All Weather courts, Sunny restaurant, and Friendly members! Living in Nyon last wrote an article about Nyon tennis club back in 2008! Much has changed in the club since then. The club has invested in four "all weather" courts enabling players to play tennis all year round, and the club now has a modernised kitchen for the club's restaurant. The outdoor terrace of this restaurant is one of the places in Nyon that catches the last rays of the sun in summer and the restaurant is also open seven days of the week to members of the public. You do not have to be a member to eat here. See restaurant opening times here The club itself now has a modernised online court reservation system for members and it is also popular with some of the "big named" stars in tennis, who use the courts if they are in the area. The club will be holding an Open Day on Sunday 17th April for anyone interested in checking out the facilities. On this day there will be a demonstration of elite junior tennis, children's tennis workshops, a tennis competition between the club's players, a sports clothes fashion show and the day will end with an apéro offered to all. On the Open Day there will be a 50% reduction in the inscription charge for those who sign up on the day. Details in poster below.

From Heavy Metal to Yemeni Folk n' Beat and a Celtic theme at the Village du Monde - Paléo 2016 Tickets on Sale 20th April 2016Paléo has now revealed the full line up of bands due to play at the music festival this year which will take place from the 19th to the 24th July. Daniel Rossellat, president of the festival announced at the press conference that 80% of the bands due to appear on the l'Asse stages have not played at the festival before. This comment was in response to some past criticism that the programme often features artists that have already played many times at the festival. Jacques Monnier, the festival's head of programming said that as last year 40th anniversary was such a celebratory occasion and as such a lot was expected of them including bringing big headline acts to the event (they also added an extra night for the Robbie Williams concert), this year they had decided to make it a less stressful year and let the Montreux Jazz festival celebrate their 50th anniversary with a big programme instead!- see details of the Montreux future line up at the end of this post. Photo above. Awa - courtesy Paléo However this didn't mean that there aren't some big bands due to play at Paléo this year. Iron Maiden, playing on Wednesday 20th July have sold over 90 million albums and the band is a big name in the world of heavy metal music. The Chemical Brothers Muse and Bastille are other headliners. Photo above. Iron Maiden courtesy Paléo However it's the artists that are up and coming that Paléo also likes to attract and there are plenty of these on offer for 2016. Courtney Barnett, (video below) scheduled to play on the opening night is from Tasmania and is an artist that has already has built up quite a following. Photo above - Courtney Barnett courtesy Paléo Awa are a Yemeni folk'n beat band due to play on Sunday 24th July. During their live concerts they wear a mixture of sneakers and traditional costumes. Their YouTube video below has been viewed nearly 3 million times. The theme for the Village du Monde this year is Celtic music and the music will be from Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Cornwall, Britanny, Galicia and Asturias. There will be traditional music represented by the dancing of Danceperados of Ireland, there will be Kaleidosocopic electro music from Turbo Sans Visa, and a mixture of rock and traditional Celtic instruments with the Red Hot Chili Pipers to name a few. Note: Montreux Jazz festival reveals its programme tomorrow the 14th April and tickets go on sale on the 15th. Music fans have just 24 hours to make a decision on the concerts they want to see, whereas Paléo fans have a week to decide before tickets go on sale on the 20th April at midday. As ever Living in Nyon advises readers to get online or in line for tickets on the 20th! Tickets sell out very fast! More on Paléo 2016 coming up on Living in Nyon in the next few months.

Late Night Shopping in Nyon If you haven't managed to finish all your Christmas shopping by now, help is at hand as local shops will be open late in Nyon next week on Monday 21st until 20:00, Tuesday 22nd and Weds 23rd December until 21:00. There will be "animations", music, vin chaud on sale, and a Christmas party atmosphere in the streets. There will be free buses into Nyon too so you don't have to worry about finding a parking spot!

The film "Star Wars - The Force Awakens" will be screened in 3D and in English at 20:45 on Monday 21st December in Nyon at the Capitole Cinema in Nyon. Tickets can be purchased in advance for this film at the box office of the cinema. Trailer of film below.

Base Nyon - A Modern and Innovative Place to Stay in Nyon Whether you are thinking about moving to Nyon, if you have arrived here with a family and are starting an expatriate life, or you simply need a place to sleep while on business, staying in a serviced apartment hotel is often a very good option for visiting and working in the town. Having the facility to be able to prepare meals with on-site laundry facilities while looking for permanent accommodation is particularly useful. Nyon has seen considerable economic growth over the past 10 years and consequently has attracted many international companies* to the region, so the opening of Base Nyon just over a month ago is a most welcome and much needed facility. 5 out of 5 on TripAdvisor Four weeks after opening, the hotel is already rated 5 out of 5 on TripAdvisor and has started to receive some excellent reviews from "Excellent stay" to "Outstanding service and modern rooms". It has also been nominated for the ‪#‎TUMIxWIRED‬ Innovation in Travel Awards. Photo above - Base Nyon Convenient for the train station The hotel itself is at Rue Jules Gachet 2, a one minute walk from Nyon railway station. Trains from Nyon go directly into Geneva airport (a 25 minute journey) and leave very early in the morning, early enough to take the first Swiss, Easy Jet or British Airways flights to London and other European destinations. Trains also run late at night from the airport back to Nyon. A Fresh Approach to Hotel accommmodation The hotel itself is a new type of accommodation co-founded by Frédéric Mydske and James Fry, two entrepreneurs who are passionate about convenience, service, comfort and value. They spent two years researching the idea of Base Nyon (including chatting to Living in Nyon in the early stages) and a further three years to secure the site and obtain the necessary permit. Based on first-hand experience of working with and talking to guests about what they need, their fresh approach to hotels is free from the constraints of a large corporate structure. The Hotel's Facilities - from Easy check in to Easy cooking to Easy biking! The hotel has the services of a 4 star hotel and has many facilities designed to take the hassle out of travel and the traditional rental sector. Photo above - the reception area The Facilities Include: A bright airy and welcoming reception area with members of staff (Ecole Hôteliere de Lausannne trained) to answer questions and help guests, and with free coffee and soft drinks on hand. iPads are available for use, there is free WIFI and VOIP phones offer free local calls and low cost international calls. No filling in forms when you arrive at a hotel with the same information you entered online to make the booking! At Base there is no need, the touch screen terminal has it all recorded. It's quick, easy to use and does everything from scanning your passport to giving you your key card. Check out is also via smart phone or via the internet TV located in your room. A Base Breakfast Bag full of goodies, everything from croissants to gluten free bread and Swiss granola can be ordered and delivered to your door by 07:00 every day (except Sundays) and a whole lot more can be provided. This innovative concept avoids paying the usual high flat fee as you would normally do at a hotel. If you just want a juice and croissant, you just pay for that! Photo above - Breakfast brought to you in a bag! A Base Box offers returning guests the option of using their own personal Base Box. If you re-book with the hotel, you will find a Base Box in your suite the day before you leave. You can fill it with your food and drink, any clothes or files/books etc you don’t want to take with you. The hotel will store it securely in the basement and return it to your new suite before you return. An innovative facility resulting in the traveller having to carry less luggage and leave less waste behind! Base Bikes Base Bikes (BBs) are available for guests and free for the first hour (small charge thereafter) and can be used to explore the local area, pop to the lake for a coffee or to get to and from work. For guests who would rather bring their own bike there is space to store it in the underground secure underground area. Gym at Base Nyon The hotel also has a gym in the basement with cardio and strength equipment. Fast Wi Fi There is fast WiFi available to all guests throughout the building A "Green Hotel" The building and operations practices at Base include: high levels of insulation and triple glazed floor to ceiling windows, efficient temperature control and automatic sun blinds, low water usage equipment, solar panels, chemical free cleaning products. Every suite will have ‘Stop The Water While Using Me!’ natural and organic cosmetic and bodycare products. Read more about the hotel's sustainability policies click here The Suites! There are three different sizes of suites offered at the hotel: The Base Suite, The Base XL Suite and the Base Penthouse. To find out more about the accommodation and see photos of all the suites in detail click here Eating back at Base For guests that don't want to cook for themselves in the individual kitchen of the hotel suites, Luigia (the famous Geneva based Italian restaurant) has established a restaurant on the ground floor of the hotel - serving a large variety of fresh Italian food and a wide range of beers, wines and cocktails. Drinks on the Roof at the Base Balcony Bar And last but not least, the Base Balcony Bar with its views of Lac Léman and the Alps beyond is the perfect place for hotel guests (and their friends) to unwind. *International companies/organisations in the region include Generali, EMS, Novartis, Hublot, Beckman Coulter, General Mills, UEFA, Puig, Kodak, Vertex and many trading companies in Nyon, WWF, IUCN, Swissquote in Gland,

Panto and Play in English performed in Nyon and Coppet Pantomime season is nearly upon us and the good news is that the annual pantomime in English will be held at a theatre in Nyon this year (oh, yes it will!) Rumpelstiltskin is the name of the panto and it will be performed by the Geneva Amateur Operatic Society (GAOS) on various dates in November and December. See details below. For those readers who don't know what a pantomime is, see here. It's great for family entertainment in the lead up to Christmas. Details here Also, from the 17 - 21 November, The Geneva English Drama Society (GEDS) will be performing the comedy "Caught in the Net" by Ray Cooney at the Théâtre Terre Sainte in Coppet. Details here

The good news for Paléo 2015 is that the grounds are dry, very dry indeed. This in complete contrast to 2014 when the grass was sodden after lots of rain before the festival had even started. This year, the press were able to walk around and see what's new at the festival. However, although it's dry, it is also very hot up at the festival fields, so dress accordingly, take a hat and lots of water. Note: there will be areas at Paléo where there will be access to free drinking water. Due to the dry weather personal bbqs and fires are foribidden in the camping area, however Paléo will be organising three community fires at the camping site so you can take along your own food to be cooked. The press being shown around the grounds this year - all photos above and below, C.Nelson-Pollard What's new? Village du Monde area The theme of the Village du Monde area this year is the Far East and there will be all genres of music played from different countries, from traditional music to electro rock and hip hop and more. There will be "animations" too, a "Dragons and Lions" dance in the village area (Weds to Sunday), Shadow Theatre on Monday and Wednesday, a Karaoké bar and many other events. There will be culinary delights too: Okonomiyaki, tofu Ramen and Ongiti from Japan, Cambodian Laab Kai, Tibetan Momos, cold Vietnamese beers and cocktails made from Japanese plum wine. For full details of the Village du Monde's music, events and more details click hereHes - So Over in the Hes - So area (the University of Applied Arts and Sciences and Arts in Western Switzerland), the theme this year is "Air" and it has set up its own "Air Factory", a creative lab designed to explore the intangible world of air. Check out the Vortex area. Here you can fill a drum with air and then try to knock off a plastic cup off the head of a friend with the air created in the drum. See below Or how about entering into the lab where a wind blows through a small wind tunnel at 250 kilometres per hour? Special glasses are provided to enter this area. Below - Daniel Rossellat playing "blow football" - another lab in the Hes-So area. Also on the festival grounds in the Monic La Mouche part of Paléo (this is the area that is lit up at night with pretty lights and fires) there are a series of photographs of previous festivals taken by photographer Anne Colliard. Living in Nyon interviewed Anne a few years ago to find out what it is like to be a festival photographer. Click here to read article This year, as in previous years Living in Nyon will be at Paléo, reviewing a selection of the concerts, and giving updates from the L'Asse grounds on the "street" entertainers, the food and the atmsophere. Note: as there are big crowds expected for the Robbie Williams concert on Monday night, the advice from Paléo is to stagger your departure. Don't try to leave immediately after the concert, as queues for the car parks, buses and trains can be long at this time of night. So stay for another drink, another dance and avoid the crush! Photos below - Paléo before the crowds Preparing the stage on the Grande Scène Recyling bins waiting to be distributed around the grounds Paléo volunteers taking a break in the shade Les Arches stage before the crowds arrive.

Here is Jonas's final review of Paléo 2015 where he reports back from the final press conference. Photo above - Writer Jonas Parson. 270,000 at the festival The traditional end of festival press conference brought together the organisers of the festival to acknowledge the success of this anniversary edition. With an additional seventh day, over 270'000 people celebrated Paléo's 40th festival. The bands all lived up to their expectations, with the sad exception of Iziah, who had to cancel her show due to losing her voice half an hour before her show. According to Jacques Monnier, Paléo's head music programmer, she was really looking forward to performing at Paléo and left the grounds in tears. "Oldies" not out of the picture Monnier praised the extraordinary line-up of Saturday night, calling it an evening that would go down in the records as a legendary night. He noted that the legends who had performed on that evening were still up to giving the most amazing concerts after all those years, and they still had a lot to teach to the stars of today. From Joan Baez's calm class to Patty Smith's incredible energy, the "oldies" are definitely not out of the picture yet he said. This for him, validated the programming which had initially been criticised for the number of "old" artists on the line up (let's not forget that criticising the programme is something of a national sport!) He also gave a special mention to Robert Plant's performance, saying that he now nearly preferred him to Led Zeppelin, as he had managed to create amazing arrangements to his songs with a nice African touch to them. From Robbie Williams' huge show on Monday - "he proved what a real entertainer he was, mischievous and slightly cheeky" - to the slightly lesser known bands such as The Script and their melodic rock or Gary Clark Jr and his stylish blues, to artists who most people thought past their prime (such as Veronique Sanson and Johnny Hallyday), but showed they still had it in them. Another few star moments of the festival were Sting's concert on the main stage- "an artist with a capital A" according to Monnier and Explosion de Caca's special guest, Henri Dès. Watching over 3000 adults singing Henri Dès' "la petite Charlotte" was a pretty exceptional event, easily explained by the fact that most of the people in the crowd grew up listening to him over the past 30 years. Discovering new and up-and-coming bands has always been part of Paléo's charm, and this year was no different, as Monnier noted. From the slightly more outlandish and harder to access music from the Far East under the Dôme, with bands such as the barmy Japanese ensemble Pascals (a personal favourite) or the post-punk mixture of traditional instruments and guitar riffs (verging on heavy metal) of Korean band Jambinai. They showed us the existence of an underground scene in those countries. The festival also is a good outlet for local talent, as unknown gems can often be discovered by talent spotters who were here to scout out new bands for their own festivals and music venues. As Daniel Rossellat joked, the only negative note of this edition was that having to go from official celebration to anniversary apéro, he had less time to go and listen to all of these lesser known bands. Transport On a more organisational note, the new security measures put in place for the trains had been a success, although the waiting time was at times slightly too long, either due to several trains arriving at the same time at the station, or the majority of the crowd leaving at the same time after a concert. As Rossellat noted, it's impossible to change that without more train coaches, something that will be happening later this year. However waiting for a while in a queue at the station is still the faster way to get to and leave the festival compared to being stuck in traffic jams for ages! Regarding the total ban on fireworks due to the heatwave, it was somehow paradoxical to enforce a heatwave plan while being drenched by the rain! Paléo's extraordinary fire prevention unit, which boasts over 50 firemen ready to intervene, means that the Festival is exempt from the ban, allowing the traditional end of week fireworks to take place. All in all, a great and memorable edition, full of great vibes as Rossellat noted, which will give them all the enthusiasm and energy to prepare a 41st edition neither lacking in content or punch. Next year's Village du Monde will be celebrating Celtic culture, so we can trust without a doubt that it will be a very festive year!

I managed to catch up with Shivani Ahlowalia, who played under the Club Tent with her group ALO WALA on Tuesday night, to ask her a few questions about her musical influences, the powerful potential of music and plans for the future. We met up before her concert-the group's first in Switzerland!- and I enjoyed her lively and bright presence, which also showed on stage as she mesmerised the crowd, interacted with them and delivered one of the freshest and most satisfying concerts of the festival so far. Continue for the interview below. You were born in Chicago, of Indian origin, play with Danish musicians on a Portuguese label, collaborate with artists from all round the globe. Could you tell us a bit about how you got together? Haha exactly, welcome to my world! I used to live in Copenhagen, and I live again there now, because the music is going so well now with the band being based there. I've always had an interest in music, going out, clubbing basically. And I met one of the members of the band, Copyflex when he was deejaying at a club. He had a really unearthly vibe, and I was attracted to it right away. Like something beyond Scandinavian, from another planet, some really good vibes, you know. We remained friends, I went to work in South Africa, life went on, but eventually we hooked up to make music a few of years ago, like in 2011. Oh and just to follow up on that question, he has an existing band, called Copia Doble Sound Systema, so what happened was, we basically integrated the two. Well we started a new project, but with the back end of Copia Doble, so that was a massive help to the Alo Wala Project from the start. In a time where the political context in Europe witnesses the rise of nationalistic discourses and politics, your music clearly ignores all borders and values traditions and cultures, thematics that nationalists mobilise a lot,they talk about tradition, they talk about local culture etc., but you use these to bring people together, celebrate life and just have fun. That was so well put! That could be the answer to the question! There's also the work that you did in Guinea Bissau. What I'm aiming at basically is, could you tell us a bit about the political potential of music? Oh my gosh! I think music is stronger than politics to be honest, for that very reason. Because it has the power to completely eliminate the borders, and I think that as an artist , you have an absolute obligation to exercise that power. That's what I believe and every artist may take take it on in a different way, there's no one way of doing that. But it's something I recognise from the yet, you know, just being such a fan of music, and being of Indian origin, growing up in America, I really understood what it is to be rooted elsewhere, so it was really easy to find similarities in other cultures, and to be easily fascinated by them. I'm going off topic a bit but yeah, I think music definitely has the ability to erase borders. And that's the context I worked in in Guinea-Bissau. I supported a lot of up and coming artists, where there was no industry and there was a really crazy socio-economic situation. Basically, we used the music as a way to bring people together in hard times, and at times we were able to make projects that actually used this music as a mechanism to bring these artists into other countries, to make connections and start to build there lives in a different way. So music is an absolutely powerful tool. We're here, were human, we're on this planet, and if we work from there, the planet's going to be a better place Also, I think that when you talk about nationalism, nationalists forget that we're all human, and that is the foundation of my understanding, so when you start to work from there, instead of saying I'm Danish, I'm Indian, I'm American, it really changes the way you work, and I think the people I work with are like that. I just featured on a track with Dengue Dengue Dengue, hopefully fingers crossed it'll come out on their next album, and it's not about being groovy, and being Indian. Eventually it's something that's going to come out in the music, but that's not what we talk about when we get together. It's like we're here, were human, we're on this planet, and if we work from there, the planet's going to be a better place. Speaking more precisely about the music, you obviously have very broad influences. I noticed the name of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan crop up somewhere, for example. Oh, I love him, you know, I grew up very Indian in America, so really affected by the Hip-Hop era and 90s but grew up with Bollywood and Bhangra music, and Indian classical music, and Qawwali music like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan in the house, juxtaposed at the same time with Michael Jackson. I really grew up in that era, and that has been the foundation. The first album I ever bought was Bob Marley, and I had Buffalo Soldier on repeat for about a year, so I'm heavily influenced by Reggae and Dancehall. Yet the whole project started in Europe, so it has a definite European Electronica, UK Bass, Dancehall feel, and then other influences from around the world. It's not that we approach a song and stay this is going to be African and Indian etc... It's just that since we're such a diverse bunch of producers, we've got varied backgrounds, we've lived in various countries around the world, that when we sit down to make music, all of that just comes out, it's not contrived at all. You brought out an EP last autumn, then another few songs in early 2015. What are your plans for the future, will you be touring, working on some new songs? We're working on it as we speak, and we've set aside some time in late summer early fall to really like hone in, but I have some ideas in mind, some beats on the laptop, but it's really about the time, its hard to create music when you're on tour. We've been touring since May, not like every day, we're based in Copenhagen so we've been touring on weekends. It's only now that Europe is on holiday, that we've been touring on a Tuesday, and a Monday, and a Wednesday. We're going back to Copenhagen next for three shows. But it's going well. This is the first summer we've really toured, and I gather there's a lot of different ways to tour, like touring for huge bulks of time then having a lot of time off, for example. Going back a bit, you talked about studying in Copenhagen. What is it that you did? I studied business and economic development, but I've always been into music, so I found a way to make the two work. So we started an NGO in Guinea Bissau that I'm associated to at this point, but I'm not there to work, this is my project now this, ALO WALA, but my colleagues are doing a great job and it basically works with music culture and development, supporting artists, supporting infrastructure of music in Guinea-Bissau, producing festivals, etc. It's as if I only got the courage to do my own music at a certain point in life, and before that always made a point to work with music, but then I switched gears and finally did it for my self. So you're just doing music now? Yeah, because I've seen that this is a way. That it can work, and I love it. As challenging as it is I mean, I've invested a lot of time and energy into this,and it's not something I plan on working away from. At the same time it would be great to have another job, but this is so consuming! So I just hope that if we keep with the same energy,eventually it's going to be a way to support me well. Yeah, I believe in it. Well thank you for your time! Thank you very much!

If you are heading off to Paléo and at some point during the evening you want to get away from the noise of the stages and the busyness of the crowds, one place you could head off to is La Ruche area. Jonas, Living in Nyon's on site Paléo writer has already talked about this area in a previous post here. La Ruche is dedicated to street theatre so it's not completely quiet, but it has more of a laid back and family feel to than the rest of the main Paléo grounds, and this year it has created a theme of a giant sitting room with lampshades and armchairs and an area with music and djs playing chilled music amongst a lot of old Bakelite and vintage radios. There is a small bar with tables here too. Note: Children under the age of 12 are admitted free to the festival, provided they are accompanied by an adult. There is also a dedicated play area for them called Miélmelo (just past La Ruche) a non smoking/ non drinking area with entertainment provided by volunteers and the area is open until 22:00. See here The food area next to the entrance to La Ruche is dedicated to Swiss food, Malakoffs, Raclette etc and this can be a little less hectic than the food zone in the Latin Quarter (one of the main food sections). Some of the food areas in the Village du Monde can be a little quieter depending what time you eat. Queues tend to be at their longest before concerts start and after they have finished on the Grande Scène/ Main stage. If you want to eat in style, sit down and be served at at table, there are six restaurants on site where you can do this. Full details here.

The Open Air Cinema in Nyon opens today 31st July and the season continues until the 29th August. Outdoor cinema (photo from 2013). The cinema can be found at the Esplanade de la Combe, Promenade d'Italie (near the La Combe Shopping centre) Films will be screened on Weds, Thursday, Friday and Saturdays. The "version originale" films (in English) over the season are the following: Wednesday 5th, Augustat 21:15Amy - This 2015 British documentary film depicts the life and death of singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse, directed by Asif Kapadia. Thursday 13th at 21:00 Women in Gold starring Helen Mirren - The film is based on the true story of the late Maria Altmann, an elderly Jewish refugee living in Los Angeles, who, together with a young lawyer fought the Austrian government for almost a decade to reclaim Gustav's Klimt's 'iconic painting of her aunt. Thursday 20th at 21:00 Far from the Madding Crowd - Synopsis A headstrong Victorian beauty (Carey Mulligan) has her choice of three different suitors: a sheep farmer , a dashing soldier and a prosperous, older bachelor. Wednesday 26th at 21:00Wild starring starring Reese Witherspoon. With the dissolution of her marriage and the death of her mother, Cheryl Strayed has lost all hope and makes a rash decision to hike more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail alone. Tickets can be bought online here

There will be fireworks at 22:15 on the 1st August at Nyon's lakeside to celebrate Swiss National Day. Nyon château will also be lit up red for the occasion. Prior to the fireworks there will be an ceremony beginning at 19:00 at the Esplanade des Marroniers. At 19:40, there will be the ringing of bells, at 19:45 the presentation of the flag, the official ceremony will begin at 19:50 including an address by Mr Darius Rochebin, presenter of the nightly 19:30 news on RTS television. After the ceremony finishes, there will be a parade through the town ending up by the Rive. Members of the public can take part in this parade. Children can take part too and carry lanterns through the town. More details in the poster below.