Some of our recent activities
By
Barbra Stimpson
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To give you a brief idea of YTA's activities: we have a committee which meets monthly to decide on future visits etc. We are twinned with Herblay in France, Taunusstein in Germany and Samarate in Italy (near to AgustaWestland's site).
Each year there are three visits - two inward and one outward and alternately one inward and two outward. When guests come to Yeovil from our twin towns they are hosted by members in their homes and trips and activities are planned and financed by the association; we are treated similarly when we make visits abroad. So on an outward trip, members pay for transport getting to and from the hosting town, but whilst there accommodation is free and visits and activities are also provided.
During 2009 we received two visits: in May a group of 31 French people came by coach for a weekend. They were taken to Bishops Lydeard Railway, travelled to Minehead by steam train, then to Dunster Castle, then back to Yeovil for a fish and chip supper with entertainment by Morris dancers and a local choir. In July 33 people made a 5-day visit from Taunusstein (flying Frankfurt-Heathrow). We organised a trip to Palmers Brewery at Bridport and then to Portland for a cream tea; a day at Stourhead followed by an evening meal at Yeovil Football Club; and a treasure hunt finishing up at a local pub for skittles & buffet.
In October a group of twenty-one Yeovil twinners arrived in Samarate. On day one we were welcomed by the mayor and told about Samarate achieving city status. We all received a small gift and after refreshments we walked around the town and visited the market. Our next stop was AgustaWestland, where we joined the workforce for lunch in their staff canteen. Following this was a tour of the AgustaWestland museum which was very interesting; the displays were excellent. Few of us knew of their motor cycle manufacturing history. After that was a coach trip to the largest rice processing factory in Europe at Piemonte. To get there we travelled through an immense area of rice cultivation. The tour of the factory was fascinating and we each received a pack of rice straight off the production line and a recipe for risotto! We were then taken to a local restaurant situated in very ancient (converted) farm buildings, which still housed original tools and equipment. There we enjoyed a typical evening meal of risotto.
Saturday took us to the city of Bergamo, where we embarked on the Citta Alta funicular and had a tour of the beautiful medieval buildings in warm sunshine. In the evening we all went to the Samarate parish church for an excellent concert by the Samarate Philharmonic Orchestra which was specially arranged for us.
A very early coach ride on Sunday took us to Barolo, where we saw the vineyards. Here we visited a winery with its own museum housing a very unusual collection of corkscrews, and enjoyed a 10-course meal in a hilltop restaurant with magnificent views of the surrounding countryside, followed by a tour of the Grinzane Cavour Castle.
On our last day we were taken to the Villa Cagnola in Gazzada, a fine old house with a collection of art and china. Our guide there was an Italian with a very distinctive English accent. In fact many of the people we met in Italy speak English well. We had lunch in the adjoining modern conference centre. Later in the day, the end of the twinning visit, everyone met up again at Cascina Costa for a tea-time farewell. The group was presented with a flag of peace, following up the Knights of Peace award made to YTA two years ago in Assissi.
As you can see, this was a very good cultural experience; we all enjoyed the beauty of Italy as well as achieving an understanding of the Italian way. It was great to see old friends and meet some new ones.
Hosts normally entertain their own guests where no YTA arrangements are made and it is usual for hosts to also join in the organised activities.
Between visits we have a few social/fund raising functions. Most of our funds come from membership subscriptions (currently £15 per member).
We are always looking for new members to join us. Many long lasting friendships began as a result of twinning visit: members often enjoy independent holidays with people they originally met through hosting.
YTA is also involved with local schools in helping with exchanges. We often receive requests to find pen friends, and sometimes accommodation for exchange students etc. |
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