 Woodhall
Spa’s “Twin” village is called Roëzé.
pronounced “Wahzay”. The full title is Roeze
sur Sarthe and it is about 15 kilometres south-west of Le
Mans where the 24hr races are held. Sited on the banks of the
river Sarthe it is a quaint and charming little village with
a baker’s shop, a butcher’s shop, a general store,
a large church, one pub, a restaurant and La Mairie (the Council
offices) and many very friendly people.
After
a couple of preliminary visits a “Twinning Charter”
was signed by leaders of both parish councils in Roëzé
on October 1988 and in Woodhall Spa the following year in the Spring. A
French government minister was present at the ceremony in Roëzé
and Edward Leigh, the then member of parliament for this area attended
the ceremony here in Woodhall Spa.
The
way the twinning works is this. In the Spring, French families
come to Woodhall Spa usually for four or five days in a French
coach. During their stay there will be a “welcome-dinner”,
an outing in their coach giving the host families a little respite
and a couple of free days which usually means shopping in Lincoln.
However the programme is never obligatory and  often
some of the host families prefer to “do their own thing”
In
the summer holidays, generally late August, English teenagers will
go over to Roëzé staying with French families and although
homesickness can occur for the first day or two, there are usually
tears when the goodbyes have to be said.
The following year, it is the turn of the English families to go
to Roëzé for four or five days in the Spring, sometimes
by coach, sometimes by car and now perhaps by Eurostar or Ryanair
(The flights go from Stanstead to Tours, which is about one hour’s
drive from Roëzé). Again, there will be a welcome dinner
in the village hall, one or possibly two outings arranged and also
a shopping trip to a hypermarket in Le Mans for those all important
bottles of French wine. Then in late August French teenagers come
to Woodhall Spa for perhaps a week accompanied by one or two adult
chaperones.
Since
1988, both villages have made many visits and many many long-lasting
friendships have been forged and quite often families from both
villages will make “unofficial” visits to see their
“twin” families even though the complete journey takes
almost fourteen hours (if travelling by car and overnight ferry from
Portsmouth). The
Twinning Association has just formed its own caravanning group and
it is hoped that caravanning events in the form of “Rallys”
will be arranged in the near future  either
in UK or perhaps on the Continent.
Our
French friends say that Woodhall Spa is a wonderful, charming village
and they all look forward to coming here. There always seems to
be more French families than English Hosts and the Twinning committee
are always on the look-out for people who would like to join the
association and become friends with a French family. The committee
do their best to match families as best as they can in matters
such as age, smoker/nonsmoker and other interests. It is felt that
the young people of Woodhall Spa can only benefit from associating
with youngsters from other countries, learning their culture, customs
and language.
If
you are interested and would like to know more about the Woodhall
Spa Twinning Association, please contact the Woodhall Spa Twinning Secretary via e-mail using wsta.secretary@googlemail.com
Follow
the link to view the Twinning Association photo
album
Roeze
sur Sarthe website: mairie.wanadoo.fr/roeze-sarthe/accueil.htm |
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