Here are various music options coming up over the next few days in the Nyon area, including a concert tonight (26 November) at the Parenthèse. Punk Rock/Ska Punk/ Metal/Rock Saturday 28th November - Nyoncore festival at the Usine a Gaz. Doors open at 18:30, concerts start at 19:00 Indie/ Folk/PopIndie, Folk, Pop tonight (26 November) at 21:30 at La Parenthèse in Nyon with Maïa Vidal. See video below Classical Concerts in Nyon and in Lonay. In collaboration with the COV (Conservatoire of West Vaud) and under the direction of Ahmed Hamdy, the Da Capo orchestra will play in Nyon on Sunday 29th November at the Salle Communale in Nyon and on Wednesday the 2nd December at the Salle des Pressoirs in Lonay. The orchestra will play works by P. Nardini, F. Mendelssohn and J.N. Hummel. A student from the Musikhochschule of Leipzig has been invited to play a work by Fr. A. Hoffmeister for viola and orchestra. The Boogie Woogie Trio will play at the 1306 Club on 27 November at 20:30 More details here

Here are a couple of ideas for readers staying in Switzerland over the Christmas period. If you are rushing around right now, why not let someone else do the cooking for you one evening by ordering a healthy take away meal from Falaque? This gastronomic take-out restaurant in Nyon makes delicious, healthy and freshly prepared food. Living in Nyon particularly loves their "courge" soup (sourced locally from a farm in Founex!) Deliveries are free for orders over 100 CHF and Falaque's online ordering system is super easy to use. Also, if you are looking for private swimming lessons for your children or simply want to swim in a pool (heated to 32 degrees), check out Clinique La Lignière near Gland. This clinic also has a gym, an outpatient centre and is set in lovely grounds.

There will be various parking restrictions implemented in Nyon on Thursday 17 December due to the official ceremony in the centre of town to welcome Mr Guy Parmelin, the new elected member of the Federal Cabinet. Mr Parmelin lives in Bursins. There are various events planned from approximately 15:30 onwards. Mr Parmelin will arrive by train in Nyon at 15:42. The Place de Perdtemps car parking will be closed from Thursday 17th at 05:00 until Friday 18th at 06:00, the car park at Place de la Gare will be closed on Thursday from 15:00 until 16:30, the parking at the place du Château (and the castle itself) will be closed from Wednesday 05:00 until Friday 06:00 and part of the Rue des Marchandises will be closed from 05:00 until Friday 06:00. The offices of the council's administration will also be closed on Thursday afternoon. There will be a free navette bus in operation from the Colovray parking from 14:30 until 22:30 on Thursday. It is advised to avoid driving near the centre of the town on Thursday between 15:00 and 16:30. For more details of the event and other restrictions that will be put in place - click here.

Tis' the season for Christmas markets and this weekend there are Christmas markets all day on Sunday 6th December in Nyon (by the lakeside) and from 09:00-17:00 in the Grand Rue in Gland and also from the 2nd to the 6th December in Coppet in the old stables of the Château.

For those readers looking for ideas to make a donation to a local charity at Christmas, here are a couple of suggestions. The first, is a challenge that was undertaken by Scott Poynton, Executive Director of TFT - The Forest Trust, whose headquarters are based in Nyon. In 2014, Scott embarked on a Moustache growing adventure for the Movember Foundation to raise money and awareness for men's health. It was a great success and he ended up raising about CHF 5,000. This year, he decided he would have another go but this time, climbing the equivalent altitude of Mount Everest! When climbers ascend Everest, they typically fly from Kathmandu (Nepal's capital) to a place called Lukla which is at 2,860m altitude. They then walk the 60km to Everest Base Camp before ascending the mountain (8,848m). That means they've climbed 5,988m from Lukla. As Lac Léman is at 372m and the top of La Dôle (the mountain in the Jura near Nyon) is at 1,670m, the difference is 1,298m. So by walking that distance (total distance about 30km) 5 times, Scott has clocked up up 6,490m in altitude which is more than the 5,988m from Lukla to the top of Everest. Although the main fundraising month of November is now over there are still a few days left in December where you can help Scott's fundraising challenge. Photo above - Scott Poynton in right of photo below La Dôle The second charity is La Maison des Enfants in Nyon. The Maison des Enfants is a charitable association set in a large house just on the outskirts of Nyon and is open in the afternoon for all children from age 6 to 12. Here children are looked after by professionals and volunteers and all free of charge, this service is particularly appreciated by working parents on a low income. The house has a large garden, so the children can play outside and create handicrafts, use computers and have help with homework. Donations help the Maisons des Enfants continue with their work. Click here to donate. You can even help them by simply providing a snack for the afternoon "gouter" for the children. Note: A portion of the profits from the "Living along Lac Léman" book is donated to this charity by Living in Nyon

Here are the programmes of the two English Speaking Church Services in the Nyon area over the Christmas 2015 period at La Côte church and Westlake Church.

The full programme of films and events for Visions du Réel, the big documentary film festival due to take place from the 15-23rd April in both Nyon and Gland, is now out. From Michael Moore to Princess Shaw There are lots of highlights on the the agenda, from a fun "avant-première" film called "Jesus Town USA", to the screening of the new Michael Moore film "Where to Invade Next" (see trailer below), to the film "Presenting Princess Shaw "which has been called "An essential tale for the the digital age" (trailer below) which will be screened in Gland. There will also be a special evening with British film director Peter Greenaway. There is plenty more on the agenda, some new initiatives this year and we'll be highlighting them here on Living in Nyon over the next few weeks. In the meantime, a Happy Easter to all readers! Check out all the decorated fountains around Nyon, an annual tradition in the town. Note - there still will be the monthly flea market in Nyon on Easter Sunday the 27th March. For English speaking church services over the Easter period see La Côte church in Gingins or Westlake church in Nyon

Living in Nyon will be at Visions du Réel over the next seven days and will be reviewing and recommending films shown at the festival. Film review - Visions du Réel 2016 - "Like Dew in the Sun" Screening Sunday 17th at 16:30 and Monday 18th at 11:45 at the Salle Communale. Tickets here The family in the photograph below are the ancestors of the filmmaker Peter Entell who emigrated from Ukraine to the U.S at the beginning of the 20th century. There is a haunting look in the family’s eyes, and a sadness that over a century later Entell shows still continues in the lives of many Ukrainians today. Entell travels to the country to find the village where his grandparents were from and in so doing discovers more than a family history, he finds himself in the middle of a battlefield and in a war zone. The film opens with the sight and ear blasting sound of armaments being fired, followed by the cheering of soldiers. Immediately we are abruptly and shockingly transported straight into modern day Ukraine, to the potholed roads, to the run-down apartment blocks and to the image of a woman crying over dead bodies lying on the ground. The sombre music sets the scene. Entells asks a soldier “There is so much suffering here, so much fighting, so many conflicts here in Ukraine - why?". The soldier sighs deeply, he has no answer. A father in Kiev talks to his sons after they visit a shrine for citizens who have been killed in the conflict, and he laments "unfortunately son, the terror continues”. Entell passes security check points, he films soldiers in their daily lives preparing for battle, and that battle. A story of the current conflict emerges. In the hunt for his relatives, Entell continues to travel around the country, he delves into archives, and with some help and an interpreter, he painstakingly goes through the files of the Jewish people who fled from the Ukraine in 1814. A few years ago, Jean Perret, the previous director of Vision due Réel said that for one week the world comes to Nyon through the medium of film. In Like Dew in the Sun we are indeed thrown in to another world of the lives of the people on Entell's journey, from the modest home of a gold-toothed woman serving tea as her husband tells stories of the war in his childhood, to the harrowing scenes of soldiers today being captured and the fear in their eyes as they await their fate. We see lovely limestone rocks and cliffs in Bakhtchyssarai, a city in central Crimea, sunflower fields en route, beautiful blues and turquoises of the wooden homes in small villages, and bright traditional costumes on the local women. The women sing but the world we see most of is darkness, fighting, sadness and conflict. The soldier at the start of the film tells the filmmaker "It's important to know your history and relatives". Sadly the history that the filmmaker discovers is a tragic one but an important story that needs telling. A powerful and moving film.

There are lots of events coming up this weekend in the Nyon area to celebrate the Easter period. On Saturday the 19th and Sunday 20th from 10:00 -17:00 the Moulin de Chiblins (the agricultural museum on the road to Gingins) has a full family programme of events lined up. There will with sheep, rabbits, performing dogs, workshops for children, a chocolatier and other food stands at the Moulin along with decorated eggs on display. This was a successful event last year and extra parking will be provided for visitors this year. In Nyon, also on Saturday and Sunday, the Easter market will take place at the Rive (down by the lake) with local and artisanal products on sale. At the Salle de la Colombiere there will be a Decorated Egg exhibition see posters below. More events coming up soon on this site!

There will be an open American Contra dancing workshop on Friday 4th March from 19:30 to 21:30, run by the "Folk O'Pieds" association in the sports hall in the village of Coinsins, (just a few kilometres from Nyon). This Friday workshop is open to all and without pre-reservation. The association itself promotes French and European folk dances and runs regular monthly workshop on American Contra Dancing. See the timetable of workshops here The workshop and dancing are in French, however it's a great opportunity to dance and meet others in a local setting. For more information, take a look at the website or contact Laurent Berger on 076 448 22 25 (from Friday to Monday) or 077 406 45 55 (from Tuesday to Thursday) , he speaks English and would be happy to provide more information. Happy Dancing!

Family Entertainment in Nyon The bright red building near the Place Perdtemps car park in Nyon is looking very festive at the moment as there are strings of lights around it to mark the opening of the Elastique Citrique's new show called IndiVIEsible. The title of the show plays on the word "life" and in this production, there will be 13 performers interpreting this theme using acrobatics, juggling and trapeze work in this fun family show. The show starts on Friday 4th March and continues every Friday, Saturday and Sunday until the 20th. Click here for ticket reservationsLearn Circus Skills over the Easter Holidays The Elastique Citrique school also teaches circus skills and offers a variety of courses throughout the year. The school is currently offering 3 and 4 day courses over the Easter period for children aged 5 - 8 years, 8 - 11 years and 12-16 years old. Click here for details.

Photo above: Waiting for the results of the vote on Sunday afternoon. There was a high voter participation (44.39%) in the local Nyon elections on February 28th to elect members of the municipality. There was also a good turn out (43.41% voter participation) to elect the 100 members of the town council. In the Federal vote there were four different initiatives proposed: 1. To automatically deport foreigners who commit certain crimes. 2. A ban on food speculation. 3. The building of a second Gotthard road tunnel 4. Tax breaks for married couples. Local participation in this Federal vote was also high at 62.12%. See here for general info (in English) on the result of this Federal vote. In Nyon, three out of the seven members of the municipality, Daniel Rossellat, Fabienne Freymond Cantone (Socialist Party) and Stephanie Schmutz (Socialist Party) all kept their seats whereas there was not an outright majority for the remaining 4 seats and they are still up for grabs, consequently there will be a second round of voting for these seats on the 20th March. Photo above - Maurice Gay ( Centre Right party) waiting to be interviewed The Municipality is elected by majority vote whereas the Conseil communal (100 councillors) is elected by the proportional-representation system, all of these councillors have now been officially confirmed and are on now listed on the town website. See here Photo above - Olivier Mayor (Green Party) being interviewed Photo above - The results are announced The breakdown of seats for each party in Nyon council is as follows: 01 Parti Indépendant Nyonnais 15 02 PBD VAUD Centre Droit Moderne 0 03 Union Démocratique du Centre 13 04 Vert'libéraux 5 05 Parti socialiste 25 06 PLR. Les Libéraux-Radicaux 26 07 Les Verts 16