St-Sulpice, Lausanne, Vevey, Montreux or Le Bouveret or simply watching the event from the quayside in Rolle. The main choreographed event will be visible at 14:45. More details, tickets etc can be found  on the CGN website.

The Avengers Endgame film will screened in 3D and in English at Nyon Capitole Cinema at 20:30 on Monday 29th April and on Wednesday 1st Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th May at 17:30. Tickets can be bought in advance on line - details here

"War Walks on the Swiss Jura Crest Trail"  is one of many hikes that are featured in the guide book "Switzerland's Jura Crest Trail", published by Cicerone Press. Nyon and the "Toblerone Trail" are also mentioned in the book. Author and hiker Ali Rowsell writes - " Taking approximately 5 hours to descend 460 metres from the Jura to Lake Geneva, the trail is strewn with ‘toblerones’, bunkers and defensive chalets and is well signposted along the route, giving an in-depth account of what Switzerland was like during World War II".   Read the full article here. Some of the “Toblerones” can be seen from the lake road between Nyon and Gland. They are the name given to the anti-tank emplacements that look like the shape of the famous Swiss chocolate bar (did you know that there is a hidden image on the packaging of the Toblerone bar? read about it here ). If you are interested in finding out more about these local landmarks , the staff at Nyon Région Tourisme will be happy to give more information on this and other local walking routes. Cicerone Press produce an extensive range of over guidebooks to walking, trekking, climbing, mountaineering and cycling, covering the UK and Europe and further afield. Their guides are pocket-sized, with clear mapping and directions.

A Very Happy Easter to all Readers! The photos below are of some of the fountains around Nyon. They are an Easter tradition in the town and have been decorated by local clubs and associations. Check out the Maitre Jacques statue in a Paléo shirt or the fountain decorated by the children at La Maison des Enfants . You can also take photos of the fountains and enter into a competition  which has being organised by the the local shops and businesses. See flyer below.

Nyon Tourism Office organises various tours for both residents and visitors throughout the year. The next tours coming up soon are a cultural tour on the 28th April and a history of the town tour on the 16th May. Meet in front on the château at 14:00. Please register in advance. Details in flyer below.  Contact Nyon Tourism for more details. Tel 022 - 365- 6600 or email info@nrt.ch

The Club Nautique of Prangins is offering sailing initiation courses from mid May and throughout the summer. The instructors speak English. More details here.

The Geneva Amateur Operatic Society Spring 2019 production will take place at the Théâtre de Marens in Nyon on the 3rd, 4th and 5th and 10-12th of May. "Into the Woods" is a musical which intertwines the plots of several fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm and Charles Perrault, with the main characters taken from Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, Rapunzel and Cinderella. The story involves a childless baker and his wife and their quest to begin a family (the original beginning of The Grimm Brothers' Rapunzel), their interaction with a witch who has placed a curse on them, and their interaction with other storybook characters during their journey.   For tickets - click here