Potters Bar Town Twinning Assocaition

Twinned with Viernheim & Franconville

Town Twinning in Franconville 12th - 14th May 2006

A party of 23 people from the Potters Bar area went to Franconville on 14-16th May to the annual twinning celebrations along with a group from Viernheim in Germany. This was the first time I had ventured abroad with the town twinning group. We have had German and French people to stay and I thought it was about time I went to see them at home. In recent times the group has travelled on Eurostar but this time we went by coach and on the ferry. On the way over we sat on deck enjoying the hot sun imagining next stop might be Trinidad.

On arrival we were met by the families with whom we were to stay. My family were Madame et Monsieur Lagree and their three daughters who live five minutes walk from the town hall. They cooked me a delicious French meal and we got to know each other via a mixture of my very rusty school French and their very good English! Both the older girls have visited England on school trips and are coming to England to work in a hotel over the summer. The family were all very kind and did their very best to make me feel at home. We swapped information about our towns, local issues, politics, football and gardening. I promised to find out why golf is called golf (any ideas?). They have only recently joined the local twinning group and this was the first time they had put someone up – I hope I did not put them off!

On Saturday the whole group, plus families, went into Paris to see the new Cezanne/Pissaro exhibition at the Musée D’Orsay (an old train station a bit like Kings Cross, beautifully recycled into a national art gallery). This was very apt as I have been watching ‘The Impressionists’ on Sunday evening TV at home. We walked through Paris to the Eiffel Tower and had coffee in a pavement café just as it rained. In the evening a grand reception and dance complete with entertainment non-stop and numerous changes of costume which we had to stop counting! We were able to talk with other people both French and German, dictionaries at the ready. You don’t have to have a lot of French or German – it’s just fun to have a go.

On Sunday morning I was taken on a tour of Franconville by car and to the Sunday market where I bought some bread to bring home. I had really enjoyed the different breads and in particular a sort of savoury sponge my host Marilynne had made for our supper on Friday. Then we joined up with the group for the official ceremony. Intertwined with this was entertainment from local young musicians, dancers and a local family demonstrating their family roots with traditional dance and music from Brittany. Franconville has what they call a music and dance academy – not a school but classes run by voluntary groups, but which we saw is of a very high standard. The local council has funded a new building built in traditional style which I had seen on my morning trip. Then a wonderful send-off buffet where I met up with a previous family who had stayed with us in Potters Bar. We boarded the coach for home arriving late on Sunday evening. A very interesting weekend, I have already started an email correspondence with my new friends, half in English and half in French and am looking forward to meeting up again soon.

By Margret Ohren

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Our twinning visit started very pleasantly with boarding our luxurious modern than coach – a real transport of delight – at Wyllyotts. Having enjoyed a smooth and sunny Channel crossing we were greeted by our hosts in style at the Espace Saint-Exupéry, an amazing barn like structure with a soaring roof space. Following an excellent meal in the lakeside restaurant in Enghien-les-Bains, a prosperous Spa town nearby, we were treated to a tour of Paris by night, the most memorable site being the Eiffel tower lit up like giant Christmas tree and trying very hard to ignore the near suicidal tendencies of some drivers in the city centre.

The next morning found us rejoining the coach for a visit to the Musée D’Orsay which was converted from a disused railway station some twenty years ago. The main hall of the ornate building coveys a strong feeling of light and space and is well used by a diverse mix of visitors, many budding artists among them. Following an inspirational tour of the Cezanne – Pissarro exhibition we enjoyed lunch in a former Hotel annexed to the museum amidst a spectacular setting of painted ceilings, gilded mirrors and crystal chandeliers. The remainder of the afternoon was spent browsing amongst the stalls along the Seine and departing for refreshments to an extraordinary nineteenth century glass pyramid in the Louvre grounds – a structure called the Napoleon hall.

The evening saw us enjoying a formal dinner to the rousing sounds and sights of the live showband who effortlessly took us through various decades and styles of popular music.

The final morning found us at the flag raising ceremonies – not all of us having found the energy for mass after the previous night’s exertions!

Then it was back to the Saint-Exupéry centre for the official twinning ceremonies and speeches by the three mayors interspersed with various musical interludes and enthusiastic performances by the Franconville Dance Academy. The prize for the most unintentionally comic moments went to the corps de ballet of tiny tots whose sense of direction was not uniformly even. The ceremony was rounded off with traditional Breton dancers supported by bagpipes, oboes and percussion instruments.

On we went to a sumptuous cocktail reception and an exhibition of photographs, pottery and glassware. Alas all too sudden it was time to return to the venue of Friday’s welcome party for a delicious buffet lunch and to say our farewells to hosts and friends alike.

Fond thoughts and thanks go to our hosts for arranging an action packed weekend including some memorable moments, superb food and an extensive range of entertainment.

By Olga Grignon