Photo courtesy of Alison Pouliot
Despite the 24 hours of flight time, Australia has become the dream destination for many Europeans. This ancient mysterious land, inhabited by one of the oldest human cultures, has only known European settlement for a little more than 200 years.
No need to travel so far to get a taste of the dynamic and multicultural melange of ancient and modern that is Australia today. From 28-30 September, the Australia Festival is coming to the Esplanade du Lac in Divonne-les-Bains, France.
“We’re excited to share such a diverse and rich program. Together we will explore the land and culture of Australia that is both ancient and modern at the same time,” says festival director, Bronwyn Lay, an Australian writer who lives in the nearby village of Vesancy. “The Australia Festival 2012 will bring together the international community with the local people of the Geneva region and beyond. There’s an eclectic offering of live performances, creative workshops, art exhibitions, indigenous films, family activities and great Australian food and wine.”
Lisa Cirieco-Ohlman and Denise Nickerson invite you to attend the official launch of their two new books, Know-it-all passport 2013/2014 and Education Guide Switzerland 2012/2014.
The launch will take place at a special vernissage, including wine and nibbles, being held from 18h00 at the popular bookstore Payot Chantepoulet in Geneva. With one of the best selections of English-language and children’s books in the region, the shop will remain open until 20h in the evening so you will have plenty of time to browse their book shelves!
Now in its 8th edition, Know-it-all passport® is THE English-language reference book for anything you want to know in Geneva, Vaud and neighboring France: it includes recommendations on everything from shopping, housing and education to birthday party venues, places to eat, night life, and even chocolate! The chapter on OUTINGS AND TRIPS (56 pages) is a book within a book. You won't need anything else!
Now that the kids are back to school, it's time to start thinking about additional activities to keep them entertained and challenged when they are back at home. To help you, we have been busy posting details on our Activities Calendar of various courses recommended to us at knowitall.ch. Below we have highlighted just a small handful of the recent ones that we have posted on the site this week. Since the calendar relies solely on recommendations from you (we don't trawl the internet looking for courses), we urge you to let us know if you think we have missed a good one!
Undoubtedly some of the most popular courses in the region are those provided by Intersoccer. With lots of different programmes running throughout Switzerland, including Geneva, Founex, Nyon, Versoix and Gland, Interosccer has soccer classes to suit all ages and ability from 2 to 13 years old. If you're not sure whether it's the right thing for your child, why not pop along to one of the Free Trials they are running during September. Visit our calendar for more details.
For younger children, The Little Gym in Geneva has a huge program of activities for children aged from 4 months to 12 years. We've just posted their schedule on our calendar, but if you want more details on individual classes then visit their website here.
Photo courtesy of www.bottens.ch
There are just a couple of weeks left to enjoy the giant cornfield labyrinth which opens each year at the Ferme du Coucou in Vaud – so head on down there if you fancy a great day out with the family!
Located halfway between Cugy and Bottens, this enormouse life-size labyrinth is guaranteed to provide hours of fun for you and your kids. As you work your way towards the center of the maze, the young ones will take pleasure in searching out the six hole punchers, which you need to punch your entrance ticket before it can be submitted in the competition box located at the beginning of the maze. With prizes ranging from jewelry to a free flight, it’s definitely worth finding them all before you leave!
In the center of the maze are some picnic tables, a few tents, a slide and see saw, and a barbecue for grilling your own meat. Coals are provided in the green bin but you must bring something to light them.
A new organization catering to people who want to make the most of our beautiful countryside, including the Jura and Alps, has just been launched in the Lake Geneva region.
Set up by local entrepreneur, Yvette Evers, Fraiche Air invites the public to embark on small group adventures with her, by exploring local hiking trails, and discovering a range of outdoor activities such as snowshoeing and canoeing.
To make the most of what Fraiche Air has to offer, clients are advised to take advantage of an annual membership package, which provides exclusive benefits to subscribers. Depending on the level of involvement, two packages are offered, providing access to a range of different activities, information and discounts: click here to see the full range of benefits on offer.
A sustainability consultant specializing in tourism, Yvette told knowitall.ch that the idea for setting up Fraiche Air came to her when she moved to Switzerland from the Netherlands in 2009, and realized that there was very little information about local hiking in English. After setting up her own monthly hiking group to try out new routes in the region, she decided to make the group official this September: with over 150 members, it was time to create Fraiche Air and offer an expanded range of products and services to meet the growing demands of her customers!
