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 By Bob Garratt I knew that Holzwickede wanted a red telephone box so when the Post Office put them up for auction I went to the first and only auction I have ever attended and bid for one. Don Johnson was also bidding for one to send to his family in Perth, Australia. We were both successful, and if I remember rightly paid £320 each for them. Don and I hired a lorry and them taken to my garden in Rodden, where I then lived. They sat there until I had mine lifted onto a trailer, which I hired for the purpose. Don had already had his moved. I planned the route and decided to go by Ramsgate and Hook of Holland. That meant that once I had climbed the hill from Rodden to Langton Herring there was no worse hill before Ramsgate. Through Holland and Germany, as I knew, was quite flat. I had a Vauxhall 1600 at the time and the combined weight of trailer and contents was only just legal. So on Saturday evening, November 18th 1989, Margit and I set off. The journey was uneventful. We had a good laugh while waiting to board the ferry at Ramsgate. A driver of a car, also waiting to board, came across to me and said "Did you know you can get smaller car phones nowadays". We arrived safely in Holwickede to be greeted by Marie-Luise Wehlack and by Margit's sister Monika. The date was significant because Germany had just been re-unified, so for the first time since 1981, Monika, from what had been East Germany, was able to travel to the West. Leaving the trailer and phone box safely in the hands of the local Council, I went to the Wehlack's house and slept all day. Bob How it was in April 2017
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30 Years of Twinning was recently celebrated when our German friends from Holzwickede came to Weymouth for a week of activities organised by the Weymouth and Portland Twinners. The timing corresponded with the week that the original agreement was signed. The week started with a tour of the Tudor House in Hope Square, followed by a walk through the town looking at places of interest both historical and present day. Tuesday was a day in Sherborne which was well received and included a visit to Sherborne Castle and the Minster with a little bit of time for shopping. Thursday was the celebration meal when over 100 British and German Twinners joined together at the Ocean Room in the pavilion. Our Mayor Richard Kosior, and Ulrike Drossel, the Mayor of Holzwickede, Marie-Luise Wehlach the chairman of the German Twinners and Fred Flack our Chairman all gave speeches. The Youth Brass Band "The Green Onions" then entertained us with superb music and singing.   Friday our Mayor showed the German official party around the town and the Sailing Centre on Portland. The youth band also went to Portland which they enjoyed very much and they played their instruments while at the Olympic Rings as you can see in the photograph.
They also went on to Durdle Door for the afternoon, whilst the Twinners spent the day in Lyme Regis. In the evening we were entertained by the One Voice Choir and the Green Onion Band at Southill Community Centre an evening that included an excellent ploughmens meal provided by some of our committee and their family and Secs Wine brought by Ulrike Drossel from Holzwickede. It was an excellent evening and the perfect ending of a successful week. We are now looking forward to the 30 year celebrations in Germany next year when we can again meet up with friends old and new in Holzwickede. |
