Ilfracombe twinners cross the channel to help celebrate a city’s 1,000th birthday

Ilfracombe twinners have enjoyed a busy visit to Normandy which included chateaus, a 1,000th birthday party and a coal mine!

It was the turn of the North Devon members of the Ilfracombe/Ifs French Twinning Association to visit their friends across the channel, continuing a strong link that has endured between the two communities for more than three decades.

The group of 18 spent four days with their host families in Ifs, a suburb of Caen, seeing the sights and meeting up with old friends, with the visit coinciding with VE Day 80 celebrations and the city’s 1,000th anniversary.

Above: The twinning association members from Ilfracombe during their visit to Ifs, a suburb of Caen. Credit: Ilfracombe/Ifs Twinning Association

“We always look forward to meeting up and to living a slice of real French life,” says Terrena Howse, the association’s chair.

“Twinning is a unique way of spending time in France - and then the following year showing our visitors the best of North Devon. This year’s trip was all the more special as it coincided with the 80th anniversary of VE Day.”

Their first day in France ended with street celebrations and parades in Caen to mark the city’s 1,000th birthday – featuring giants, dancing, music and fireworks.

Above: Scenes from the Caen 1,000th birthday parade. Credit: Ilfracombe/Ifs Twinning Association

Other events included a civic reception hosted by the mayor of Ifs, a fascinating insight into life down a mine between the 18th and 20th centuries at Molay-Littry and a guided tour of the Chateau of Vendeuvre by today’s descendants of the family who built it 275 years ago.

Individual visits were made with host families to Bayeux, with its famous tapestry, cathedral, and the Bayeux War Cemetery, along with the Mémorial de Caen museum dedicated to D-Day and the Battle of Normandy. Trips were also made to the Butterfly Farm at Honfleur, the Forêt d’Ifs woodland, Caen market, Arromanches, the Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery and Juno Beach.

“There’s so much to see and do during these get-togethers – and we’re looking forward to having our French friends back in Ilfracombe next year,” added Terrena.

The Ilfracombe/Ifs French Twinning Association always welcomes new members and can be contacted through its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Ilfracombetwinningassociation