ROUND SCOTLAND BY MINIBUS

Scotland's a lovely country. But mainly when it isn't raining. As an intrepid group of Moravians from the Uherske Hradiste region found out when they  boarded our minibus at a sunny Stansted Airport last week for the long trek Northwards which seemed to have grey clouds attached to it like barrage of party balloons from which there was no escape.

But that's Britain...more often than not...and they weren't going to let it ruin their holiday....and in response the sun eventually did come out anyway.

great place

Well, it's a long way from Stansted to Scotland, but a drive up the Great North Road allowed us to have an overnight stop at the ancient capital of North Britain (thats York). Always a great place to spend some time with it's intact medeaval walls, Viking aspects, Roman cellars and a bloody big Minster. Plus the cheapest diesel enroute at £1.31...

a rainy York Minster

But we didn't stay there long and struck out towards the North East, passing by Newcastle and across the rolling hills of Northumbria past Otterburn camp and up into the Cheviots where the Scottish border (and most subsequent tourist attractions) greeted us with a piper in a kilt and a suitcase full of his CD's. Although for much of the day he seemed to be sitting in his car waiting for enough border crossing tourists to turn up to make it worthwhile getting his knees out and making a parping noise.

lovely car park

Dropping down into lowland Scotland task one was avoiding the bloody Olympic torch which seemed to be passing near almost every village on our route. So we stopped in Jedburgh for a bit. Now that's quite a nice place. Lovely car park with a view of the riverside abbey there and a sign saying 'free wifi'...so i got a coffee in the cafe only to be told 'noo, the wifi's just in the car park.' So there's a tip. 

whisky frenzy............

Edinburgh is well worth a night out. So we didn't do that. We had a quick late afternoon visit and then pressed on to Stirling. Which is a miniature version but with 2 famous battlefields to view from it;s splendid hilltop castle (that's Stirling Bridge 1297 and Bannockburn 1314) ( 2.Nil to the Scots...). And Stirling's a good place to start your journey into the Highlands from.

North of Stirling we passed by Perth and stopped at Pitlochry-gateway to the Highlands- where they have a fish ladder and  a distillery. Blair Atholl. Bells basically. So the Czechs opted to have a break from the drizzle and go for a whisky tour...much of which turned out to be outdoor...never mind.

on the positive side

On the positive side, our next stop was the battlefield of Culloden-where the conditions were just right to recreate the mood of that miserable day in April 1746 when Bonnie Prince Charlie left the Highlanders to their fate and Jacobite hopes thereafter resided in the gin bars of Paris and Rome.

things are looking up

Things brightened up on reaching Inverness when former Czech Society Chairperson Marilyn Wallace-who has now become Scottish, turned up and cooked a meal for everybody using solely Scottish ingredients - much of which seemed to be oats,cream and whisky...plus some haggis, raspberries, salmon , a few more oats, and a whisky sauce. In cream. This was what they needed!! And even better, Marilyn knew a pub where a ceilidh was going on...well, they say a ceilidh..they basically meant a rock band with a piper on an Inverness friday night...but the Czechs loved it and danced their legs off. Meanwhile in the pub next door England were beating Sweden 3.2 but you'd have thought they were playing Scotland given the raucous cheers everytime the Swedes scored...

lucky

Loch Ness is a big lake with a monster in it. Which is lucky as all the shops nearby are full of toy monsters!! We didn't see it mind, although there's no guarantee it wasn't hiding on one of the shelves waiting for the right moment to bite someone's face off.

no shortage of monsters....

So we took the 'road to the isles'....thats where you turn off from Loch Monster and follow the only road to Skye. Which leads you right to the Eilean Doonan castle situated on a spectacular sea loch and then over the humpbacked Skye bridge to Skye. The actual 'sky' remained a drizzly grey .

sun!!

In search of even worse weather the group decided to climb Ben Nevis. Which they did. Right on top was snow. So that was cold. However, they all made it and even came back down again.

As we headed to Glencoe the bloody sun came bloody out!! Which actually meant the next few days were great..so the Czechs took full advantage of the weatherly upturn and went on numerous walks around the Glen, across Rannoch Moor, into the forests of the Bridge of Orchy and around Loch Lomond.

sunny!!!!

Highland wanderings

The next day was sunny too...what better time to go shopping in Glasgow....I parked the bus in the Gorbals hoping to be murdered, but no such luck. 

Down to the borders again we had a sunny break at Gretna Green. No one would marry me..although there was a very friendly look from a 'heeland coo' -which i resisted.

wheelclamped in Haworth

And then it was back to England-so I thought i'd take them to Yorkshire. God's own chosen county....or so I thought until I reached the Bronte town of Haworth..little did I know that the local wheelclamper was the worlds biggest bastard and had appeared on numerous TV shows to prove it. £90 to have a wheel clamp removed is a serious deterent to ever wanting to visit the town again - and even though every shopkeeper there will tell you how unpleasant the clamper is.."He once booked Betty Boothroyd tha knows!" , "There were a 1940s vintage car rally here and he booked 80 of 'em", "It's a racket tha knows". So if anyone reading this learns anything it's not actually 'don't go to Haworth' it's -if you do DON'T park in the convenient top of the hill Changegate' private car park where you're very very likely to get ripped off by a smug git, it's park in the free car park at the bottom of the hill or in the 2 hour on road spaces. And if you don't believe me check out the Haworth Wheel Clamper sites on the web.

dream

moooo

Rant over...holiday too....the Czechs final night was spent in the beautiful Derbyshire dales..where England beat Ukraine and qualified for the next round of Euro 2012 and seem to be heading for that dream final next thursday against the mighty Czech Republic themselves.....

ORIGINS OF BRIDGWATER CZECH LINK REMEMBERED

20 years ago, on June 18th 1992, Bridgwater became the first UK town to twin with a Czechoslovakian  town after the Velvet Revolution. 

On June 18th 2012 , secretary and founder Cllr Brian Smedley, made a special visit to the Spean Bridge Commando monument in the foothills of Ben Nevis with a group of Czechs to remember why 

"In 1938 Bridgwater was in the history books following a famous by-election victory by Independent Progressive Vernon Bartlett in the town which sent a message of hope to the Czechs and Slovaks of  those prewar years that not everyone in Britain agreed with the Munich Treaty which had let them down so badly in the face of Hitler's Nazi expansionism. Bridgwater people can be rightly proud of that moment.  The full story can be found at our website www.vernonbartlett.co.uk. "

"a place in history"

"In 1992 Bridgwater signed a formal twinning agreement with the town of Uherske Hradiste  carving another place in history as the first British - Czech twinning after the Velvet Revolution which had seen the collapse of Communism in Czechoslovakia."

Jan Kubis & Josef Gabcik d.18.6.1942 fighting Fascism

"When we set up that twinning the date we chose for the signing was crucial. June 18th , 50 years beforehand, was the date of the battle in the Crypt of the Cyril & Methodius church in Prague when Czech and Slovak Paratroopers, trained in Scotland and dropped behind enemy lines, fought to the death in a pitched battle against overwhelming Nazi SS forces. The dead resistance fighters included Jan Kubis and Josef Gabcik who had taken part in the assassination of Nazi leader Heydrich who had been the designer in chief of the 'Final Solution'."

"an example across the world"

"On 18th June 1942 Europe was under total Nazi occupation and no-one could be sure that Fascism would be overthrown and that democracy  would survive. The decision taken by those brave Czechs and Slovaks in those circumstances to continue to resist was an example across the World and remains as such today. 

"inspiring resistance to Fascism"

The Crypt on Resslova street in Prague today

"This is the reason why on June 18th 2012 as we remember the 20 years of our Bridgwater-Czech Slovak link that we also remember the struggles and sacrifices of 70 years ago. This is why it's important that we remember that in the place where the British , Czech and Slovak special forces trained together with the purpose of inspiring resistance across Europe and uniting to fight Fascism wherever it raises it's head."

June 1942 also saw the Massacre at Lidice, where an entire Czech village was destroyed by the Nazis, the men shot, the women taken to concentration camps and suitable children 'Aryanised'. A recent Czech film 'Lidice' has brought the subject matter to the big screen. In the 1970's a British made film about the Heydrich assasination 'Operation Daybreak' was filmed on location in Prague.

CONNECTICUT YANKEES ON THE SHAMROCK TRAIL

Somewhere off the West coast of Ireland

Sometimes we don't need to fill a minibus full of  budget travellers and  drive, guide and cater for them on a shoestring. Sometimes we can just take a couple of people in the back of  a car and chauffeur them around the exotic highways and byways of the British isles , with accommodation to suit and at the same time show them some places that they wouldn't normally find on a package tour.

On this occaision our guests were 2 Americans from the New England state of Connecticut and the glamorous destination was Ireland in June.

Which meant it mainly rained......

But not always. And in fact on some of the days it was quite sunny.

Referendum fever

Scene of the 1916 Rising,Dublin

Arriving at Dublin airport and spending a couple of nights in the capital it became apparent that we'd picked the week of the Irish Constitutional referendum. From every lampost and hoarding posters screamed at us saying 'Vote NO to Austerity' or 'Vote YES for Stability'..Sinn Fein Says NO, Labour says YES Fine Gael and Fianna Fail say YES and a various assortments of left parties also said NO....in the end a midly interested Irish population voted YES...but with barely over 50% of the vote.

So Dublin was a a vibrant stopover with plenty of action and a ska festival to boot. 'A very clean place' said Colleen. 'Hic' said Don as we visited the Guinness Storehouse where they must have got lost still not emerging 3 hours later....

We took in all the sites-O Connel street and the Post Office-scene of the 1916 Easter Rising, Dublin Castle, the Temple Bar and the rest.

Munster Mash

Leaving Dublin we headed south to Waterford where a small 6 car ferry was the only access to the island based Castle hotel, where the Vikings had first landed before deciding to found the actual city itself.

Fat man on the rocks

From Waterford we could head out on day trips. One day we went to the famous Rock of Cashel and another to a Lithium Mine. Not even the Irish knew they had lithium-but Don did as he had some investments there. And apart from the Lithium County Carlow is a pleasant place for a couple hours break, noticeably the small river crossing of Leighlinbridge with it's ancient stone bridge, collapsing castle and riverside walks.

Along the south coast via Dunvegan we had a lunch break at the Ballymaloe cookery school - very famous and then accidentally happened upon the small lifeboat station of Ballycotton (older readers will remember he had a bandshow back in the 60s) where we met the publican Gerry who dispelled the Americans views that Dublin was a quiet little backwater when he described it as something equivalent to Sodom and Gommorrah. Then a fisherman friend came in and they played dancing lobsters on the bar while conversing unintelligibly about mackerel.

Heading West

Gap of Dunloe in County Kerry

The city of Cork was a massive traffic jam. Just as well we were missing it out and heading for the more sedate Kinsale- site of the 1601 battle when the Irish crucially failed to kick out the English despite help from the Spanish due to their lack of stirrups. Thats a fact. The Ulster Earls had force marched down there across the whole country only to mess up at the last minute. And I write this mid way through the Euro 2012 football finals....

A day trip around county Cork took us to Clonakilty, home town of Michael Collins-rebel leader cum free state leader and hammer of the rebels. Assassinated in a valley not far away at the peak of his career during the Irish civil war. By now the rain had set in a bit..but luckily Don and Colleens main interest was meeting the local characters in the local pubs...no shortage there then.....

Macroom at the top

From Cork through Macroom , with it's castle on the town square, they reached county Kerry and spent a couple of nights on the Dingle peninsula . On the down side this area of major ancient stone forts and cricles does tend to be spoilt by a little man in a pay booth sat at the bottom of his field selling people entrance to a rain sodden hillside to see his particular pile of stones- but on the positive side, when the breaks in the rain do occur there's some spectacular cliffscapes and islands to have a look at. And of course you;re in the heart of the Gaeltacht where the Irish language is spoken by a large number of the residents.

Over on Tralee Bay the visitors chose to stay at Ballyseede castle- a lovely spot-despite being right next to the 1923 Ballyseedy massacre monument when 8 IRA men were tied to a landmine by Free State soldiers and executed. Unluckily for the perpetrators one man escaped as he was blown into the nearby ditch and was able to get away and tell the tale. Well, it's the case that there's no shortage of massacres,battles and gory incidents all around Ireland interspersed with the charming touristy stuff so you're never far away from either!

The only way to travel!

'How ya doing!'

So we decided to visit Killarney. A tourists picture book introduction to the iconic Ireland of  loveliness. And on such a day the sun decided to come back out. So Don and Colleen took a pony and trap through the Gap of Dunloe and up towards McGillicuddies Reeks (a range of hills within the famous Ring of Kerry) starting and finishing at Kate Kearney's cottage and then off around the Ring to Muckross House-where Queen Victoria had dropped in for a visit in 1861 and near where her ladies in waiting had observed the 'finest view in all her kingdom'...now known as 'ladies view' (and just around the corner from Leprechauns Leap...now with added Wifi...).

Heading on across the dolphin infested mouth of the Shannon River into County Clare the rain came down again....bringing to mind numerous episodes of Father Ted (which was filmed here). The cliffs of Moher couldn't even be seen, never mind accessed, so we went to the musical village of Lisdoonvarna (for reference google the Christy Moore song) instead.

Off the Doolin shore

Ridiculously sunny

The next day was a ridiculously sunny day - confusing everyone. So off they went out to sea on a little boat trip not only taking in spectacular views of the cliffs of Moher from the sea but also including a brief jaunt around the nearby Arran islands (see opening shots of Father Ted).

The small village of Doolin is a must for visitors to Clare with some excelent coastal scenery, all the boat trips you'll need and some great bars and music outlets.

The final day saw a visit to Galway -just across the Connaught border-but sadly in the rain. And by now the rain was quite intense and causing some flooding...so just about time to go....and leaving from Shannon airport would you guess-the sun came out....

YET AGAIN FOOTBALL'S NOT COMING HOME

"All the big names were there"

This years Sandino Football tournament in Bristol sponsored by the Nicaraguan Link Committee saw two Bridgwater International teams challenge the might of  that city's Multinational communities in their bid for ball foot related excitement and to regain a trophy we've never yet won.

The Bridgwater International A team-wearing Leeds United white  , captained by Steve 'quite a good footballer' Miles, and consisting of a full complement of sports teachers, athletes, running enthusiasts and people who knew how to play football easily won their group with 5 straight victories over tough opponents including Dynamo Horfield, Red Star Henleaze, Dukla Westbury on Trym, Partizan Bedminster and Chipping Sodbury Cub Scouts , therefore qualifying for the next round of the Sandino Cup. Sadly that's where their luck ran out as they met the Chilean Exiles 'los Hombres divertidos de Santiago' who thrashed them 1.0. Steve Miles said after the game "I'm 64 you know."

Not very good

"The A Team"

The tournament was clearly a game of two halves and two teams of varying abilities. So the Bridgwater International B team  not only featured continental goalscoring legend (he scored one in La Ciotat last year ) Brian 'councillor' Smedley, it also starred 4 guys called John from Trig Engineering and the worlds dirtiest player Richard 'bites your mars bar' Weaving.

Kitted out for luck in Blackpool colours of orange and white, the 'Special B's ' were nevertheless defeated 1.0 in a hard fought 7 minutes each way game against  St.Werburghs Hotspurs. Totally exhausted now they nevertheless took to the pitch for their second game against a team of ultra fit young students from a primary school in the Yate area and lost 2.0.

A bit rubbish

"The B Team"

Their third game saw them pitted against the infamous 'La Ruca' (Spanish for 'pretty good players who never lose') and went down 3.0.


Their fourth game saw a more determined effort against what they assumed to be easier opponents 'Montpelier Little  Sisters of Mercy' and lost 4.0.

quite poor in fact

By the time of their fifth game, this time against the Easton Desperadoes, they came out hard and physical. Weaving was rebuked several times by the referee for late tackles - one so late that his opponent was getting changed in the clubhouse  at the time. Smedley moved cautiously 2 metres either side of the centre spot as the game swung backwards and forward and the 4 guys from Trig did all the actual playing. 

Absolute tripe

As Weaving was booked for a a low kick to the referees throat in a vain attempt to stop him blowing the whistle, the game came to the end with a mathematically brilliant 5.0 defeat.

"Footballers playing football"

All wasn't lost however, as the rubbishest teams were entered into a second tournament the 'Sandino plate' so the B team had a chance to redeem themselves. 

Up against Ashley Down Ashthmatics they fought a hard game and kicked the ball at least 4 times during the match. Sadly a single goal decided it and out went Bridgwater's finest*.

 (*poss misheard)

HUNGARIAN LINK LAUNCHED WITH BRIDGWATER VISIT

Triangulation explained in King's Square Bridgwater

Less than a year ago a Bridgwater delegation to Uherske Hradiste , our Czech twin town, met delegates from their twin town in Hungary. Representatives from the town of Sarvar were keen to make links and this seemed to fit in well with our avowed progressive twinning strategy (which we've called 'Triangulation')  viz 'your twin town is our twin town'. Within  5 months our first trip to Hungary was up and running thanks to the support of Mr Bethell the Sociology teacher at Richard Huish college .

In April we welcomed to Bridgwater a small delegation from Sarvar to look at exactly what we could do for the benefit of both our communities. The group consisted of Zsolt Nemeth-a councillor and businessman, Beata Kovacs-an English Teacher from the Sebastian Tinodi School, Esther-one of Sarvars brightest students and Orsolya, a lawyer from Budapest.

Orsolya,Beata,Zsolt,Esther & Brian on the Cornhill

whisked westwards

Flying in to Gatwick the group were picked up by fast skoda and whisked westwards  with only the slightest stop at Stonehenge, and stayed with members of the friendship society in Bridgwater.

On the Friday, their only full working day in the area, a packed day awaited them. Starting with a stroll around Bridgwater as it was waking up they immediatly fell in love with the place. The stallholders along the Castle market were laying out their wares, traders on West Quay were clinging onto their wall to stop it being swept away in the impending floods and passers by were handy with tips on the local history. it also turned out to be the day the council had decided to clean up the Blake statue...although the vultures ominously hovered overhead awaiting the next downpour...

Learning about Sedgemoor District Council

Plans for investment

At Sedgemoor Council offices, Chief Executive,Kerry Rickards, set aside some time to talk to them about the role of the council, the need and plans for investment in the town and district and inspired a useful discussion on comparative Local  Government in Britain and Hungary. A tour of the council offices showed the visitors the CCTV centre and also the Call Centre-where at the exact time of the visit an Emergency call was being taken. 

NOT in fact Madame Tussauds....

The next stop on the visit was Bridgwater College, one of the towns biggest employers and also hosting some 16,000 students overall-3,000 of whom are full time. Media lecturer Mino de Francesca showed them around the wide variety of departments whilst International Department head Marie Lizion provided them with info packs for foreign student enrolments.

the role of the family

An afternoon in Taunton included a visit to the Hungarians old friends at Richard Huish where they were allowed to sit in on one of Mr Bethell's sociology lessons-this time talking about the role of the family. 

Richard Bethell's sociology class

Following a quick tour of Taunton and a drive back over the Quantock hills the group met at the Green Olive in Bridgwater for an evening social with Friendship Society members hosted by Bridgwater Czech Slovak Friendship Society Chairman Tim Mander followed by a visit to a typical English pub - in this case the Fountain Inn, where they met with even more locals in varying states of soberness.

tour of the shops

On the Saturday the Hungarians were taken on a tour of the shops in Bridgwater by  Cat Smedley and  two Richard Huish students, both called Ella (maybe), who had been on the Hungary visit in February. 

The highlight of the visit was undoubtedly the trip to Fairfax park at the invitation of Mayor of Bridgwater Pat Parker to see Bridgy Town beat Dukla Didcot in a 5 goal thriller. Wearing Bridgy scarves , rain and chips in faces and 'a bit cold' they enjoyed the atmosphere that is top flight sporting entertainment on a Parretside saturday afternoon.

'Come on Bridgy, give we gert goal'

bring together

Ian and Sonia Tucker were hosts for a farewell barbecue at their home on the saturday evening before the visitors headed off on the sunday for a tour of an increasingly flooding Somerset, a downpour sodden Bath and a strangely brighter Oxford on their way back to Gatwick.

The next step will be to find ways to bring the two communities together.  Already we are looking at a visit to Bridgwater by Sarvar students in September to coincide with the Bridgwater Fair. Bridgwater International is therefore inviting any groups or individuals keen on visiting Hungary to get in touch and we will arrange a project to suit.

bridgwaterinternational@gmail.com

SLOVENIANS SPRING BREAK IN ENGLAND - TURNED OUT NICE AGAIN!!

Slovenia's Eurovision entry for 2023

A couple of years back when our first Slovenian group visited us they got caught up in the Icelandic volcanic eruption and had to be rescued by our fleet of emergency drivers , a mad dash through the channel ports and a pick up on the French coast for a 2 day drive back to their Balkan bolt hole. We weren't sure Slovenians would ever come to see us again.... However, they did. 

And a good choice of season it was too! Normally in March in England we're sweeping up wind toppled tree trunks , laying gentlemanly cloaks over puddles of rain or closing down entire communities and declaring National emergencies lest a snowflake lands on the nose of a civic dignatory. This time however, it was like mid summer. Excluding the murders. Well, most of them .

admiring the lifeguards horses

very happy

This particular group of Slovenians were from the mountain region around Bled-where our tour groups have visited on many occaisions. Their school, in the hamlet of Radovljica, has hosted both Bridgwater College and the Richard Huish school on previous visits and so we were very happy to have them back over here.

Choosing to land at Stansted (with a direct Easyjet flight from Ljubljana) VERY late one night we picked them up by our fleet of minibus (and car) and drove them straight into London where they tumbled out on the Embankment at Midnight to take pictures of the bright lights of the big city before tumbling back into the vehicles to check into their Holland Park hostel for the night.

local delicacy

First thing in the morning we dished out the day passes and took them on a selective tour of the sites of the capital. Changing of the horseguards, Buck house, Downing street, Trafalgar square then across London to the Tower, Shakespeares globe and St.Pauls. Well, there's probably more to London, but that'll do for 6 hours....

somewhere yonder is a white horse......apparently

So off we went to Oxford for a visit to the famous University city - followed by a night in the Ridgeway Youth Hostel on the hills above Wantage where everybody learnt how to make and eat Shepherds pie. Followed by that other local delicacy- Canadian pancakes with maple syrup.

audible gasps

The next day we set off bright and early along the ancient ridge path to have a look at the White Horse of Uffington and then stopping for a mid-day break at the Prehistoric stone circle of Avebury. On this occaision chosen as an assembly point for a rally by the North Midlands (by the accent) Hell's Angels. 

Taking in the medieval street scene, Wells

Continuing into Somerset the students were impressed by the splendour of Wells with audible gasps on reaching vicars close and again beneath the impressive cathedral. And off we went again to Glastonbury where a wander round the town wasn't enough so they insisted they could fit in a walk up Glastonbury Tor - and whilst they didn't quite do it in the 5 minutes predicted-they weren't far off..

International Night

International night at the Green Olive

That evening the group had a treat in store for them as the newly re-opened Green Olive restaurant on Bridgwaters stricken West Quay co-operated with us in holding an 'International Night' along with local supporters  and a range of Mezze snacks. Entertainment was provided by Polish singer  Darianna and her friends whilst Slovenian heart-throb  Tilen Zganjar wooed the audience with his devastating repartee of karaoke hits from his homeland, at one point even causing his teachers to get up and dance.

music of many Nations..

Staying the night at Street youth Hostel on the Polden ridge the students woke bright and early to be whisked away into Bridgwater College where Globetrotting media lecturer Mino De Francesca spent the morning with them showing them around and introducing them to his Media students and the films they had made. The Slovenians -from one of the few schools in their country that specialises in Media, had also brought along some of their works.

action packed

That afternoon the group took in Burnham on Sea, Cheddar and then Bath where they had a guided tour before staying overnight after visiting a live jazz blues band at the Bell Inn on Walcott street and getting to know the locals. Who turned out to be Lithuanian.

leaving Bridgwater College

The next day we had to rush them off to Stansted (before another volcano erupted) and waved good bye to them after an action packed 5 day visit - hoping to see them again next year!

HUNGARY - SOCIOLOGISTS ON TOUR

Eszter Nemeth tells the students about the Fishermans Bastion

Hungary is a funny country. Even Hungarians revel in the fact that no-one can understand their odd language , totally unrelated as it is to any other. Apart from Finnish . And maybe Estonian. Then there's the weather. With the harshness of the winter over it seemed those thermal vests and extra layers wouldn't be neccessary. And then it snowed, temperatures plummeted. And then it stopped and  turned to shirt sleeve summer.

So this was the country chosen this year by the Globe-Trotting Sociology department of Somerset's  Richard Huish College for their study trip. Of course, it wasn't just the unfathomableness of Hungary that appealed to Sociology students, there's also been a lot going down there recently that has raised eyebrows around the world and which make the place ideal for further investigation.

Hungary has been through it all. Created by a fusing of Asiatic tribes in the 10th century and establishing a Nation on the Danube , then finding itself the frontier of Europe in subsequent invasions by the Mongols and the Turks, and then becoming the joint if not equal partner in the doomed Austro-Hungarian Empire, choosing the wrong side in both World Wars and recently forming part of the Soviet bloc during the Cold war, you wonder what else could go wrong.  Well, it seems Capitalism's not having such a great time there now either as the new 'liberal democratic' Hungary is being touted as potentially the next Greece as it's economy falters and the Conservative 'Fidesz' Government  comes under strong criticism for using their parliamentary majority to change the constitution to their advantage leading to mass demonstrations in parliament square , hunger strikers outside the state controlled TV station and declarations against Prime Minister Viktor Orban as the 'Viktator' . During recent demos over Christmas people were holding up placards saying 'Hey Europe sorry about our prime minister'. And if things weren't going badly enough, waiting in the wings are the extreme right wing  'Jobbik' party - who dress in uniforms and stage mass Nationalistic rallies around the place.

"Guarding the Presidential Palace"

The Richard Huish college flew out with Bridgwater International from Gatwick into the midst of all this. The extra incentive was a link with a Hungarian school so that they could meet up with students of their own age and get to grips with what was really happening in the country. The Tinodi Sebastian Gymnasium in the town of Sarvar was that contact. A link that had come about through the mutual twinning between Sarvar and Bridgwater with the Czech town of Uherske Hradiste. The project became a reality when English teacher Beata Kovacs agreed to help out.

Staying at the Hotel Touring in the Bekasmegyer district of Budapest, the group were in the midst of  acres of communist period tower blocs. The hotel was basically a converted one of these and was designated as a 2 star status.

For the 3 days in Budapest, the students from Sarvar came up by train to meet their English visitors and accompanied them around the city starting with a snow filled tour of the Castle Hill district of Buda where they visited the St Matthias church, the fishermans bastion, the Presidential palace-where they caught the changing of the guard-including a dangerous bayonet twirling display, and thereafter descended the hill via the 'Siklo' a funicular railway, then crossed the Chain Bridge to the Pest side of the river where they had free time in the Vaci street shopping centre.

"With Imre Nagy on his bridge"

The Hungarian Parliament is without a doubt the most impressive building in the city and the students had a guided tour of the place with the security guards putting on a special display of surliness virtually throwing people through the security gates. Well, there have been demonstrations here and accusations of authoritarianism, so it's probably a job without too much opportunity for cheeriness.

"Reagan notices a panda in his midst"

Outside the Parliament the students posed by the statue of Imre Nagy, the Socialist reformer of the 1950's , regarded as a hero by the anti-communists and such a threat by the Communists that they secretly tried and then executed him. Just around the corner the students posed with the statue of Ronald Reagan- who many in East Europe regard as the symbol of western freedom -despite being regarded by many in the West as in fact being the biggest threat to world peace during the 1980s. Oblivious, Reagan strolled smilingly through Liberty Square. Some of the students knew who he was.

St Istvans Basilica is another highlight of Budapest. Like churches everywhere it's free. Today there was a religious person telling people they had to pay. Deludedly many thought they had to , although in fact it was 'voluntary donations'.

"Inside the MTV building"

"Outside the MTV building"

The next day the students visited the MTV studios. Sadly (for them) not the MTV of popular music legend, but the Magyar TV. This is the TV station where Trades unionists are on hunger strike in protest about the pro-Government politicisation of the TV station . The students were treated to a glossy tour of the studios which didn't refer once to any dispute  and so afterwards they met with the Trades Unionists on strike in their tent outside the main entrance. The tent was bedecked with photos of Czech martyr Jan Palach, who had burnt himself to death in 1969 in protest against political oppression.

By now the weather had almost turned tropical - thus putting paid to the students hopes to go ice skating as the outdoor ice rink had melted and turned to slush. However, the Heroes Square area of Budapest is a very attractive setting and right beside the city park where the famous Szechenyi Thermal spa is situated, so some took advantage of that instead.

An evening in the Vaci area sampling the  nightlife ended up in the Hard Rock cafe - as an alternative to being lured into topless bars by street sleaze pushers, and a lively train journey back to the digs saw the new Hungarian 'no noise after 10pm' law swing into action as 3 mean looking black clad skinhead  railway Police angrily compelled silence. This didn't last however, as no sooner were they on the train than a Hungarian student got out his guitar and they all joined him in singing a tuneless massacre of 'Let it Be'.

Next day it was off to the town of Sarvar . But first a visit to the famous Memento park on the outskirts of the capital - a place where the grandest of the Communist period statues had been removed to as a kind of open air museum of anti-communism. So we bought an hours worth of anticommunism in the form of a guided tour for £3.57 each. One student won a red star for correctly guessing that you could fit 15 people into  Trabant before being told that the red star had now been made illegal in Capitalist Hungary.

"Memento park, Lenin hails a cab to get out"

A 2 and a half hour drive across the gently rolling plains of Hungary ended up in the town of Sarvar. Or to give it it's proper name, 'Mudcastle'. A town of about 15,000 people, once the home of the Countess Elizabeth Bathory, who had tried to preserve her youth by bathing in the blood of peasant girls, and a massive repository for turkeys and chickens, which had provided Bernard Matthews with much of his stock.

Richard Huish students stayed at the Hotel Viktoria - very modern, wifi in every room, a fitness suite and conveniently right next to the Tinodi Sebastien school and right in the town centre. They were made to feel at home straight away. The Mayor gave them a free tour of the castle and a subsidised visit to the massive and plush Spa  and swimming pool. Local independent councillor Szolt Nemeth treated them all to a free turkey dinner courtesy of his company Taravis.

The school laid on the most cordial of evenings, with music ,film and a quiz. The students joined in and ended up singing songs in Hungarian, competing for cream cakes and playing some game involving a football and human croquet hoops.

"Hungarian Communist leader Bela Kun pointing to the new Tescos"

The final day was spent in school doing a lot of actual sociological study - talking directly with students and facilitated by teachers. Students without doubt learned a lot from their visit.

The Mayor of Sarvar, Mr Kondora, gave a speech, the school choir sang the school song and students did a very professional presentation on tourism in Sarvar and  a promotion of the school itself.

The upshot of all this is we have a new link. In April a Hungarian delegation will visit Bridgwater and it is hoped this will be the start of more projects.