Zirkus Knie - a family tradition in every way

 "For the Love of the Circus"
by Cath "Shandy" Carpenter (Clown)

For the love of the Circus.  How much would we give?
Just twenty four hours of each day that I live
Travelling the road with one thought in mind
Each gaff will be better than that left behind.
A mere stretch of road boasting grass nothing more
Will suddenly erupt with excitement galore
and then overnight when we've passed on our way
Just memories remain to tell of our stay.
For the love of the Circus what are the rewards?
No Bouquets, Diploma's or Glittering Awards
Just knee deep in mud - the strength of the gale
Before none of these would my devotion pale.
High out of reach the adrenalin soars
When Children are laughing and hands give applause
Roll up! Roll up! Pay your Money come in
The Elixir of life is about to begin.

 It's the time of year that all kids look forward to. The time of year when the magic hits Lugano. No, I'm not talking about Christmas. This enchantment comes in the form of a circus. A circus that was founded in 1803 and is part of the Swiss patrimony. Each and every year - religiously - Circus Knie tours all through Switzerland with 347 performances and ends its wonderful journey in Lugano.

I usually try to get tickets for the last show because you can feel the special atmosphere of all the artists trying to capture the moment by giving it their very best for their last performance of the season. Also the impressive outer tent, the entrance alley, cashier wagon and the huge KNIE luminous sign that you were so dreamingly looking up to, have all dissappeared by the time you leave the show. All 200 persons from 16 different nations and over 100 animals are on their way home to Rapperswil to get a well-deserved break before starting to pratice for next year's performance.

Don't miss Circus Knie's blog (in French) about last year's adventure while driving back home through the Gotthard tunnel. Click here.

My Dad used to take me to Zirkus Knie - religiously - in Zürich in the spring when I was a little girl. I  thoroughly enjoy keeping up this tradtion by taking my kids to the Circo Knie every fall in Lugano.

So, run! Get your tickets, if you have not done so yet, because the circus is coming to town TONIGHT!!!
Tickets are available online here: ticketcorner or by phone: 0900 800 800.

Venue: Circus Knie
Where: Stadium Cornaredo
When: November 17th to 20th, 2011
Performances:
Thursday, Nov 17th - 20.15
Friday, Nov 18th - 15.00 / 20.15
Saturday, Nov 19th - 13.30 / 17.00 / 20.30
Sunday, Nov 20th - 10.30 / 14.30 / 18.00

InterNations Lugano Networking Aperitivo

...and you thought Lugano was tranquil after dark?

Well get ready to party and I mean serious partying!

Over 170 Internationals have already signed up for tomorrows' event. Yep. Every single International is coming out of the woodwork to prove that you can have fun in Lugano.

InterNations are happy to invite you to their November 2011 Lugano get-together, to mingle, catch up with friends, and meet new people.

The InterNations' community in Lugano has been growing very quickly over the past year and they have already reached 825+ members.

Never heard of InterNations? Doesn't matter just check out my previous post and hurry to sign up.

Once again they have kidnapped the Bar/Restaurant La Lanchetta on the shore of Lake Lugano exclusively for their event. They will be meeting on Wednesday, November 16, 2011 from 7 pm onwards.

The entrance fee of 10 CHF for basic members and 20 CHF for attendees who are not on the guest list includes one welcome drink as well as a buffet with a selection of appetizers and snack foods. After that, as usual, drinks are pay self (pay as you go / no tabs please)!

Please register and then put yourself on the guest list for this event by clicking the Accept Invitation button. Feel free to bring your international friends but please do invite them to sign up to InterNations, too. The guest list will be closed at 5PM on the day of the event.

Venue: InterNations Get-together
Where: La Lanchetta, Viale Castagnola 16, 6900 Lugano, Tel: +41 (0) 91 971 55 51
When: Wednesday, November 16th, 2011
Time: 19:00 onwards

For any additional information phone Anneke (InterNations Lugano coordinator) at 079 625 70 52.

Make an Advent calendar

Every year when December comes around not only my kids but my hubby also look forward to receiving their Advent Calendar. I thought I'd share this tradition with my readers while giving them ideas for a home-made calendar. Preparing Advent calendars by filling them with little surprises is half the fun of it.

Following is an Advent calendar I found online by Kimberly Petersen. It is made with paper and fabric scraps, chipboard, stickers, and various knick-knacks/household junk.

Activities include:
Deck the halls!
Take photos for Christmas cards
Buy a new Christmas album and listen to it
Make the house smell like Christmas
Make Christmas Cards
Read a Christmas Story Book
Wrap Christmas Gifts
Make a new Christmas Decoration
Color a Christmas picture
Build a snowman or hang up paper snowflakes
Make hot chocolate and stir with candy canes
Make a treat and take it to a friend
Watch a christmas movie and eat popcorn
Go out for a Christmas treat
Do something nice for someone
Drive around and look for Christmas lights
Go visit Santa Clause
Do service for someone in need
Have a campout in front of the Christmas tree
Call grandma and grandpa and sing a Christmas song
Take gifts to teachers and friends
Read a story or watch a movie about the birth of Baby Jesus
Make cookies and write letters for Santa Clause
Read "The Night Before Christmas"
Christmas!!!

Missing Lugano!

“As I look back on all that's happened..growing up, growing together, changing you, changing me -- there were times when we dreamed together, when we laughed and cried together. As I look back on those days, I realize how much I truly miss you and how much I truly love you. The past may be gone forever..and whatever the future holds, our todays make the memories of tomorrow. So, my lifetime friend, it is with all my heart that I send you my love, hoping that you'll always carry my smile with you, for all we have meant to each other and for whatever the future may hold.”

Notte del racconto 2011 - Other worlds

"La notte del racconto" (The Night of story telling) will be held throughout Switzerland on Friday, November 11, 2011.

"La notte del racconto" is based on a simple yet brilliant concept: to tell a story, to read aloud, throughout all of Switzerland, the same night. The idea is to let children and adults enjoy a special moment full of mysterious charm by returning to the ancient tradition of listening and re-inventing a model of communication which has nowadays become rarer and rarer. More importantly still than the natural pleasure of the narrative, it permits to unite generations for a fun event. Story telling, reading aloud, listening, all actions that take on a special and precious value in our time devoted to the image, speed, fragmentation, disintegration, and impatience.

The theme this year will be: OTHER WORLDS

Other worlds, meaning worlds different from ours, are at the base of this year's "Notte del racconto". The theme is broad and allows the organizers (usually schools) to move in diverse contexts: extraterrestrial worlds, fantasy worlds, real worlds, but different from ours (the life of the nomadic people, the Indians, the inhabitants of the North Pole, etc.) fairy worlds or magic worlds are some of the possibilites for those who want to attend the event.

So, don't miss this special moment and check with your local school to see where and when you can catch a mysterious story that will accompany you into your dreams tomorrow night.

Or click here to check for a list of participaring schools in Ticino: http://www.buchstart.ch/it/manifestazioni/.
The events marked in yellow are open to the wider public.

Inner peace! So easy...

I am passing this on to you because it definitely worked for me today, and we all could probably use more calm in our lives.

A renowned psycho-analyst on TV this morning said the way to achieve inner peace is to finish all the things you have started.

So I looked around my house to see the things I'd started and hadn't finished. As a result I have managed to finish off a bottle of Merlot, a bottle of Chardonnay, a bodle of Baileys, a butle of wum, a pockage of Prungles, tha mainder of bot Prozic and Valiuminun scriptins, the res of the chesescke an a box a chocletz. Yu haf no idr how bludy fablus I feel rite now. Plaese sned dhis orn to dem yu fee ar in ned ov iennr pisss. An telum, u blody luvum!

Just had one of those days today!!!

Trunk show at the Palazzo Mantegazza

Ever wondered what the Palazzo Mantegazza looked liked from the inside? Curious to see what this impressive and elegant project built by the brothers Sergio and Geo Mantegazza is all about?

Well, here's you're chance to check out its unique and ingenious design with the perfect excuse for some personalized shopping. 

Don't miss the next trunk show in Lugano featuring

ALICIA PERU ALPACA KNITWEAR

TIMOTITI BIJOUX & ACCESSORIES

and introducing

LOVELY CAKES by PARTY CODE

Venue: Trunk Show
Where: The Lounge, Palazzo Mantegazza (5th floor), 6900 Lugano
When: Thursday November 10th, 2011
Time: 10:00 am to 5:00pm
Parking is available in the Palazzo Montegazza

IWCL Christmas Bazaar: Nov 8th, 2011

You are all invited to join the International Women's Club of Lugano's Christmas Bazaar on Tuesday, November 8th from 09.30 till 12.00 at the Hotel Pestalozzi, Piazza Indipendenza 9, 6901 Lugano.

You’ll have the opportunity to chat and have tea among friends. The little people are welcome too as they will have adorable babysitters ready to take care of them.

So, shop knowing that you’ll be helping our charity: Aiuto Svizzera alla Pace in Bosnia (www.swissaidbosnia.com)

Come and browse through the following Christmas stalls:
Children's toys and books from "All for Kids"
Watercolours/clothing
Jewellery/small gift ideas/Aura Soma
Christmas décor/jewellery
Ladhaki/Tibetan Products
Jewellery creations
Second-hand items
Clothes/jewellery
Alicia Peru wool wear/accessories
Jewellery-embedded T-Shirts and Cotton Candy
Masaba Coffee
Beautiful objects for Christmas
Handcrafted items
Antiques

The IWCL is looking forward to seeing you there. Come make a difference!

Venue: IWCL Christmas Bazaar
Where: Hotel Pestalozzi, Piazza Indipendenza 9, 6901 Lugano
When: Tuesday, November 8th, 2011
Time: 9:30 to 12:00

4 common attributes of TCK

Children who grow up overseas, whose parents' careers keep them abroad for most, or all of their formative years, are called - Third Culture Kids.

Studies show that these kids mature faster, are more independent and introspective, more sophisticated and cosmopolitan, and far more knowledgeable about the world than their compatriots from their country of birth.

There are 4 common themes that give these kids an edge or advantage in today's world.

Change - They know how to cope with high change, because of the constant change of location, friends, schools and cultural experiences they have been exposed to. They are in a continual process of adapting and relating the culture(s) they are coming from, with the new cultures they are entering every few years.

Relationships - Before the introduction of social networking, they learned to make friends quickly, and also to let them go just as quickly, because of the many relocations they went through.

However this traumatic aspect is becoming a thing of the past, with the trend to social networking sites like FaceBook, MySpace, Twitter, and Skype that allow them to maintain close, day-to-day communications no matter where they are in the world. These kids are now able to keep a network of close friendships even though they are not in physical proximity.

This is a global revolution that is sure to have implications professionally, as they become adults and move into the work world. Hopefully, it will also influence the future of world affairs in a positive way. It's interesting to note that President Barack Obama was a TCK.

WorldView - They see the commonality between cultures, viewing themselves first as humans, in a Global World, rather than being connected to any particular culture. Because they have friends all over the world, they have compassion, empathy and concern for people who live in other parts of the world, whose culture they have known personally.

They understand that one can hold a personal truth, and still acknowledge the existence of other truths being held in other cultures, without necessarily being impelled to change the views of others to conform with one's own worldview.

Cultural Identity - As a consequence of their global living experiences, they are not attached to any particular culture. Third Culture Kids can feel at home anywhere on the planet. They also have the capacity to select and integrate aspects from many different cultures that they have experienced. This gives them a strong cultural openness and understanding that is beyond the grasp of mono-cultural children.

They do not feel separate or isolated, as they move around the planet. They carry an inner confidence that if necessary, they could survive anywhere. They are truly 'Inhabitants of the World' - Global Citizens who can take a job in any culture, and fit in.

All Saints Day facts

"Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass, of glory in the flower, We will grieve not, rather find strength in what remains behind."
William Wordsworth

November comes from the Latin word "novem" which means nine. It was originally the ninth month of the year in the Roman calendar which began with March. When January and February were added to the Roman calendar, November became the eleventh month of the Gregorian calendar. November is one of the four months that has thirty days.

All Saints' Day, often shortened to All Saints, is a solemnity celebrated on November 1st by parts of Western Christianity, and on the first Sunday after Pentecost in Eastern Christianity, in honor of all the saints, known and unknown.

All Saints Day, the day on which Catholics celebrate all the saints, known and unknown, is a surprisingly old feast. It arose out of the Christian tradition of celebrating the martyrdom of saints on the anniversary of their martyrdom. When martyrdoms increased during the persecutions of the late Roman Empire, local dioceses instituted a common feast day in order to ensure that all martyrs were properly honored.

The current date of November 1 was instituted by Pope Gregory III (731-741), when he consecrated a chapel to all the martyrs in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and ordered an annual celebration. This celebration was originally confined to the diocese of Rome, but Pope Gregory IV (827-844) extended the feast to the entire Church and ordered it to be celebrated on November 1.

The vigil or eve of the feast, October 31, is commonly known as All Hallows Eve, or Halloween. Despite concerns among some Christians (including some Catholics) in recent years about the "pagan origins" of Halloween, the vigil was celebrated from the beginning—long before Irish practices, stripped of their pagan origins (just as the Christmas tree was stripped of similar connotations), were incorporated into popular celebrations of the feast.