Argentan
Sint-Niklaas
Schongau
Lucca
Colmar
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PAST EVENTS 2014 |
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Go to 2015 Events or 2013 Events. See also the list of all Events since 2007, Future Events and the Newsletters. Many images can be enlarged by clicking on them.
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Christmas LunchSunday 21 December 2014 - The Cosener's House, Abbey Close
Approximately fifty members and guests enjoyed the annual Christmas lunch on Sunday 21st December. The lunch took place, as it has for the past few years, at The Cosenors House. The food and service were up to their usual high standard and there was a good choice of starters, mains and desserts. The company and atmosphere were also very good and the buzz of conversation only abated a little when the food for each course was served. The event was organised and hosted by Mars Street who even arranged a free glass of wine with the meal and to whom we offer our thanks. John Prior Evening Meeting - Punch and JudyWednesday 19 November 2014 - Preston Road Community Centre 
Twinning welcomed Alix Booth who has worked with Mr Punch for over thirty years taking him from cottages to stately homes, from churches to cathedrals, schools, history societies and even abroad. Her interest in the history of Punch & Judy has continued throughout this time and, during her talk, she was able to introduce and explain the background of the individual puppets from her Puppet Cabaret and give us a short demonstration of the type of performance the puppet would contribute to the show. This included light political satire, which Alix is forever updating - her most recent puppet being the character of Alex Salmond! Punch represents the common man fighting his small battles with life and the characters in the traditional show are just the ones that would have beset him from 1760-1830 when the story, as we know it today, was developed. Alix also talked about the equivalent type of show available at that time in Europe. The talk, which is given through the puppets, includes Samuel Pepys who first recorded seeing Pulcinella in 1662! We were well entertained throughout the hour with all the visual and aural stimulation that kept the audience highly amused. We met the Hangman and Beadle as well as Queen Victoria! Alix later answered questions related to her trips to Kensington Palace where she entertained the royal children and how she obtained the puppets and their upkeep. A most enjoyable evening was completed with complimentary (and complementary) refreshments - what else but sausages, ice cream cornets and a whacky punch to drink! Thanks to the committee for making the evening so memorable. Gloria Tolputt Visit from Lucca6 - 11 November 2014 ADTTS hosted visitors from Lucca to Abingdon. They arrived on Thursday 6th November for a full programme of activities before leaving on Tuesday 11th November. The visit was arranged to include the Remembrance Day commemorations. After being welcomed on the Sunday to the Civic Service in St Helen's church, the party proceeded to the ceremony in The Square where Maria Curto from Lucca, representing our twin towns, together with Stella Carter for ADTTS, laid wreaths at the war memorial.
Journey to Abingdon, twinned town with Lucca, Tuscany, Italy (13/11/2014) A delegation of 10 Lucchesi has just returned from the UK, after a short stay in Abingdon, hosted by the ADTTS (twinning society) friends. The occasion this time was the Remembrance Day commemorations where both the ADTTS, represented by Stella Carter and the Lucchese delegation, represented by Maria Curto laid two wreaths of poppies at the war memorial. The ceremony was indeed moving, in a square full of people in sincere and respectful silence praying for all those soldiers who lost their lives for freedom. This year the Remembrance was particularly for the 100 year Anniversary of WW1(1914-2014). On Friday 7th of November Abingdon’s Mayor, Angela Lawrence, received the Italian visitors and their English hosting families and welcomed them most friendly. A second invitation came, this time directly from the Mayor, in occasion of the reception held by the Town Hall after the commemoration ceremony on Sunday the 9th. At this official event the Lucchese delegation could assist at the signature of an agreement of cooperation between the local Royal British Legion and the Town Hall of Abingdon to provide vital care and support to the Armed Forces community in need of help. Italian MarketSaturday 25 October 2014 - Market Place
Evening Meeting - The French in LondonWednesday 15 October 2014 - Preston Road Community Centre
Three friendly young French people spoke candidly about their experiences of living and working in London. Antoine, a manager in a communications company and Gwen, a translator, were both brought up in Argentan and visited Abingdon with their parents through twinning. Antoine brought his girlfriend, Camille, a midwife who came from Paris. All three of them were thoroughly enjoying living in London and found it friendlier than Paris, where perhaps people were more aggressive and there was more friction between the different factions. They had found that the job market was far better than in France and many French found London an attractive place to live. After all, with Paris only two hours away and excellent air links to many other French cities it was still possible to keep in touch with their friends and family. It was interesting to hear that in France as in UK, most children went to state schools, but that in France, the private schools were mostly religion based, heavily subsidised by the state, and were thought by our speakers to be inferior to the state schools! Camille reported that the hospital where she worked seemed to have plenty of money and that the NHS had a reputation for being the best system internationally. I liked Antoine’s story about having to ask the lady in Finance a question. He hadn’t understood a word of her reply but was too embarrassed to say – she came from Northern Ireland and had a rather strong accent! The meeting finished aptly with cider, apple juice, bread and French cheese. Thank you to Peter and Anne Dodd who hosted the three visitors and had known Antoine and Gwen since they were children. Susan Read Colmar Visit25 - 29 September 2014
A couple of weeks before our visit to Colmar, the weather forecast was not very good, but things miraculously improved just before we left these shores. There were 22 of us altogether, but we travelled by three different methods: namely car, air and rail, which meant that we didn’t all meet up until the Friday morning, the first full day of our visit. Most of us had spent the previous evening with our hosts, with just six of us having elected to stay in a hotel. (I was delighted to be staying with Michele Sissler, who had stayed with me last summer for the Language course.) It was very chilly first thing on Friday morning when we began our guided tour of the Old Town, but the sun soon came out, and we all warmed up. Unfortunately les Amis du Jumelage de Colmar had been unable to find an English speaking guide, so Angela Waterhouse had to do a huge amount of translating for us. It was my first trip to Colmar, which more than lived up to my expectations – it is an extremely pretty town. After our tour, we were welcomed at the Hôtel de Ville by the Mayor’s deputy and, after some short speeches, we sampled the local white wine and Kugelhopf before finding other local delicacies for lunch. The afternoon was free, and I think most of us took the opportunity to retrace the morning’s steps, and to visit the museums. Saturday was a long day, which began with a drive up into the Central Alsatian Vosges mountains in a wonderful coach, which had three drop down screens in the aisle, which allowed us all to be able to see the road ahead. The road wound up and up through little villages, where we saw some stork’s nests, and went higher and higher in a long series of hairpin bends, with wonderful views, until we reached our destination: le Linge. This was the site of dreadful fighting between the Germans and the French in 1915, where the Germans had been dug in for such a long time that they had dug stone-lined trenches, which we could see, and walk in. There is a beautiful little museum there as well. We all piled back on to the coach to visit Kayersberg, another beautiful town, for lunch, with Angela acting as tourist guide for us, and then we visited the last remaining blockhouse from the Maginot Line, very close to the Rhine. Our guide had been a boy during the war, and talked at length in the hot sunshine before letting us go in to the building. It was interesting, but nothing like as professional as the Vosges museum, as far as I was concerned! We then had a quick trip to see the river itself, on whose bank opposite is the old town of Brisach, before driving to Neuf Brisach, a replacement on the French side of the river, designed by Vauban, for the one the French had lost on the opposite side of the Rhine! On Sunday we seemed to do our own thing, or go along with the rest if we wished, so Michele took me to see Eguisheim, the prettiest village imaginable before we met the rest of the group at 3pm for a wine tasting at the winery in Turckheim (yet another picture postcard town!). Some of us had been for a walk in the vineyards, and looked very hot and bothered on arrival! In the evening we and our hosts met for a typical local meal in a restaurant in Colmar, where one of the local group came dressed in the local costume and explained its various features to us. Monday was our final day. Six of us took the opportunity to visit Strasbourg for four hours, the train reaching 312kph! It was well worth the effort: we had time for a coffee, seeing the Cathedral, a walk round Petite France, and a lovely outdoor meal before catching the train back to Paris. The whole visit was, for me, a great success, and I definitely want to go to Colmar again. I would like to end by thanking all the people who worked so hard to make the visit a success: Brian Read for his encyclopaedic knowledge of train timetables, Angela Waterhouse for her sterling translations, Ian Jardine for his organisation and the literature he provided for us, and his financial acumen, and Peter Dodd, again for his organising skills. Sue Hodgson Below is a report from the local newspaper: Jumelage A l’hôtel de ville - Colmar. Un groupe d’Abingdon accueilli
photo: DNA Ce vendredi matin, les amis du jumelage de Colmar ont accueilli à l’hôtel de ville un groupe du district du Vale of White Horse dont le chef-lieu, Abingdon (Royaume-Uni), est jumelé avec la ville de Colmar. Le groupe de 22 personnes, accompagné de quelques familles d’accueil, a été accueilli par Catherine Schoenenberger, conseillère municipale déléguée représentant le maire Gilbert Meyer, entourée d’adjoint(e)s. Les amis du jumelage étaient représentés par le président David Mallen et Christiane Wagner, en présence de Marc Lischer de la direction de la coopération. Dans son allocution de bienvenue précédant le verre de l’amitié, Catherine Schoenenberger a rappelé les liens permanents créés entre les deux villes depuis leur jumelage en 1978, facteur d’échanges entre les habitants. Le sentiment de fraternité qui s’est développé au cours des années au-delà des frontières a permis d’œuvrer au succès de l’amitié entre les peuples. Ces relations ont été possibles grâce à l’investissement des associations Abingdon and District Twin Town Society (ADTTS) et les amis du jumelage de Colmar (AJC), mais également grâce à tous les membres qui ont accepté d’héberger les correspondants, en France comme en Angleterre. Arrivés jeudi en train ou en avion, les membres du groupe, composé majoritairement de retraités, ont été pour beaucoup logés en familles d’accueil, et certains à l’hôtel. L’après-midi a été consacré à la visite du centre historique de Colmar et celle des musées. Samedi, un circuit découverte leur a été proposé, du Linge à Kaysersberg, puis Marckolsheim et Neuf-Brisach. Dimanche, de petites randonnées dans le vignoble ont mis un terme à leur séjour avec départ lundi matin. Comme l’a souligné Angela Waterhouse, responsable du groupe et membre du comité de jumelage d’Abingdon, «nous essayons à chaque voyage de faire venir des gens différents, pour leur faire connaître les beautés de notre ville jumelle». Angela n’est pas en terre inconnue; elle a habité à Turckheim de 2002 à 2008, enseignant l’anglais au centre d’études des langues au pôle formation de la CCI. AGM & Evening MeetingWednesday 17 September 2014 - Preston Road Community Centre At the Society's Annual General Meeting all existing officers and committee were re-elected. In addition Mariane Milburn was elected to the committee. For your information the officers of the Society are Chairman Stella Carter John Smith The AGM was followed refreshments and a presentation by Richard Sharp on the recent Bastille Day weekend trip by fourteen members to Argentan. Argentan Church Visit1 - 4 September 2014
Annual Garden PartySunday 27 July 2014 - Willows, Faringdon Road, Shippon
Blessed with truly pleasant weather the Society enjoyed a most congenial summer lunch party hosted by John and Ann Prior in their delightful garden. The success of the event was due in very large part to the efficient organisation and planning which had taken place beforehand and ensuring that everyone had a shady spot in which to sit. The buffet table was filled with beautifully presented food and the hard work and culinary skills of the catering committee were very much in evidence (diets have already started!). We were entertained with some delightful background music throughout the afternoon by Ian Miles which enhanced the relaxing atmosphere. The raffle was organised by Brian Read and members had been generous with their donation of prizes. It was noticeable that everyone had enjoyed a wonderful social afternoon and a big THANK YOU to those members who made it happen. Gwyneth Goss Bastille Day Trip to Normandy11 - 15 July 2014 Friday 11th Fourteen of us travelled by car and bicycle meeting up at Argentan Mairie at 6.00 pm. Guests staying at the hotel had dinner there and everyone else had dinner with their hosts. Saturday 12th We met up with the Dickenses and Maria Cuguen at the Mairie at 10.30 and drove to Chambois where we were greeted by Gerard, our guide. Upstairs in the Office de Tourisme he gave us a talk about the Battle of Normandy which was quite heavy going for the poor interpreter, me! We found the historical background interesting but we were more fascinated by Gerard’s personal anecdotes about the time because he was there, a fifteen year old half starved and terrified boy. After the talk we were given the use of a local primary school for our picnic, Maria left us and the Sillieres arrived to look after us. After lunch we went to the Moissy ford where 10,000 Germans and thousands of horses lost their lives trying to escape the 'Falaise Pocket'. After that we went to Montormel where there is a visitors’ centre and memorial to the Battle of Normandy. I have been there a few times and always learn something new about this second 'Stalingrad'. After that we had free time and most of us returned to Argentan and had dinner either with our hosts or at the hotel. Sunday 13th Guy Frenehard and the Dickenses came with us to Arromanches for a visit to the D-day museum followed by a picnic at the Longues artillery emplacements and a visit to Colleville American cemetery overlooking Omaha beach. Monday 14th Bastille Day At 11.30 we joined the parade, walking to the war memorial and then on to the 'Patures' where there were speeches and aperitifs. Most of us then picnicked in the 'Pature', a large meadow, where there were various activities going on all afternoon including live bands, snacks bars, clown, games and canoeing. Everyone did their own thing until 8.00 pm when we met up at the Donjon restaurant for dinner laid on by Argentan twinning society. We had speeches and a great meal followed by fireworks back at the 'Pature' at about 11.00. I am told that they have a 'bal populaire' (open air disco) until the early hours but I do not think any of us stayed up for that. Tuesday 15th We all went our different ways. I enjoyed it very much and I hope the others did too. Richard Smart
When the opportunity of a trip to Argentan for Bastille Day arose, Ann and I decided to make a holiday around it in our caravan. We have been to France dozens of times before but never on Bastille Day so this would be a new experience although we had been to Argentan before. We set off several days before the others, travelling Dover to Calais. On the way to Argentan we visited Montreuil-sur-Mer which is an old fortified town and was the setting for part of Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables which they commemorate every year. This was a suitable precursor for Bastille Day. We went on to Honfleur which has lost charm as it has gained restaurants, both due to the huge number of visitors. The numbers were swollen by the presence of two river cruise ships in town full of Americans. One American said to me that a river cruise was the best way to see France. It isn’t buddy, it isn’t. We arrived in Argentan on time and stayed in the superb Municipal campsite next to the Lace Museum. The campsite may be only 2 star because it is small but must be one of the very best in France. The next day was most interesting both in Chambois and Montormel and I now feel that I understand a lot more about the Falaise pocket and one of the most decisive battles of the last war. It was truly amazing to meet a man who was there in the thick of it while his world was destroyed around him. He still looked so young. The following day was a reprise of places that we had visited before independently. It was amazing that that several cars that had set off independently from Argentan, 100km away, should converge to a single spot in Arromanches like homing pigeons. The American cemetery was swarming with visitors which took away some of the dignity of the place. I found a memorial to Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr who died of a heart attack six days after D-day. He was the only general to land on D-day and, at 56, the oldest man in the invasion. Bastille Day dawned with the town deserted until we started to assemble in front of the Hotel de Ville. We processed around the square behind a small band and stopped in front of the war memorial where wreaths were laid. The people of Normandy do not forget what happened here. We then followed the band to the Patures. Were they really playing 'It’s a long way to Tipperary'? Ann thought so and sang along. When we stopped we were lined up behind the French flags and the mayor greeted us with a cheery ‘Good morning’ to which we replied. I didn’t understand much of the rest. After lunch it got quite hot and I don’t remember much of the afternoon. The fireworks at night were fantastic. Our campsite was close by and we set out from there and ended up just behind where the fireworks were sited. As a result they were right over our heads. Wow! We started to make our way back the next day, spending a couple of nights in bustling Rouen (of Joan of Arc fame) and two more in quiet Amiens where the cathedral looks superb from the outside but a bit plain on the inside. Eventually we reached Calais and found our way home to prepare for the garden party. The important thing about these trips is not so much about where you go but really about the people, friendships renewed and new friends made. Thank you Richard for making it possible and thank you to our friends in Argentan for their warm welcome and hospitality. John Prior Colmar Language Course17 - 24 May 2014 Colmar held a French language course for participants from its twin towns. The theme of the week was "metiers d’art en Alsace" and consisted of language teaching in the mornings and events in the afternoons. The students on the course were Guido De Bruyne and Myriam De Meulenaere from Sint-Niklaas, Evelyn Schmidbauer, Ingrid Schupp, Gabi Kelz, Vera Lukas and Helmut Rappenglix from Schongau, and Jill Gant, Christine Ewing, Celia Smith and John Smith from Abingdon.
I have recently returned from the most wonderful French Language Course in Colmar, organised by Les Amis du Jumelage de Colmar from 17th - 24th May. It was my first twinning trip and I was overwhelmed by the generosity of our hosts, the richness of the programme we were offered and the quiet efficiency with which it was all organised for us. There were 11 guests: 4 from Abingdon; 2 from Sint-Niklaas; and 5 from Schongau. After the first evening with our hosts we spent Sunday at a local nature park owned by the Natala des Amis de la Nature, a longstanding organisation which promotes access to the countryside as a positive leisure activity. We were treated to a delicious meal, with a Brass band concert and a guided walk around the park. The weather was lovely and we had the opportunity to meet all the Colmar people involved in twinning. On Monday morning we started our French course which ran from 8.30 am to 12.30 pm, with a short break for coffee and croissants! We had been given tests beforehand to assess which level of teaching would be best for us. There were two groups. We were allocated to one of these beforehand but we were given the option to change if we wished. The teaching was all oral and in French throughout. It was very challenging but very stimulating and helpful. There was a good mixture of approaches, including grammar, and there was a lot of laughter! We then went to lunch in a local restaurant which was delicious. Afterwards we were taken on a fascinating tour of the centre of the town following the theme of “The Signs”. This was in keeping with the theme of the whole week which was the craftsmen of Colmar and surrounding area. Colmar is the most beautiful town whose architectural history, going back to medieval times, is almost intact. The very attractive and distinctive signs are hung outside the workshops of the craftsmen and retailers of the town. After the tour we were kindly received in the Town Hall by the Mayor and councillors. The next four days followed the same pattern namely, the French lesson in the morning and a visit to one or two local craft workshops in the afternoon. On Tuesday we visited a master copper engraver who showed us how he prepared and printed the engravings. Afterwards we visited a really inspiring project "p’tit Baz’art" run by the Assocation Espoir whose aim is to help people in social difficulty, including offenders, to reintegrate into society. They were creating an amazing variety of products for sale from recycled materials. On Wednesday the craft visit was to a lithographer, followed by a trip to Ribeauville to see an exhibition and to hear the history of the town’s noble family. The day ended with a meal at a local restaurant to sample the local speciality “tarte flambée”. On the Thursday after lunch we had the choice to see either a sculptor in stone or in wood, after which we were free to go to the Colmar museums or go shopping in the town. My host kindly took me to the Dominican Church to see two of the masterpieces of Western Art: the Issenheim Altarpiece (with painted panels by Grunewald and sculptures by Nicolas de Haguenau); also La Vierge au Buisson de Roses, a painting by Martin de Schongauer. Later my host took me to Eguisheim, a delightful village (winner of the best village in France competition) not far from Colmar, where we saw a stork sanctuary and I was delighted to see some storks. Our craft visits on Friday afternoon were fascinating. The first was to a weaver of furnishing textiles of traditional Alsatian design, where we saw a film of the traditional and modern weaving process followed by a look round the shop full of their beautiful current products. Our last visit was to a weather vane maker whose designs, traditional and modern, were very tempting. On some free evenings some hosts invited other guests and hosts to their homes for dinner which was great fun. On Friday evening we were treated by the twinning hosts and the Colmar twinning Committee to a wonderful dinner at a local chalet in the hills with music and dancing, where we had the speeches and were given our certificates for the French course. All in all a most memorable experience: making new friendships, renewing old ones; improving our French; and learning about the rich cultural, artistic and historical heritage of Colmar and its environs. What a privilege! A huge thank you to all those in Colmar twinning who gave so much time and commitment to making our visit such a success. Jill Gant I was not sure what to expect when we arrived in Basel, we were welcomed by our host in a few words of English. From then on French was the order of the week. Travelling for about 45 minutes to Colmar and sitting in the back, I could hear John starting to practise his French as I looked around the countryside. As the only French course I have ever completed was when I was 16 and as our main holidays are now in New Zealand (to see the grandchildren) rather than in mainland Europe, my recent French verbal practice has been limited. Our hosts treated us to Choucroute. They were surprised to discover it was one of John’s favourite meals. The course consists of teaching in the morning followed by themed visits in the afternoon. After the 4 hour session (all in French) starting at 8.30am with a short coffee and croissant break where students from the other class joined us, we students plus one or more twinning society members went to lunch at a local restaurant. At that meal, I spoke one of three languages, English, German or French depending on to whom I spoke. After lunch we were escorted by twinning society members to the visits where explanations were given in French. Dinner was at our hosts or another member of the twinning society except on Wednesday when we went to the pretty village of Bergheim and had a great experience of various courses of “tarte flambée” (starting with a fromage blanc (white cheese) tarte flambée and finishing with an apple tarte flambée) and on Friday to a chalet near Wintzenheim for the closing dinner with music to which students, hosts, members of the twinning committee and two of the teachers on the course came. The theme of the week was arts and crafts in Colmar and the surrounding district. We visited a copper engraver, wood and stone sculptors, a printer, a shop selling products made from donated recycling by people of special needs or unemployed and saw weather vanes made to individual designs. We were wined and dined by our hosts and other members of the twinning society very well – sampling a variety of Alsace specialities. The week was very interesting but exhausting. I have many happy memories. It was interesting to listen to our hosts discussing the meaning of various terms used in the craft industry (our homework had been to translate these terms for our own use). I was pleased to renew friendships from previous twinning exchanges. I was amazed at the variety of subjects we discussed in French (and use of the dictionary) with twinners, gipsies, european vote, garden pests – slugs among others. Everyone was helpful and especially at the beginning of the week spoke slowly so we could understand. On my return home waiting to go into my Yoga class, I was pleased to understand the conversation of two native French speakers ahead of me. My total immersion in French over the week had definitely borne fruit. Would I recommend it? A definite Yes. However, I would recommend that participants try to have some French verbal practice before they went or borrow some CDs from a library. It would have made my first couple of days a lot easier. Celia Smith Europe Day MealFriday 9 May 2014 - Peachcroft Centre, Lindsay Drive, Abingdon OX14 2RT
We celebrated Europe Day again this year, but decided to arrange all of the food and drink ourselves instead of visiting a local restaurant. Many members volunteered to bring a dish or two to a local Church Centre in Abingdon. We welcomed all of our visitors from our twin towns who were with us for the weekend. The event was organised by our Chairman, Stella Carter, and she and our Joint Treasurer, Rosemary Jardine, worked tirelessly all evening to made the evening the great success that it was. We thank Stella, Rosemary and all of the many other members who provided food and drink. It was very much appreciated. John Prior Abingdon Twinning Weekend8 - 12 May 2014
When we welcomed 17 guests from our Twin Towns in May we thought it would be interesting to show them a different side to our area and so we made the car the star. Our first visit was to the MG museum in Abingdon. MG sports cars were produced in Abingdon and we have many car rallies here because the MG car club is the biggest in the world. Our museum in the centre of Abingdon also tells the story of the MG. On the Sunday of their visit our guests went to Nuffield Place, the home of Lord Nuffield. He was born William Morris (not to be confused with William Morris, the art designer) and started life with a bicycle shop in Oxford. He then started to build cars and produced Morris Oxford and Morris Minor cars in a factory he built in Oxford. The factory is still there but now it is owned by BMW and all the mini cars you see today will have come from that factory. Of course many people who live in Abingdon and the Vale work at BMW. We had a very happy time with our guests and hope they enjoyed themselves too. Stella Carter
It was a tiring but wonderful weekend and a much appreciated experience we are not ready to forget. Time was too short, so we should come back. All I can say to all these wonderful people is "thanks, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you all very, very much." And most of all, we want to thank our hosts Astrid and Ben Nielsen for their warm welcome and all the time we spent together. I hope when there is an event planned in Sint-Niklaas we will be able to meet again. Herman Aendenboom Hello ! de retour à Colmar, nous tenons à vous remercier pour l'excellent week-end que nous avons passé à Abingdon; tout était parfait, nous en garderons un bon souvenir! Nous vous attendons en Septembre et essaierons de faire de notre mieux pour que votre séjour soit le plus agréable possible! Merci à Ian, John, Michael, Brian, Angela et tous les autres et surtous à Stella pour son excellente cuisine! Amicalement Bernadette Touhami
Argentan Cyclists Visit1 - 4 May 2014 On May 1st twelve Argentan cyclists came by car and minibus with a trailer to my house where we drank, nibbled and chatted until their host families came to pick them up and take them home for dinner and an early night.
May 3rd: My Softies went to Wantage via East Hendred church, Lockinge stones and the White Horse. Under the statue of Alfred the Great we rendezvoused at 3.00 with the Hardcore who had done about forty miles via Lambourne, we then spent a couple of hours at Wantage museum learning about the Vale and consuming coffee and cakes. We rode back together for a bring and share pizza and garden games party at my house. May 4th: 8.00 the guests set off for home. It was a great couple of days, the Argentan cyclists are great fun and we are looking forward to going there next year. Richard Smart Evening Meeting - Schongau, the Pfaffenwinkel and the Romantische StrasseWednesday 16 April 2014 - 7.30 for 8pm at Preston Road Community Centre
Mrs Rosemarie Kirchofer and her husband came especially from Schongau to tell a packed meeting (despite the roadworks outside) all about, her town, the region and the Romantic Road, an innovation in its time and now copied in several other countries. The evening began with the couple singing some traditional German songs accompanied by an accordion. We moved on to a presentation on Schongau and an explanation of where the town was built surrounded on three sides by the River Lech which later changed course following a flood. We heard that the town had retained its walls only because there was no money to pull them down! Instead the walls were sold piecemeal so that the inhabitants could build their houses up against them. Sadly, of the sixteen original towers in the wall, only five remain. At other times the town was very wealthy being on a meeting point of trade routes with the Ballenhaus, or bale house, storing goods in transit. We heard about the Romantic Road from Wurzburg in the north to Fussen in the south through picturesque Rothenburg o. d. T with its fantastic Kathe Wohlfahft Christmas shop, and Augsburg with the Fuggerei street built by the Fugger family for the poor. We saw King Ludwig’s Neuschwanstein Castle and the earlier Hohenschwangau Castle. The rococo churches of the area were mentioned, especially the world famous Weis Church. We paused for refreshments, Bavarian cheese and ham on bread washed down with Bavarian beer or wine. Rosemarie surprised us with some cake she had brought with her in the shape of animals and finally we settled down for some more singing including the Happy Wanderer which we sang in English or German. It was a truly magical evening. John Prior Italian Market
An Italian market visited Abingdon on 4th and 5th April and on the Saturday ADTTS was present with an information stall to promote twinning and the Society. Film Show - OSS117, Cairo Nest of SpiesThursday 3 April 2014 - Resource and Wellbeing Centre, Audlett Drive, Abingdon OX14 3GD This was the annual joint meeting with ABCD, the local film society. We watched "OSS117, Cairo Nest of Spies", a very funny spy comedy, based on a Jean Bruce novel (sort of a French Ian Fleming). It was made in France in 2006 by Michel Hazanavicius and featured Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo (co-stars of The Artist). As usual, a good film combined with wine and cheese made for a very enjoyable and sociable evening. Clubs & Societies DaySaturday 29 March 2014 - Guildhall
Argentan School VisitMonday 24 March 2014
Evening Meeting - European School SystemsWednesday 19 March 2014 - Preston Road Community Centre
Peter, a maths specialist whose professional career began in Essex, demonstrated his great enthusiasm
for multi-cultural and multi-lingual education by sharing with the audience anecdotes from his rich
and varied teaching experience throughout Europe which has included periods working in schools
in Paris, Brussels, Lausanne and Bratislava.
The presentation concluded with a lively question and answer session which extolled the benefits of educating children in a multi-cultural and multi-lingual setting. Ian Waterhouse Evening Meeting: Shared Twinning DelightsWednesday 19 February 2014 - Preston Road Community Centre Our February meeting offered members the opportunity to share with us some “delights" (particularly culinary) that they valued from their personal experiences of twinning and countries visited. In the event, we squeezed in eight, very varied contributions that kept us all well entertained. It was an evening with a difference!
John Prior War & Peace Trip to Sint-Niklaas15 - 19 February 2014
SATURDAY 15TH: Brian and Susan Read had a trouble free train journey and two cars and a minibus set off about 9.00 intending to catch the 1.55 Dover-Calais ferry. By 12.00 we were all ahead of schedule on the outskirts of Dover when disaster in the shape of a huge traffic jam struck. Dover port had been closed all night due to bad weather so they tried to clear the backlog by cramming hundreds of people and vehicles onto one enormous ship. This took time and we finally left Dover at about 7.30 pm. Brian and Susan had no worries at all but the rest of us finally got to SN, exhausted at about 12.30. SUNDAY 16TH: Most of us were at the SteM, Zwijgershoek cultural history museum at 11.00 for a guided tour of the museum followed by a guided tour of the town. I had offered to pick up Nikki, Gloria and the Queralts in the van to save them the bother of the ten minute walk from the hotel to the museum. Half an hour later we were miles away and totally lost so we returned to the hotel, parked the van and walked, arriving nearly an hour late. It was a great tour and gave us an insight into Belgian history and the tension between the two linguistic groups. At dinner that evening Herman Cole turned up with his singers, persuaded the waiting staff to have a break and sang several anti-war songs. We, that is the Abingdon tone deaf society, then sang our two hastily put together songs before Herman's group finished off with four more including 'Where have all the flowers gone' in homage to Pete Seeger. It was a great evening.
Afterwards we returned to SN for dinner and met many old friends from SN, many of whom had been on the language course last summer. The mayor also turned up and chatted amiably for an hour or so. TUESDAY 18TH: Brian and Susan went home and the rest of us including Siegfried went by car and van first to Tyne Cott to look around the museum and then the cemetery where thousands of mainly British servicemen, known and unknown, lay buried. We then drove into Ieper (Ypres) for lunch, bought a wreath and spent about three hours in the Cloth Hall museum before seeing the wreath laid at the Menin Gate by Maurice and Siegfried, the oldest and youngest of our group. At 8.00 after dinner we witnessed the Last Post ceremony and a beautiful rendition of 'Danny Boy' by a young musician. We then drove back without getting lost. WEDNESDAY 19TH: 9.00 Set off for home via a supermarket, the two cars managed to get an early ferry but we all enjoyed a much more relaxed return journey. The whole experience was deeply moving and rewarding for me and I learned a lot about Belgium's history and society and how the SN twinning society is run. We hope to host them in some capacity very soon. Richard Smart Evening Meeting: The French RevolutionWednesday 15 January 2014 - Preston Road Community Centre THE FRENCH REVOLUTION or How the Guillotine swallowed the Imagination of the French Revolution
Ann took us through the history of Madame Guillotine from its invention in 1792 to its withdrawal in 1981, the last execution in France was as late as 1977. She informed us that originally this efficient weapon was reserved for the noblemen but during the Great Terror it was opened up to everyone. Detail how fifteen at a time would queue up to face the executioner and how once it took eight attempts to decapitate one poor soul. Interestingly we were also informed that the firing squad was a more prevalent way of despatching people. (14,500 were dealt with this way as against 2,500 by the Guillotine.) Ann pointed out that the guillotine is the method of execution associated with the French Revolution. However as the figures show, it should be the firing squad. With the guillotine all had a trial and twenty per cent of those tried were acquitted whereas none escaped the firing squad. An enlightening talk was enjoyed by all and thanks to Richard for arranging it and Nikki, Nicola and Gloria for the food. Perhaps, as John Smith mentioned to me, blood oranges may have been an option! Howard Carter |
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The meeting on Wednesday was centred around a talk
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