Meeting mode

I will try to do a bit of catch up here. Once I got to Nyon it got a bit more difficult to keep this blog going due to temperamental internet access at my little old hotel and too much to concentrate on at the meeting which I am going to every day.  

All of the people attending the meeting, around 30 people, are staying in two hotels in the village of Nyon on Lake Leman. This is near Geneva and right in the south-west corner of Switzerland which is surrounded by France. My hotel in Nyon is the same one I always stay in, Hostellerie Seis Siecle. It has a restaurant on the bottom floor and a very old style windy stone stairway up to the top floors. I have one of the rooms overlooking the street and the Patisserie, which is my favourite view.

The village of Nyon is built on an old Roman town. The streets are narrow and windy and many are still cobbled. There is a castle in the town and lots of lovely old houses. There are lots of lovely shops to look through but unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) I am away too early and back too late to make the opening hours.

In the morning we walk to the train and take a 8 minute ride to Gland and then walk to the IUCN building where the Ramsar offices are.  We are in our 4^th day of meetings and everyone is a bit tired because the topics are all BIG. Today we have moved to another location for our meeting because we visited a Ramsar site. It is on Lake Neuchatel to the Northeast and there is an historical house on the property and that is where we are having our meeting.

But tonight is the dinner and the Ramsar Raffle, my little contribution to the proceedings. Everyone brings something that is from their country and/or relates to wetlands and/or relates to Ramsar. Yes we do the stealing thing. All very fun.