Twins & Twinings

Two blogs in one: On the subject of 'Twinning'

Twins are normally identical, but not the two towns Redon in Brittany and Andover in Hampshire who have made friends by twinning, in fact they are most unexpected bedfellows, they are very unalike. For a start Andover is a small market town situated on a small river called the Anton, Redon is at the confluence of two large rivers, and a busy in inland port on the Nantes to Brest Canal. The Andover population lives out in the hinterland made up of modern cheek by jowl housing but most Redonnais live in the town.

Redon, Brittany, the Quay

Towns have been twinning since the end of WWII as a way to improve entente cordiale before Britain's membership of the EU. Mayors began to reach out to their counterparts in other European countries to forge partnerships as friends, allies and neighbours, working together fostering tourism and business opportunities for their residents. Sleepy British towns and villages,have been coupling up with similar towns and villages, in France and Germany ever since.When residing in Andover where my job as Head of Parks, and Landscape Architect we also founded a twin town with its namesake in Massachusetts. I was commissioned to design a millennium garden and a pocket park in recognition to celebrate of the twinning partnership, this included commissioning a sculpture for Andover town of an American Indian chief who sold his land to settlers for a cloak and a small bag of silver. Andover is also home to Twinings the tea makers, on a sunny day the smell of fruity Hibiscus or flowery raspberry fills the air, sweet scents which make memories.

Twinings are based in Andover

Andover Market and Guildhall

My home town is now Bognor Regis the subject of a future blog which is twinned or 'jumele' with Saint-Maur-des-Fossés near Paris, but Andover is where I brought my family up, twinned with Redon which I know well and the subject of this blog.

If you are planning at trip to France, getting in touch with your twinned town is a great way to plan your visit. Check the internet to find out which town you are twinned with (and if you are French reading this, it can be done with your ‘Mairie’ for your English equivalent). This link will provide you with the information of all the twinned towns and villages in France and England.

If you take a look your town hall’s website, there will be information or links to the town's twin with offers of accommodation, where to go in the area, what to do and there will also be contacts so that you can get in touch with the twinning representatives. The twinning association may be willing to lay on personal guided tour of the town or even a meal in their home. Every year there are exchange visits which are a very good way to visit a new area of France or Britain.

Visit Rennes: a stop off at the station or a mornings cycle from Redon, and ride the train back.

Rennes Cafe quarter, cycle to Rennes from Redon, cafe and pains raisins, a train back to Redon

When the Redon community came to Andover, the Town Twinning Association laid on meals and offered tours and there was entertainment by local school children. They took their French counterparts to meet the growers at the John Lewis Farm, tried local English wine and British beef. Where I live now, children from our twin town Saint-Maur-des-Fosse twinned with Bognor Regis collected plastic from the beach, made a sculpture and paraded in the town.

Back in Redon, we were given a tour of Brittany cheese and cider makers, wined and dined, and presented with a gift of a painting of the town to hang in the town hall. So, you can see twinning is not only good for friendships but forging links for schools and businesses. We can get to know each other's markets, English and French produce, but culturally it is also a bonus for tourism. Andover’s next trip to Redon is in June, and before that host Goch (German twin town) and Andover Massachusetts are coming to visit in September and October.

Redon lies in West France, Brittany to be exact, on the river named L’Oust, with a ship worthy canal, while Andover and the borough has its own river, the Anton, a tiny tributary of the famous River Test noted for its salmon. If you like boating Redon is your base, just over two and half hours drive from Caen and the ferry port of Ouistreham, is on one of the most navigated sections of the Nantes to Brest Canal. My tip is to take your bike on the ferry crossing, after docking cycle to Caen along the canalised section of the river Orne, then there are buses and trains which will take you to Redon from Caen,and conveniently stop at the Cathedral City of Rennes well worth exploring.

Contact the tourist office at Redon to hire a barge or alternatively cycle along the canal south towards Nantes or North West to Brest. Air B n B makes this a most convenient way to see West France so plan your cycling in advance working out how many kilometers you want to cycle in a day and stage a B 'n B' on the way. Having said that Redon offers enough to see and do for a week or ten days, stay in contrast a week-end will suffice in Andover. When in Redon, don't miss visiting the town square and its markets, the bustling quayside with its constant stream of boat folk barges and pleasure craft and visit the historical centre with its magnificent church.

And if you want to eat out why not try one of the many bistros, one of which I have tried serves wholesome meals made from organic produce, and in season. I recommend trying traditional black Breton galettes both the savoury and sweet forms. Get yourself along to l'Asphodele, I thoroughly recommend their black flour pancakes made from"farine de Sarrasin". The menu which changes daily seems fairly unassuming in price: a meal for two a little over £20. A good medium dry Breton cider will satisfy the thirst. The restaurant which uses 80% organic food caters for vegans and vegetarians, and is mentioned in the official tourist guide.

Redon is known for its boats and marinas, but there is a towpath which can be cycled or walked taking you to the cities of Nantes and Rennes .

Andover is situated less than an hours drive north west of Portsmouth, but can be reached by train changing at Basingstoke with excellent rail links to the City of Salisbury and London. I would recommend the town for a short stay, check on the council website for events such as proms in the park, the outdoor theatre, bat walks, poetry and heritage trails. In stature and size, Andover is small in comparison to Redon but they say 'small is beautiful' and Andover packs a punch with its emphasis on leisure and green spaces. It is a friendly market town but doesn’t have the array of attractions, restaurants and bistros as does Redon; but what it lacks in town offer, it makes up with its open spaces packed with things to do, particularly for children, boasting a wealth of parks, and nature reserves, woodlands and playgrounds set within in an area of outstanding natural beauty. Andover has two important nature reserves on its doorstep, one is important because it is home to a rare obscure type of plant called the long stalked yellow sedge, a favourite among botanists. For everyone else Anton Lakes and its nature reserves, are intrinsically beautiful, with woodland and lakeside walks, and bird life with the obligatory interpretation trail pointing out what can be seen. Rooksbury Mill is another complex of lakes fed by the Anton where otters can be seen, only ten minute walk from the town centre. Charlton Park and lakes has a fantastic playground BMX bike track and skate park, fishing lakes, as well as walks and picnic areas. In the town centre, there are areas to sit and relax in one of the three pocket parks or the Vigo Road Park where archers in medieal times practised. The iron age museum is opposite Vigo Road, a Georgian marketplace with Guildhall and Victorian Gothic church.

The town centre's main attraction is Town Mills now a Wadsworth pub. Readers are probably not so much into real ale these days, but if you are, the beer is a good temperature, and the kegs well maintained, but here the food can only be described as 'Texan gastro'. The former mill's location is on the spring fed river Anton with a waterwheel and crystal clear gushing water viewed from inside the pub or from the outside tables and benches set in a millpool pocket park. Along the Anton you are likely to see water voles, brown trout, kingfishers and if you are lucky otters. Town Mills is right next to the main town car park and part of the central drag into town, with its coffee bars and fish and chips, and town square with the Guildhall as a focal point.

Ladies Walk, a Victorian planting of trees provides views over rolling chalk hills from Andover, and walks to the famous thatched Clatfords quiet villages which are pedestrian friendly, a twenty minutes walk from the town. The path shared with cyclists continues, after passing Leckford and its Waitrose - John Lewis's farm, farm shops, to Romsey where the abbey welcomes thousands of tourist each year. Mountbatten House, of historical importance nestling along the river Test, is opposite Romsey Memorial park another floral gem. Halfway between Andover and Romsey, Stockbridge is another stop off point with wild brown trout the size of ten wellies in the stream right in middle of the high street, are an amazing sight. Nearby the National Trusts Mottisfont Abbey Gardens and the Longstock water gardens -part of the John Lewis Estate and Farm- welcome the visitors to the impressive water gardens. Make your visit in summer when the farm shop is stocked with organic produce grown from the estate, refresh with its wholesome tea room menu with a real Kiwi plant laden with fruit growing over the cafe tables outside.

So briefly back to the concept of twinning and France. France is responsible for the Britain in Bloom which encourages towns and villages to decorate their streets with flowers. In 1963, the British Tourist Board adopted a version of 'Fleurissement de France' (now called Conseil national de villes et villages fleuris) which promotes the annual Concours des villes et villages fleuris. I was responsible for Andover winning Britain in Bloom after seven goes at it by my predecessors. The legacy is that Andover has a rich floral culture, the streets, roundabouts and town centre are full of flowers each summer.

Further places of interest in the curtilage of Andover include the Hawk Conservancy, the Sheep Shed Gallery with the 'Ewe and I' tea room,artists exhibiting this year are: in June, a mixed media exhibition by Keith Patterson and in July, Earth works by Sarah Maddison. Not far from The Sheep Shed Gallery and The Hawk Conservancy, the third attraction in the Weyhill area is Finkley Down Farm where kids can experience feeding lamb, stroking rabbits, handling lizards and tortoises, pony rides, sheep racing and Meercats.