We had a very successful Black History month event at the ColstonHall on 17th October. M. Lopez from the Mairie in Bordeaux gave an excellent lecture on L’Histoire de L’Esclavage in Bordeaux that parallels Bristol’s own sad history of slavery.
But we also had excellent musicians from Senegal and buffet food from Senegal-Gabon.
An informative and most enjoyable evening.
A huge congratulations to all our riders and a massive thanks to all the support staff .
Here the very successful stall organised by BBP & Colourful Minds at Upfest 2018.
Children were asked to make facemasks and suncatchers for windows.
The stall attracted a lot of interest all day !
Not only children asked for masks : some adults also got creative…
With the participation of LadyJDay, French artist from Bordeaux.
Mask created by children, based on LadyJDay’Artwork
Lady JDay’s Artwork at Upfest 2018
French Artist Darry Perier at Upfest 2018
The student exchange had 30 participants and everyone met the Lord Mayor Cleo Lake in July for a guided tour of the Lord Mayor’s Chapel.
Various visits were organised in Bristol for the students. They had a great fun and a nice weather !
The group of Bordeaux Exchange Students with their Bristol hosts visited Brunel’s SS Great Britain on Bristol Harbourside. Everyone enjoyed learning about I.K. Brunel’s revolutionary steamship and the radical improvements to speed up travel across the ocean that are still in use in ship design today.
Categories
UPFEST 2018 : MEET THE ARTISTS EVENT
Sunday 29 July ~ Come and meet three of the artists taking part in UPFest 2018 and hear about their inspirations, the graffiti art scenes where they live and work and ask them questions about what makes them do what they do !
Dr Love is from Tbilisi the capital of Georgia which has been officially twinned with Bristol since 1988.
He and two of his colleagues are here to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the link.
Lady Jday is from Bordeaux in South West France which was twinned with Bristol in 1947 as part of reconciliation after the war and a way of building a stronger Europe. She is currently living and working in New York. Two other Bordeaux artists are also taking part this year.
And Stefan Hoch is from Hannover in Germany, Bristol’s twin city since 1947, set up as part of getting to know our enemies and making friends with them to avoid another conflict. Stefan is here with another Hannover artist.
The one hour session will be facilitated by Richard Jones from Tangent Books
who have published several titles on Urban Art including the history of UPFest.
/ SAVE THE DATE /
Sunday 29 July
Greville Room
at the Hen and Chicken pub, North Street
4pm until 5pm
Free Entry on first come first served basis
Global Citizens and International Links…
This event brought together 20 university students from Bordeaux, 20 students from Bristol and representatives from the Bristol Youth Council for a stimulating discussion on what makes you a Global Citizen? A Global City? And how can you contribute to positive outcomes locally and globally in terms of being a sustainable, fair, inclusive and vibrant city.
With : Shelley Nania, Head of International Affairs, Bristol City Council – Councillor Hibaq Jama, Councillor Lead for International – Alix Hughes, International Twinning Officer, Bristol City Council – Thomas Sanchis, Bristol Bordeaux Partnership
– In the presence of Mayor Marvin Rees.
Another opportunity to get together to see a film in French and have a chat.
Two films coming up this month at the Watershed and we hope you will be able to join us.
Again don’t worry if your French is a bit rusty !
Sunday 13 May
REDOUBTABLE at 17:00pm
We will have a drink and some French conversation after the film
but we can meet up in the upstairs reception at 16.50.
More details about the film here
Saturday 19 May
JEUNE FEMME at 17:50pm
We will have something to eat/drink and French conversation after the film.
Again we can meet in the upstairs reception at 17.40.
More details about the film here
DISCOUNT BBP Members : If you would like to take advantage of the £1.00 discount on tickets, then you have to book online.
We look forward to seeing you there, and please just let us know if you need any more info.
Jacques et Claude belong to a group that gives concerts regularly in Le Havre where they live and in the Normandy region.
They are particularly noted for their interpretation of the songs of Georges Brassens, a contemporary of Edith Piaf.
Acclaimed as a wonderfully original, singer, songwriter and poet, Georges Brassens enjoyed a huge reputation in France but rarely ventured outside.
For Jacques et Claude performance a screen will display translations into English for those less fluent in French !
You can hear them on
Thursday, April 19th ~ THE LANSDOWN, CLIFTON, BRISTOL 8
7.30pm
&
Saturday, April 21st ~ ST JAMES WINE VAULTS, BATH
7.30pm
FREE ENTRY ~ Venez nombreux !
Contact Email Jacques & Claude : coindeparapluie@orange.fr
We have the opportunity to get together this month to see a film in French and have a chat beforehand !
There are TWO FILMS coming up in April at the Watershed
Sunday 15.04
CUSTODY at 19.50pm
Meet at 18.50pm
Sunday 22.04
LET THE SUNSHINE IN at 20.10pm
Meet at 19.10pm
We hope you will be able to join us.
We meet an hour before the film starts for some conversation in the bar, and don’t worry if your French is a bit rusty !
Everyone is welcome ! Look forward to seeing you there !
And don’t forget that Bristol Bordeaux Partnership members can claim a £1 discount on all tickets for these two showings.
Poppy Madaras-Smith has now finished her placement in Bordeaux with the Association Bordeaux-Bristol.
Thank you Poppy for this report !
“This past term, as part of an Erasmus year, I spent five months in Bordeaux working at the Association Bordeaux-Bristol. As a modern languages student with the Erasmus scheme behind me I had various options as to where to go and what to do but I can say, in all honesty, that I could not have picked a better placement. The Association, which is right on the river Garonne with a view of the Pont de Pierre, is the kind of place that, despite having spent September to January there, I find difficult to describe. The sense of community is wonderful.
Even though everyone there was a volunteer and popped in only when they had time, the twinning committee and all its members could not have been more welcoming and supportive towards me. By the time I left after Christmas, weighed down by presents, good wishes and offers of somewhere to stay next time I’m back, I really felt a part of their team and personally invested in the future of the twinning between Bordeaux and Bristol. It was brilliant to work in a place where people were so passionate about what they were promoting. Everyone that I met had a nostalgic story to tell about Bristol and something good to say about the British … Brexit only seemed to be motivation to work harder to create and nurture friendships.
It was a pleasure to help with the preparation for the school exchanges and I really hope that future generations will continue to see the value in them as I now do. As the level of interest on the Bristol side is a little lower, I will happily do my best once back in Bristol next September to help generate enthusiasm in local schools. Bristol’s link with Bordeaux can offer so much not just to children but anybody who is interested. The opportunities I got whilst there were invaluable in terms of work experience and I got the chance to live in a new country and feel like a local rather than a tourist. That said, I definitely recommend Bordeaux as a tourist destination! As a small city, with a good selection of small museums (such as the Musée des Beaux Arts), fantastic food and a compact city centre with amazing things to see all within walking distance of each other, it’s a great place to go if you have no more than a weekend free.
I would like to thank everyone at the Association Bordeaux-Bristol for being such generous employers and hosts and look forward to my next visit which hopefully won’t be too far away. Lastly, I would also like to thank Alix Hughes for helping to make this placement possible. It just goes to show how chatting to the person you sit next to in the Bristol Cathedral can lead to great opportunities!”