Potters Bar Town Twinning Assocaition

Twinned with Viernheim & Franconville

Twinning Weekend 24-27 June 2005

Windsor Castle and Eton Visit by Frank Streatfield

Friday Evening

This year was our turn to host the twinning weekend with our twinned towns of Franconville in France and Viernheim in Germany. It all started very well with both parties arriving on time at the 60+ club for a small reception party to welcome our guests. After the introductions there was time to chat with some old friends and make some new friends. We took our French guests home who spoke very little English, until we got the dictionary out and had a good evening communicating by using the book and a little French that I knew.

Saturday

After a good nights sleep I tried to introduce my guest to a full English breakfast. I was surprised because all they wanted was lashings of coffee and toast, no problem for me, a health conscious French family! After breakfast we made our way to The Furzfield Centre where we boarded the coach for Windsor. The day started cloudy but it did not rain. We arrived at Windsor in good time for its opening. We were unescorted around Windsor so that meant we could stop, chat, take photos and generally have a relaxing tour at our own pace. This was the first time our guest had visited Windsor. They were very impressed with the castle and chapel. We did manage to see the changing of the guard and listened to the band play before continuing our tour. We stopped the tour at midday so we could have some lunch in a local hostelry and browse at some shops before returning to the coach for our next stop at Eaton College. We arrived slightly earlier than anticipated so we went around a small exhibition about the connection of Eaton College and India. We were escorted around Eaton which is the oldest school in England, by a woman whose four sons went to the college. One ended up as a master there. It costs £24,000 a year to educate a pupil at Eaton.

Saturday Evening

After a quick wash and brush up we were back at Potters Bar to Tilbury hall for a hot supper and a couple of bottles wine. The music was supplied by Jim Hurt’s Jazz band, and our French guest’s daughter played two tunes on the piano during a small interval. I had a chat with the new French Petanque president to try and arrange a game in 2006 at Potters Bar. By the way it was his daughter who played the piano. Everybody was talking to one another in French, German and the obligatory sign language so we all had a good evening.

Sunday Morning

Well I managed to give our French family a taste of English breakfast cuisine of a bacon and mushroom sandwich with wholemeal bread. I am glad to report that they enjoyed it. Well at least they said they did, there was nothing left. We left Enfield in good time via Crews Hill to show them the nurseries and passed Botany Bay where I told them this is where we send our criminals. They did not understand my joke, I wonder why. We arrived at St Mary’s Church in the walk for the service and the Twinning Ceremony. After the service, coffee and tea was served before the Twinning Ceremony started. This was the first time that the ceremony was held in the church. I thought it was a good idea, it was very simple and straight to the point. No big fuss. There were some good music interludes performed by the pupils of Dame Alice Owen and Oakmere Junior Schools, between the speeches of the three Mayors of the three towns. With all of the pomp and circumstance over we all departed to Mount Grace School for lunch. This consisted of Cream of Celery soup, roast leg of lamb accompanied by a selection of vegetables and desert. All washed down with a selection of wines from different countries other than France and Germany. A lot of the French people had never tasted mint sauce before so we gave our guests some to take back to France to have with their mutton. We all enjoyed the meal and after a farewell chat with our French friends, they departed at 2.45pm to go to Barnet to take the tube to Waterloo to catch the Eurostar back to France. The German guests left on Monday morning at 6.15 am. They had their own two mini busses to take them back to Viernheim. Next year I think the Twinning celebrations are in France. Now that’s something to look forward too, all that French wine and cheese.

Link to other photographs