Monday, April 30, 2012

Free Zumba Classes in Lugano

"You're only one workout away from a good mood!"


To all you Zumba fans out there: listen up! I know for a fact that Lugano has quite a few Zumba fans from all kinds of nationalities. Get your bodies over to the A-Club in Savosa for a free Zumba Master Class on Thursday, May 24th, 2012. After all the dancing action you'll be able to continue the fun with an aperitivo and a buffet accompanied by DJ Brian.

Venue: Zumba Master Class Event
Where: A-Club, Via Centro Sportivo 5, 6942 Savosa
When: Thursday, May 24th, 2012
Time: 19:00 -20:30
Reservations under Tel: 091/966'13'13



Just click here and print the invitation for the Zumba event of the year!


Friday, April 27, 2012

Excursions with Kids around Lugano

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.”
Marcel Proust

Hopefully the sunny season will begin soon and Ticino will be showing itself from its best side: sunny and in full bloom. Following are a few classic places to visit over the summer months with your kids. If you're a local you probably know most of these spots but hey you can always go back and rediscover and enjoy.


Tassino Park - Lugano
Great park with lots of space, picnic and play areas.

The Cantonal Museum of History
This museum investigates, documents, studies and divulges the knowledge relating to the natural heritage of the Canton Ticino.

Museum of Swiss Customs
A place where you can gain an insight into the daily work of Switzerland’s customs officers and border control guards in an enchanted part of the lake

Alprose Chocolate Museum in Caslano-Lugano

Caslano Minigolf 
Great little place with minigolf, trampolines and small cars

Swiss Miniatur in Melide-Lugano
An open-air museum with the most important Swiss buildings and means of transportation. 

Zoo al Maglio - Magliaso
The zoo is situated on the banks of the Magliasina river and is especially suited for young children since the animals can be petted and fed. 

Monte Tamaro
Take the cable car to the top of the mountain
Lots of activities for children, summer bob sledding, adventure park and play ground for the youngest

Parco Avventura
The Adventure Park Gordola is an acrobatic park hanging in the air and integrated in the sport area in Gordola.

Monte San Giorgio
Discover Switzerland's one and only fossil trail.

Lido di Lugano
Great place in the summer months with huge fun paddling pool

Lido di Caslano 
Nice small sandy beach on the lake between Ponte Tresa and Lugano


The 3 medieval castles of Bellinzona

Falconeria Locarno
Discover the fascinating world of birds of prey

Kart Longhi
Let your boys dreams come true on Locarno's kart racing circuit. Minikart as of 8 years.

Lama Trekking - Iseo

Lamatreks - Ponte Capriasca
Lama trekking in the mountains for children and families.

Thursday, April 26, 2012

A Swiss Air-Rescue called REGA

Yet another Swiss institution is the REGA. If you grew up in Switzerland, you know the red helicopters that save injured skiers off the slopes are the trusted REGA helpers.


Rega comes to the aid of people in distress, providing swift, professional medical assistance by air. In order to do this, it employs state-of-the-art operating resources, such as helicopters and air-ambulances. Rega’s workforce comprises qualified, experienced staff. Rega acts according to medical necessity and in the service of its patients. In 2011, Swiss Air-Rescue performed a total of 14,240 missions – never before has it been in such great demand by the Swiss population.

What today functions in Switzerland almost as a matter of course has gradually developed over a period of decades. The history of Rega is an eventful one. While in earlier times, the only way to rescue people in distress in the mountains was overland, already in 1946 aircraft started being used for this purpose. Just a few years later, the increasingly popular helicopter took over this task, and as from 1960, Swiss Air Rescue also began to transport seriously ill or injured persons back to Switzerland from countries abroad – by plane. The pioneers of the day shaped this age of development in the sphere of air rescue.

The ever growing magnitude and professionalism in the field of air rescue resulted in new organisational forms: what began as a section of the Schweizerische Lebensrettungsgesellschaft rescue association became an association, and finally assumed its present-day form as a privately-run, non-profit foundation.

It is a privately run, non-profit foundation, which operates independently of the State or of financial interests.


The Swiss Air Rescue was founded on 27 April 1952. 60 years later, the performance of Rega are more in demand than ever. Rega is on stand-by 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, ready to respond to emergency calls – both in Switzerland and abroad.

Download their app onto your mobile phone here or watch them for yourself. Rega invites you to join it in celebrating its 60th anniversary. In this jubilee year, you can look forward to their Open Days, during which you will be able to experience Rega at close quarters. Programme here.


Tuesday, April 24, 2012

A little help from Betty Bossi

"What is patriotism but the love of the food one ate as a child?"
Lin Yutang

If you grew up in Switzerland you will know who Betti Bossi is. A fictitious chef, Betty Bossi has been help­ing the Swiss with cooking and home making since 1956. She pub­lishes four new cookbooks per year fea­tur­ing orig­inal regional recipes that are very easy to pre­pare. The Betty Bossi label produces ten mag­a­zines annually devoted to cookery with a total circu­lation of 825,000 copies. Over the past decades, I have had my magazines sent to Geneva, to Buenos Aires, to Milano, to Madrid, to Lugano and now I look forward to receiving my monthly Swiss dose of homemade flavours in Paris.

Start your own collection by ordering Betty Bossi’s “Schwiizer Chuchi”, a collection of over 130 Swiss traditional recipies! Schwiizer Chuchi means Swiss Kitchen in Swiss German. And if you can pronounce the word Chuchichästli (Kitchen cupboard) then your on your way to becoming a real Swiss.

The recipes are organized by region. In a land with four languages and such cultural diversity, this is a necessity. There is a brief description of each region and its cuisine, along with attractive photos. Each recipe is accompanied by a photo.

The ring binding and glossy pages make it practical to use. The Swiss Cookbook is appropriate for Swiss people as well as for expatriates, because it gives a good overview of traditional Swiss cuisine and contemporary cuisine using Swiss ingredients.

An English copy can be ordered online from the Betty Bossi online shop, and is also available in many supermarkets in Switzerland.




Monday, April 23, 2012

French food & Wine tasting at L'Epicerie in Lugano

“It is well to remember that there are five reasons for drinking: the arrival of a friend, one's present or future thirst, the excellence of the wine, or any other reason.”
Latin Proverb

Ever heard of the shop 
L'Epicerie? The Evening group of 
IWCL
 is 
delighted 
to 
invite 
you 
for 
an
 evening
 of 
French 
food 
(provided
 by 
Fior
di 
Gusto) 
and 
natural 
French 
wine
 tasting 
with 
owner 
Thierry
 Jaques ­Dalcroze.

 


You 
will 
have 
the 
opportunity 
to 
taste:


• two 
Côtes 
du 
Rhône 
Syrah/Grenache 
(with
 one 
having 
a 
small 
per centage 
of
 Mourvèdre)


• two
 Sauvignon 
Blanc 
from
 the 
Loire


The 
idea 
is 
to 
taste 
the 
same 
grape 
from
 the 
same 
region 
and 
learn 
the
 subtle
 differences
 that 
soil,
 orientation,
 climate 
and 
the
 winemakers' 
techniques 
can
 make. 
In
 addition, 
these 
are 
all 
natural 
wines 
of
 which 
one 
is 
biodynamic 
made 
from
 organically 
grown
 grapes
 and 
fermented 
with
 little 
to
 no 
added
 sulfites.



So, will you be able to 
distinguish 
the 
difference
 between
 natural 
and
 traditionally‐made 
wines
?

Please 
note
 that 
this 
will
 mainly
 be 
a
 standing 
event with
 a 
very 
limited
 amount 
of
 seats
 available.
 As
 the
 shop 
is 
small 
and
 cosy 
there 
will 
be
 a 
maximum
 capacity 
of
 25 
people 
for
 the
 event. 
If 
you 
are 
interested 
in 
participating 
please
 sign
 up 
as 
soon 
as
 possible.



Venue:    French food & Wine tasting at L'Epicerie
Where:

    L'Epicerie,
 Via 
Lucchini
 1
, 
6900
 Lugano
 (next
 to 
Parq
 Restaurant)


When:

     Thursday,
 
April 30th, 2012
Time:
      19.30


Price:

      CHF
 38.–
per
 person 
(including 
food
 and 
wine)

Reservations:

 Please 
book by 
contacting

 the Evening 
Group

 via mail at iwcleveninggroup@gmail.com

 
or call Sabrina
 at 079
642
40
18 or 
Sandrine
 at

 078
751
43
75
.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Swiss Insurance World

“Fun is like life insurance; the older you get, the more it costs.”
 Kin Hubbard

Would you like to understand the world of Swiss insurances? Need some help or advice on how to contract an insurance? Happy to recieve tips and hints on how to maximize your insurance policy?


The Lugano English speaking Group is organizing an informal presentation and discussion about the Swiss insurance system - particularly how it compares to systems in other countries. It is presented by Ares Pagnamenta from Gandolfi & Partners in Lugano, a firm that was established in 1986 and specializes in all types of insurance. After a brief presentation, there will be plenty of time for your questions.

This is your opportunity to get your teeth into the subject and get all the information you need.

Venue: Swiss Insurance World
Where: The Book Nook, English library of Lugano, Residenza Pico, Via Pedemonte 2, Viganello
Date: Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
Time: 18:00

Friday, April 20, 2012

One rainy afternoon in Lugano

"Weather is a great metaphor for life - sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, and there's nothing much you can do about it but carry an umbrella."
Terri Guillemets


Looking down the lake of Lugano towards the bridge of Melide


View of the Monte Bré, Lugano's landmark


The Casinò of Lugano


Sweet, sweet Switzerland


Some true Swiss entertainment


Another of Lugano's landmarks


What would we do without the Innovazione, ehhh sorry, the Manor?

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Lugano rocks

Who said Lugano is a quiet, tranquil, sleepy village? Just take a stroll around town in a Saturday afternoon and you will always bump into some market, activity, exhibit or some other sort of entertainment. You'll probably come across quite a few familiar faces but that is the nice side of living in a small town. You can be sure you'll meet someone you know down town.

Today Lugano rocked to the music of the Swiss PowerBrass band. Now the name says it all. This energetic band held over 200 people under its spell in Piazza Riforma this afternoon.


Swiss Powerbrass is a young and innovative brass band established in 2002 in Buochs, Switzerland.

The 55 young and young-hearted band members with their unique blend of horns and rhythms of popular music a new genre that continued to fascinate the Lugano audience, encouraged their participation and carried them away to dreams of exuberant celebrations. Now picture that! I am serious, everybody was having a jolly good time despite the weather.

So, should the Swiss Powerbrass band stop by your neighbourhood one day, make sure you get comfortable and be prepared for some great entertainment.

Listen for yourself:

Thursday, April 12, 2012

A beer and a chat

Feel like a beer and a chat or a prosecco and a laugh? Join the English speaking group tomorrow night at their monthly Meet-up at the Spuntino Diverso.


Venue: Monthly Meet-up
Where: Spuntino Diverso, Via F.Pelli 14, 6900 Lugano (see map)
When: Friday, April 13th, 2012
Time: 19:30


Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Salty Times - a silent Swiss short film

Salty Times was directed by Stefan Eichenberger and came second in the 2011 Swiss Hotel Film Awards. This is a competition where all 20 short film finalists are set in Swiss hotels, hence the name of the prize.
It was filmed in the Grandhotel Giessbach along Lake Brienz in the Bernese Oberland, and in the Hotel Belle Epoque in Bern. Two beautiful hotels that have kept that wonderful 19th century feel to them.

The story is set in a hotel in the 1930s. A shy salesman of saltshakers arrives. He is the only guest. While drinking a glass of milk in the lobby bar, the sexy singer chats him up – but only to make the barkeeper - her ex - jealous.

But see for yourself.

Monday, April 9, 2012

4 ideas for a rainy afternoon with kids

Are you looking for ways to keep your child entertained on a rainy afternoon? These indoor activities will keep your child from going stir-crazy, and will help you maintain your sanity!

1.) Construct an Indoor Obstacle Course
Your child doesn't need to go outside to burn off excess energy under the pouring rain. You can create an indoor obstacle course that will keep your child entertained for hours!


As you design your obstacle course, keep in mind the ages, abilities, and number of children involved as well as the space you have. Make the course simple at first and change the stations as they're mastered. If you like, time the kids to see who can complete the course fastest. Below are a few ideas to get you started. Ten stations is a good number for most kids.

Directions:
Crawl under or over a row of chairs.
Crawl under a string stretched between two chair legs.
Jump into and out of a Hula-Hoop five times.
Walk on a balance board.
Throw a beanbag into a laundry basket.
Run while balancing a beanbag on your head.
Do a ring toss.
Play one hole of Newspaper Golf.
Ride a tricycle along a predetermined route.
Somersault from one point to another.
Do a handstand.
Skip in place while reciting a jump rope rhyme.
Do ten jumping jacks.

2.) Write a Story
Do you have an aspiring novelist in your household? You and your child can create your very own story, together, one word at a time. It's a blast to see where your imagination takes you when you and your child work together!


Directions:
Want to hear a great story? Then create one with your child, a word at a time. (As you'll see, this is also a neat activity to do with a word processor.)

a) Have your child say or write any word to begin the tale. Then you add a word, and your child adds another, until the first sentence is finished. This cooperative writing approach continues until the story comes to a conclusion. It may or may not be the ending you had envisioned, but that's the whole point: You never know what direction the tale will take when you and your child become co-authors.
b) Once you've gotten the hang of co-writing a story in this fashion, up the ante by introducing a new rule: No one can use the words "or," "and," or "but." That's a lot more difficult than it sounds. Take turns inventing new rules, too, just to keep each other on your toes.
c) Gee, that's going to be tough when you can only use words less than five letters long . . .

3.) Make a Time Capsule
Time capsules are a fun way to record the present and remember the past. They are easy to make, and your child will love making predictions about her life and finding trinkets she thinks will be of interest to her future self!


Help your child create a time capsule to be opened next year--or ten years from now.

Materials:
Pen
Paper
Small shoebox
Current photo of your child
Current photo of your family
Other meaningful keepsakes
Tape or ribbon
Directions

a) Help your child prepare information to put into her time capsule by asking her questions (and writing down her responses if necessary). You might ask about favorite foods, songs, activities, friends, and so on.
b) Ask your child what she looks forward to in the coming years and what she expects life to be like next year or when she's a teenager or an adult.
c) When everything is written down, place the paper in a small shoebox along with a current photo of your child, a current photo of your family, and other meaningful keepsakes.
d) Place the lid on the shoebox and write your child's name on it, the date on which the time capsule is being closed, and the date on which it's to be opened.
e) Secure the time capsule with tape or ribbon and keep it in a safe place until it's time to open it.

4.) Create Your Family Tree
Making a family tree is a great way to spend quality time with your kids, and the result will be enjoyed by everyone who comes to your house!


a) Look at home. Do a scavenger hunt in your house. A lot of us are sitting on family history and don't even know it. Go up in the attic or down in the basement. You might find a family bible with names written in the cover, certificates for births, deaths, and marriages, or medals from a grandfather who fought in the war.
b) Talk with older relatives. Talking with older people is one of the smartest things you can do. Older people are living libraries.
c) Start with yourself. Begin by tracking and documenting this generation of your family using reliable sources, like government records, and then slowly backtrack one generation at a time. Census records are great family snapshots. Because they're done every 10 years, it makes it easy to march back in time.
d) Turn to the Internet to fill in holes and document what you know. Several sites offer family tree services, such as Ancestry.com, Geni.com, Genoom.com, MyHeritage.com, and WeRelate.org.

Friday, April 6, 2012

Happy Easter

Chocolate Rabbit

I got a chocolate rabbit
For an Easter treat,
A great big chocolate rabbit,
Good enough to eat.
So I ate his ears on Sunday,
his nose I finished Monday,
Tuesday I nibbled on his feet.
I ate his tail on Wednesday,
Thursday I kept on,
By Friday he was going,
Saturday he was gone.
Oh, I loved that chocolate rabbit,
From the moment that he came,
And if I get another one,
I'll love him just the same.


Monday, April 2, 2012

Urban Art Lugano

"The term urban means from the city which is derived from the Latin word urbanus. It is associated with art that is created by artist living, depicting, or experiencing city life."

Ever felt like painting those boring gray walls or those dreary looking tunnels? Well, Lugano has given an artist permission to do so and is actually inviting the public to participate by watching him.

Urban Art Lugano is pleased to present the work of Italian artist Agostino Iacurci. Urban Art Lugano strives to unite the synergies between public and private partnerships to foster artistic interventions in urban spaces. In this spirit AUL opens another collaboration with a private citizen and has kindly provided a wall of their building in via Lavizzari 5 in Lugano.


It is on this great wall from Monday, April 2nd to Sunday, April 8th, 2012 that you will be able to see Augustine Iacurci in action.

Everyone in invited to walk through the Via Lavizzari and let themselves be surprised by the artist's work and to admiring his creation which will remain visible for at least 2 years.

Urban Art Lugano is also in the process of deciding on a project for the ugly Besso tunnel which should be completed by the end of June. Inauguration is planned during the Longlake Festival 2012.


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