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Huntingdon and Godmanchester are twinned by official charter with
Salon-de-Provence in France; Wertheim-am-Main in Germany and Szentendre
in Hungary. The aims of the Twinning Association are to encourage
international friendship; foster cultural understanding; facilitate
school and business links and encourage language learning. A close
partnership between Huntingdon & Godmanchester Town Councils
and the Twinning Association makes this possible.
The Twinning Association will celebrate with Wertheim a thirty year
twinning anniversary in September 2011, while looking forward to
a forty year anniversary with Salon in 2014 and twenty year anniversary
with Szentendre in 2016. Huntingdon & Godmanchester Twinning
Association (HGTA) holds social events to raise funds to send local
young people to our twin-towns for our annual Festival of Youth.
The HGTA also hosts these international festivals when they are
due to take place here. New members are always welcome. Family membership
of the Twinning Association costs £5 a year and corporate
membership is available for £10 a year. If you would like
to support our activities, please contact The HGTA Membership Secretary,
c/o The Town Clerk, Huntingdon Town Council,1 Trinity Place, Huntingdon,
PE29 3QA. Tel: 01480-388688 Alternatively, c/o The Town Clerk, Godmanchester
Town Council, The Town Hall, Godmanchester PE29 2NB, Tel: 01480-388870
Salon-de-Provence is a marvellous holiday destination. It is not
far from Marseilles, on the Mediterranean coast, and the dramatic
Camargue, with its black bulls and famous white horses. The towns
of Avignon, Arles and Aix-en-Provence are also within easy reach.
Salon clusters around the Chateau de l’Emperi, one of the
oldest fortresses in France, now a military museum. One of Salon’s
most famous residents was the astrologer Michel de Nostredame. His
house is now a museum and a medieval festival in his honour is held
every July. Salon has open-air cafes, good restaurants and a lively
market selling everything from fish, fruit and vegetables to materials
in traditional Provençal patterns as well as the soap, lavender
and olive oil for which the area is well-known.
Wertheim-am-Main is situated at the confluence of the rivers Main
and Tauber not far from Frankfurt in the German ’Land’
of Baden-Wurttemberg. The ‘Altstadt’ or Old Town is
very charming with many beautiful half-timbered buildings. Wertheim
holds an ‘Altstadtfest’ each July when the town is thronged
with merry-makers. The most prominent landmark is the ‘Burg’
or old castle which once belonged to the Counts of Wertheim but
is now owned by the town. There is now a restaurant there with fine
views over the town and local countryside. Another local landmark
is the ‘Spitze Turm’, or pointed tower, which was once
a corner of the old city wall. Places to visit include the Historical
Museum and the Glass Museum where there are demonstrations of glass-blowing.
The nearby medieval town of Rothenburg-ob-der-Tauber is also worth
a visit.
Szentendre is a picturesque town on the banks of the Danube. It
has a strong tradition of folk-dance and music and is also home
to many of Hungary’s artists. Folk-dancing displays take place
regularly at Skansen - the local open-air folk-history museum. There
is also an unusual Marzipan museum with an amazing range of exhibits
made from this local delicacy. Restaurants and bars are good and
there’s even an ‘English’ pub - the Red Lion.
Local specialities include pike-perch and wild boar as well as the
well-known Hungarian goulash. Wine, delicately embroidered blouses,
tablecloths and napkins and the wonderful Harend porcelain are all
good buys for bargain-hunters. And the beautiful city of Budapest
with its sophisticated culture and lively nightlife is only half
an hour away by car or train and can be reached by boat along the
Danube. For more information visit our website at http://www.hgta.eu
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