Autumn 2018
The Annual General meeting of the Association will be held
on Thursday October 11th 2018 at 7.30pm
in the Council Chamber, The Town Hall, Tiverton.
Hi Everyone
This is my last contribution to the Newsletter as your Chairman. The Constitution limits the reign of the Chairman to three years! I have thoroughly enjoyed those years and thank everyone for their contributions in making that time so enjoyable.
Since the last Newsletter, we have had a number of fund raising events. In June, we had a successful BBQ at the Cruwys Morchard Village Hall. The last minute failure of the gas supply was quickly remedied by the acquisition of charcoal and a more traditional BBQ was served.
We then had the excellent Spanish lunch in July lovingly prepared, cooked and served by David and Les and a cream tea in August. There are reports on both events later in this Newsletter.
Just a few days ago, we congregated again in the Cruwys Morchard Village Hall for our annual Harvest Lunch. Thanks to everyone who donated, bid for and purchased produce. The food was excellent. The salads, in particular, were amazing and the ham delicious. Thanks again to everyone who contributed in any way to their preparation and to those who prepared the Hall and washed up and cleared away afterwards. There is so much unseen work done before, during and after these events without which they could not take place. You all deserve the highest praise for all your hard work and commitment.
We have, of course, also visited Hofheim since the last Newsletter. What an amazing time we all had! A huge “thank you” to Angie and to Ulla and Matthias for a wonderful visit.
Our AGM will take place in the Council Chamber at the Town Hall in Tiverton on Thursday October 11th at 7.30pm. Please do your best to attend and support your Association.
See you all soon.
John
HOFHEIM – BUCCINO
A Celebration of Ten Years of Twinning
From John Smith (Chairman)
The Mayor of Tiverton, Janet Rendle, her husband, John, and I recently visited Hofheim, to represent Tiverton at the celebration of the tenth anniversary of Hofheim’s twinning with the town of Buccino in Italy.
I chose the convenient but fairly expensive flight from Bristol to Frankfurt on BMI. Janet and John flew from Manchester on Ryanair. This was convenient for them as they could arrange to visit friends and certainly cheaper than BMI. Perhaps a possible alternative route for future visits?
The Italians had chosen to fly from Rome to Frankfurt’s second Airport which is more than an hour’s drive away. They arrived in the early hours of the Friday morning!
Later that morning, there was a reception in the Town Hall. Visitors from Hofheim’s twin towns, Buccino, Chinon, Pruszcz Gdanski and Tiverton were welcomed by Mayor Gisela. After speeches of welcome (in German and Italian, of course), a meeting room in the extension to the Town Hall was named the “Buccino Room”. One room has already been named the “Chinon Room”. There is a third room (excluding the toilets) which is, so far, unnamed! It (the room, not the toilets) will in due course be named the “Tiverton Room”.
Afterwards, there was a guided tour of Frankfurt. This included a visit to the Main Tower, one of the highest buildings in this thriving city, a guided tour of the “Old Town” which has been restored following complete devastation during the War and a boat trip along the River Main. Many of you will have enjoyed one or more of these but probably not with a commentary in Italian or in the heat we experienced.
There was an excellent meal that evening in a restaurant in Frankfurt-Sachsenhausen. This was on the opposite side of the River. That day, we travelled by car, train, underground, foot, boat and taxi. It was an interesting experience observing several Germans disagreeing about the right entrances and exits on the U-bahn.
The following day, there was a meeting in the morning at which each town spoke about twinning (for them) and the various opportunities it presents. In the afternoon, there was a tractor tour of the vineyards at Nierstein on the banks of the River Rhine and an opportunity to sample some of their produce. I understand that some of you have undertaken similar expeditions (if you can remember them). There was certainly as much wine as you can comfortably (and, for some, uncomfortably) consume.
Sunday was spent with our hosts and the visit came to a conclusion that evening with a celebratory meal with appropriate presentations of mementoes by each of the towns to acknowledge the friendships between them.
Staying in touch with friends
Tiverton visiting Hofheim from 23 to 28 August 2018
From Matlhias hees - Hofheim
For 38 years now, the town of Tiverton in Devon and Hofheim am Taunus have been twin towns. For all this time townspeople of both towns have visited annually
One year Tiverton to Hofheim and the next Hofheim to Tiverton. At the end of August, 33 citizens from Tiverton came to Hofheim, where all were privately accommodated most with "their" long-time hosts, so that a deep and close friendship has formed.
The guests, including the Mayor of Tiverton, were welcomed at the town hall by Mayor of Hofheim Gisela Stang and the Förderkreis Hofheimer Städtpartnerschaften,who were providing the program.
This year, a trip with over 60 people was to the Odenwald, with a visit to a marzipan cake factory and shop and the castles Veste Otzberg for lunch of soup and sausages and Breuberg for a tour.
Marzipan Factory
The explanations of marzipan figurines made in confectionery were followed attentively, they say a lot about German customs and habits,e.g. the giving away of lucky pigs on New Year's Eve. Other figures contributed to the amusement and in the end, some of the products were purchased by the visitors in the factory shop.
Although many castles have been preserved in England, the comparison with the 850-year-old castle Breuberg was of interest to the guests. The eventful history was impressively explained by the committed castle guides in English and German.Today the castle has a youth hostel, a registry office, a museum and a small restaurant.
Another program item was a visit to Frankfurt Airport with a tour and explanation of the apron in German and English. Both the German hosts and the English guests were impressed by the size and the numbers presented. An example: The kerosene comes through a pipeline directly underground from Rotterdam. With the technology available at the airport, depending on the aircraft size, between 30 and 45 minutes are needed to refuel with about 200,000 litres. If an aircraft was refuelled with the hose of a normal filling station, the refuelling process would take about 10 days. Also impressive are the figures of the fire brigade stationed at the airport: The latest fire engines weigh 49 tonnes, accelerate from 0-80 km / h in 15 seconds and are filled with 12 tonnes of liquid, which can be sprayed in 1.5 minutes.
On Saturday night, Tiverton and Hofheim celebrated their long-standing friendship with a picnic in the moated castle.
The weather was perfect, the English had ended the heat with their arrival and the temperatures were more pleasant. On Saturday and Sunday, the hosts and their guests could do individual activities. Trips to Wiesbaden, Frankfurt, Mainz, Marburg, the castle Erbach and much more were reported. Some also used Sunday to attend the Hofheim Jazz Tour. After five days in Hofheim it was time to say goodbye, with the promise to see each other again in Tiverton next year .
Town celebrates German friendship with twinning trip to Hofheim
By Lewis Clarke
The group of 33 headed to the town’s twin of Hofheim Am Taunus near Frankfurt
Castles, airports and a marzipan factory have all been explored at the recent trip of Tiverton Twinning Association.
The group of 33 headed to the town’s twin of Hofheim Am Taunus near Frankfurt between Thursday, August 23 and Tuesday 28. The trip included visits to the Odenwald, a low mountain range, a marzipan factory, a picnic at the Wasserschloss, and a guided tour of Frankfurt Airport.
At the farewell dinner on August 27, Tiverton Twinning Association’s John Smith thanked hosts for their varied and interesting program. He said: “They have once again invited us into their homes and have entertained us so well.”
“The tour of the Odenwald was excellent, the marzipan was delicious, and the scenery was breathtaking. The visit to the airport was very interesting, and in the future, I will only fly with Singapore Airlines after seeing their luxurious A380s.
“We have been growing our friendships for 38 years, and during that time it has become stronger. This year Hofheim has celebrated the tenth anniversary of the twinning with Buccino in Italy, and I, the mayor Janet Rendle and her husband John were happy to join their celebrations.
“Last year you celebrated the 50th anniversary of your twinning with Chinon. We congratulate them and look forward to the 40th anniversary of our twinning with them.”
Mr Smith paid tribute to the mayor of Hofheim Gisela Stang who will not seek re-election next year.
He added: “We hope she will revisit Tiverton as she will always be a friend of Tiverton.
Matthias Hees from the Hofheim Twinning Association added: “We like the idea of twinning here, staying with friends, making new friends, that is what it is all about.
“It was a pleasure to have our friends from Tiverton here again. One of the advantages with our Tiverton twinning is the language which is more common; we can understand each other and share jokes which is often more challenging with our Polish and Italian twinning and even also with the French.
“I am looking forward to working more closely with England and encouraging more young people to get involved.”
.
Group photograph taken on the banks of the Rhine
Spanish Lunch July 15th
By Mitch Bowers
When David & Les said they would host a Spanish lunch, none of us could have imagined that they would also include Spanish weather in the deal! In the midst of our heatwave, - just like Spain -approx. 40 of us sat down to a genuine Spanish Sunday lunch.
The nibbles on the tables as we sat down we believed to be ‘tapas’, but no, as Les explained to us (at some length), tapas can oft-times be more of a meal than just a few bites, as he found out when visiting Spain earlier this year. I for one was so glad he went, as our first course ‘tapas’ was an absolute delight… battered prawns, fried aubergines, tortilla, pate to name but a few of the delicacies on offer. Then, as if we hadn’t eaten sufficient, ‘proper’ paella with chicken to follow….. not small helpings either. In some areas of Spain, paella is the equivalent of our roast beef, a Sunday treat, so it proved today, made from ingredients (well a lot of them) all the way from Espana,
To finish off, our dessert was pineapple with ice cream, a very good choice, I don’t think many of us could have coped with much more. But it was so enjoyable, that suggestions were made that perhaps we MIGHT be able to cope with another twin town………??????????????? Sunshine, paella (and BEER!) to be the obligatory part of the charter?
Thanks go, as always to the helpers, the Football Club for allowing us to use the bar facilities, but most of all to the chefs. Well done chaps, Muchas gracias y ?Cuando proximo
Sunday afternoon Cream Tea
What a blessing that we decided on a cream tea and not a cooked lunch as the hot weather continued.
John Rendle made and donated the scones for our tea and Shirley provided the home made jam and also the lovely sweet peas which decorated the tables.
We had just two scones left over at the end of the day which speaks well for everyone’s enjoyment of the afternoon.
A Quiz, guessing the names of the towns from the pictures provided seem to go down well – it was won not by a local person, not even an English person but by a Spaniard! Well done David.
Harvest Lunch
The rain was pouring down and it was cold when I opened my eyes on Sunday 23rd September the day we were to hold our Harvest Lunch, what a blessing we had decided to have a bowl of soup as a starter for our Lunch at Cruwys Morchard Village Hall, just salad wouldn’t be ideal – as it turned out the weather did improve and the sun did come out but everyone seemed to enjoy the leek and potato soup, some had a second helping. Cold ham, cooked by Mitch was good, two nice slices each and the choice of various salads made by various members were there to help yourself, take as much or as little as you like. Dishes of cooked potatoes were place on each table for you to help yourself. Several members helped clear away the plates and dishes and then pudding was served, this was blackberry and apple crumble with custard, made by our hard working Shirley as she made the soup as well. Tea or Coffee was available and the Auction followed. John (Chairman) was the auctioneer and he set off at a good pace as the tables were laden with goodies – Wally and Ann provided a load of tomatoes, marrows, beetroot etc. and Shirley provided jam and pickles in quite a large quantity, other members brought various items and I would guess a handsome profit was made.
This year no odd shape vegetables but some large marrows and one enormous pumpkin grown by Wally.
Hofheim Secretary. Angie Cockburn
Just to let you know that the Germans have accepted the dates for their visit next year. It will be Thursday 11th July 2019 till Tuesday 16th July.
Chinon Secretary:Pat Smith.
Due to ill health Pat has resigned as our Chinon Secretary.
Our Next Event is an Ikea Sunday Lunch:
I
With all the food items purchased from them)
Come and be surprised. Free glass of wine
Presented by Les Cruwys and David Garcia
Sunday 14th October 2018
Halberton Village Hall
1 o’clock
Cost £10.00 Draw
Book with Jean by 7th October
Tel: 01884 254260
What to do now the winter is approaching?
Come to our Sunday Quiz Afternoon
18th November
West End Bowling Club
2 pm to 4pm
£5 to include afternoon tea
Book with Pauline by 14th November
Christmas Meal(More details to follow)
Friday 7th December-Tiverton Football Club - 6.30pm - Cost £12.50
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