Concern raised over Chinese twin town
Thousands splashed on hospitality
I thought the glory days of town twinning in Scotland had died out in the 1970s with the demise of that knockabout TV nonsense - ‘ It’s A Knockout’.
It was all excruiatingly good fun as people from places you’d never heard of, knocked other people from places you’d never heard of, into giant inflatable pools with giant inflatable toys.
And if you didn’t understand what the heck was going on – it didn’t really matter.
The BBC’s commentators, David Vine, Eddie Waring and Stuart Hall, didn’t know what was going on either!
The whole nonsense lasted about 10 years and featured just about every European country daft enough to enter – but the principle remained the same.
Once the Italian inside the 20- foot tall rubber chicken from Vigevano had knocked over the similarly dressed Frenchman from Megeve – the two mayors got together and organised school exchanges and cultural connections.
Oui mes amis, town twinning was born - and quite frankly, I thought it had died . . . until I picked up last week’s Ayrshire Post to learn South Ayrshire is hoping to twin with the Chinese city of Liaocheng!
Let’s face it folks, South Ayrshire needs more twin towns like
Ayr Station Hotel needs more scaffolding!
Ayr – is already twinned with the well- heeled Paris suburb of SaintGermain- En- Laye. A successful relationship that has endured to this day.
Girvan – is twinned with the French town of Torcy in the Seine- etMarne region.
Maybole – has seen more twins that most maternity units! It’s partners with Beloeill in Belgium, Arco in Italy, Crosne in France, Rymarov in the Czech Republic and Schotten, a spa town half way up a mountain in Germany!
Prestwick – is twinned with Lichtenfels in Bavaria, Vandalia in Ohio and Arricia in the suburbs of Rome.
Troon – was recently trying to maintain a committee to supports its twin linkage with the French town of Villeneuve- sur- Lot.
And though not quite in South Ayrshire, Cumnock and Irvine have their own twins as well!
So what does South Ayrshire think in might have in common with Liaocheng?
Er . . . nobody is quite sure yet. But chief executive Eileen Howat is confident enough to sanction a spend of £ 3400 on hospitality in the hope they’ll find something!
Apart from the fact that ‘ South Ayrshire Council’ translates into Chinese as “Hui Aw Foo Dung” – we don’t exactly have a lot to tell this week’s visiting Chinese delegation.
If they arrive by train – I suppose we can try and sell them the idea that we’ve wrapped Ayr Station Hotel in rice- paper as some sort of traditional welcome!
The Scotland- China Innovation and Technology Association say they have spotted similarities between Ayrshire and Liaocheng.
I’ve also tried to find them – without success.
Liaocheng is apparently famous for its high quality donkey steaks – and production of donkey meat glue.
Well, you couldn’t eat a WHOLE donkey – could you?
Oh . . wait a minute . . . here’s something.
According to Wikipedia, Liaocheng “old town” is apparently a new town.
The council bulldozed the original and, realising their mistake, unashamedly rebuilt a replica.
Hey - a council that can’t look after its own historic buildings?
Maybe we should be twinning with this lot after all!
South Ayrshire needs more twin towns like Ayr Station Hotel needs more scaffolding