The Swimming school at the Centre de Santé la Lignière in Gland begins a new round of lessons in *small groups from January until June. Lessons last 45 minutes per week on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. *no more than 5 children per group Note: The instructors always stay in the water with the children. The water is heated to 32 degrees for the familiarisation classes and with the beginner swimmers. There’s a jacuzzi too, also with water at 34 degrees! Individual classes for both children and adults are possible throughout the year. Different levels of swimmers are catered to, from complete beginners to the more experienced. Please email acquaforme.natation.admin@la-ligniere.ch or call Sarah (she speaks English) on 022 999 65 81 The school also has a new swimming instructor!

The January 2018 Living in the Know podcast (a collaboration between Living in Nyon and Know-it all Passport) comes with suggestions of activities in the Geneva and La Côte area, from twirling to curling, playing Scrabble in English or French, line dancing, improvisation classes, singing, capoeira, and more! On the "French minute" section, Catherine discovers what a is. Almost everyone has one if they live in Switzerland. Click here to listen now. A selection of links A list of local societies in the Nyon area Capoeira Club La CôteCafé Vivant Singing, dancing, theatre group Choral de la Côte Twirling Club of Nyon (for children) Swiss English Scrabble Association (in Geneva) Improvisation group and Classes Note: The Renegade Saints (featured on the podcast) will be performing on the 11th January in Geneva. Volunteering opportunities were discussed on the March 2017 podcast

The annual New Year's Swim in the lake in Nyon went ahead today, Sunday the 7th January 2018. There was a fun atmosphere with all sorts of costumes on display, from bananas to butterflies! The brave swimmers were rewarded with a glass of champagne and a soak in the communal hot tub at the end of their swim and the onlookers were able to warm up with some vin chaud. See short video below. This event was organised by the Bains des Trois Jetées association. The association organises events throughout the winter season including "full moon" fondue parties and other activities. The money raised goes towards keeping the outdoor sauna going through the winter and to "animate" this part of the lake. https://youtu.be/PGZi1cu29eA

Living in Nyon would like to wish all our readers a Very Merry Christmas and a Joyeux Noël! Thankyou for your support in 2017 and thankyou too to all our advertisers (see sidebar) who help keep the site online. Our next post will be on January 4th 2018. Here is a selection of events coming up during the next couple of weeks. Friday 22nd December - Late night Christmas shopping in Nyon, shops and Christmas market open until 21:00 Note: Father Christmas will be around central Nyon in a horse and carriage from 17:30 onwards and will deliver some surprises at the Place du Château at 19:30. Music and choirs on both Friday 22 and Saturday 23 at the market. Saturday 23rd December - "Christmas Night" - music at La Parenthèse from 22:00Also on Friday 22nd at 18:15 (and Tuesday 26th)at 20:45 at Nyon Capitole Cinema "Murder on the Orient Express" in English starring Johny Depp, Judi Dench, Michelle Pfeiffer, Penelope Cruz, Kenneth Branagh. Sun 24th Dec 2017 La Côte church in Gingins. Crib service for children at 15:00. Christmas Eve Holy Communion at 17:00. 25th December - Nyon cinema - Film "Star Wars" in English at 20:30 31st December - Usine a Gaz - Nyon. New Year Party "Highlights" Dancing from 22:00. DJ music all styles. 20181st, 2nd and 3rd January from 14:00-17:00 Free entry to the château of Nyon, the Musée du Léman and the Roman museum. Saturday 6 January - Family event - early evening - the Ceremony of the "Three Kings" in Nyon. The traditional Three Kings parade begins in the early *evening in Nyon. The parade winds through the town and ends up at the Place du Château where a big galette/ cake (baked by local bakers) is served up to the town’s citizens. Wrap up warm (although there is usually vin chaud on offer for adults at the end of the parade)! The *timing of this event has not yet been published, we will advise on the 4th Jan. Sunday 7 January - New Year's Swim in the lake in Nyon at 13:00 organised by the Association of the Bains des Trois Jetées

Raising Multilingual Children - Two evening workshops by Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, specialist in education and neuroscience. Monday 16 January 2018 in Geneva Tuesday 17 January 2018 in Lausanne Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, the author of “Raising Multilingual Children” and 5 other books on the brain and learning, is visiting Switzerland to present her dynamic workshops. Tracey is half Japanese-American, half Irish-Native American and is married to an Ecuadorian. Her 3 children aged 20, 22 and 24 speak fluent English, Spanish and German and some French. Early bird prices are available for the workshops. Tracey will also be available for private meetings ( these have limited space) so best to book these soon. These workshops have been organised by Know-it-all passport. Click here to read the article and to register.

Offshoots - Writing from Geneva, Living along Lac Léman, The Summer Guest, 99.9 Ways to Travel Switzerland, The Gilded Chalet. In the recent Living in the Know audio "advent calendar" podcast, Catherine and Lisa suggested 24 gift ideas including several books that are set in Switzerland or have been written by authors living in this country. Below are the four book suggestions, plus the Living in Nyon book called "Living along Lac Léman" - note this book is nearing the end of its print run! The Payot bookshop in Nyon (in La Combe shopping centre) has several copies left if you are looking for a last-minute, local gift. The book is a selection of columns published in English in La Côte newspaper and is a light-hearted look at living along Lac Léman. Offshoots 14 - Writing from Geneva - Fragile States The biennial literary journal of the Geneva Writers' Group, a group of writers with over 250 members. Includes poetry, fiction and non-fiction. The book's photographs were taken by Alistair Scott from Gland. Copies can be bought in Payot Rive-Gauche in Geneva and Books Books Books in Lausanne. The Summer Guest by Alison Anderson During the long, hot summer of 1888, an extraordinary friendship blossoms between Anton Chekhov and Zinaida Lintvaryova, a young doctor. Recently blinded by illness, Zinaida has retreated to her family’s estate in the lush countryside of Eastern Ukraine, where she is keeping a diary to record her memories of her earlier life. But when the Chekhov family arrives to spend the summer at a dacha on the estate, and she meets the middle son Anton Pavlovich, her quiet existence is transformed by the connection they share. What begins as a journal kept simply to pass the time becomes an intimate, introspective narrative of Zinaida’s singular relationship with this doctor and writer of growing fame. Alison Anderson spent many years in California and she now lives in a village in Swiss Romande. She is a novelist and she also works as a literary translator. 99.9 Ways to Travel Switzerlandlike a local by Chantal Panozzo This book is one part travel book and one part culture guide. Inspiration for unusual places to stay, to visit or experience! The Gilded Chalet by Padraig Rooney From Rousseau to Nabokov, le Carré to Conan Doyle, Hesse to Highsmith to Hemingway, Switzerland has always provided a refuge for writers attracted to it as an escape from world wars, oppression, tuberculosis or marriage. Part detective work part treasure chest, The Gilded Chalet takes the reader on a grand tour of the birth-place of many loved stories.

Nyon lights up for Christmas - chalets, choirs and chansons! Silent Disco on Ice on Sunday 16th The Nyon Christmas Market (mini wooden chalets situated in Place Bel Air) opens today, Friday 15th December at 11:00 and will remain open until the 23rd December. There will be musical events at the market over the eight-day period including performances by jazz bands, gospel choirs, alpine choirs and more. Father Christmas will even make an appearance! On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the market will open until 21:00. Full details in poster below or link here Free Transport on local buses will be provided by Nyon council from 18:00 until midnight from the 15th until the 23rd. On Sunday the 16th December, the small family run shops in Nyon will be also open around town. Also on Sunday the 16th, there will be a silent disco on Ice at Nyon's ice rink by the lake. Free entry, rental of skates available. It's also the flea market in Nyon on Sunday.

Paddington 2 is the Monday movie in English at Nyon Capitole cinema, at 20:30 tonight the 11th December. A living in Nyon reader has already seen the film and describes it as "Charming!" Synopsis - Settled in with the Brown family, Paddington the bear is a popular member of the community who spreads joy and marmalade wherever he goes. One fine day, he spots a pop-up book in an antique shop -- the perfect present for his beloved aunt's 100th birthday. When a thief steals the prized book, Paddington embarks on an epic quest to unmask the culprit before Aunt Lucy's big celebration.

Living in Nyon understands that Bernard Ross has been found safe in Switzerland today, the 19th December. An appeal goes out to Living in Nyon readers to keep an eye out for Bernard Ross. He is a former UEFA chief and he has been missing for several weeks. More details in this BBC story here. He has recently been seen in the Nyon area on Friday night. He was wearing a flat cap, similar to the one in this photo. His family are very anxious to find him and to ensure he is safe. If you do see him, please contact his wife in the first instance on +447870992762.

If you are a commuter or a regular user of public transport, remember to check the times of your route from the 10th December as this is the date when the Swiss-wide schedule changes. Some of the changes include: direct trains from Nyon at certain hours to both Berne and Lucerne, better bus links for commuters travelling from Gland railway station to Lausanne, however on the Geneva airport - Lausanne - Brig line, there will only be one direct train an hour, at other times this journey will involve a change of trains in Lausanne. If you have a regular travelling route, did you know that you can create, and then download a handy personal timetable via the CFF website?

The next Nyon Business Forum lunchtime talk is entitled "Sustainable Economic Development in Nyon on Friday 8th December at 12:00 -13:45. The talk will be in French (anglophones welcome!) and will be given by Daniel Rossellat, mayor of Nyon and founder of the Paléo festival. These friendly lunchtime talks (20mins only!) are part of a series of talks with different speakers scheduled over the next twelve months. They take place at Café Ex-Machina in Nyon The Nyon Business Forum is a non-profit, non-political, non-denominational association linking entrepreneurs, business owners and professionals of all ages in and around Nyon for the purpose of networking and professional/personal development. English and French are the official languages of NBF. One specific objective of NBF is to facilitate contacts between “expats” and “locals” and contribute to developing a thriving business community in Nyon.

Photo above - Sean Kuti - courtesy Usine à Gaz A bit of Afrobeat to warm up the weekend in NyonSeun Kuti and Egypt 80 will be playing at the Usine a Gaz in Nyon on Saturday 2nd December. Doors open at 21:00 Concert at 21:30