Double
Vision
DaveLingwoodgot involvedwithanhistoricmeetingbetween
ScarboroughbranchandLudwigsburgbranch. Offeringanewmember’s
perspectiveonameetingwhichbrought IPAmembers together to
formalizeandcelebratea twinningagreement between the twobranches.
I
n2013, 13 friends and I fromScarborough
branchwere fortunateenough to visit
LudwigsburgandStuttgart, Germany. The
tripwas organisedby Ludwigsburgbranch, in
order for theofficial twinningagreement between
the twobranches tobe signed.
Beinganewmember of the IPA, I was excited to
visit Germany,make connectionswithGerman
colleagues, and sample someof the country’s
great culture.
Onarrival at Stuttgart railway station, wewere
warmly greetedby Peter Kolwe, Ludwigsburg
branchChair, andhis colleagues - witha
sparklingwine reception.
Mostmembers of our group thenwere soonoff,
in full policeuniform, toa local restaurant for an
evening function tomark the twinningagreement.
En route, a fewof the locals gaveus puzzledbut
friendly looks. During the celebratorymeal, Peter
andour ownViceChair, CraigRegan, formally
signed theagreement andexchanged gifts. Short
speechesweremadeby Peter andScarborough
branchSecretary, ChrisCharlton, whichwas
ably translated intoGermanby branch Treasurer
JudithSmith. Judgingby theapplause, the
translationwas verywell receivedby our
German friends.
To celebrate, Ludwigsburgbranch thoughtfully
gaveeachof us a limitededitionbottleof
wine that hadbeen labelledespecially for the
occasion. After some time socialisingwithour
newGerman friends, andabit of spontaneous
andquestionabledancing - youknowwho youare
- we retired toour hotel for thenight.
For a few, the secondday beganwitha tripand
guided tour around thepolice station in the
nearby townofMarbach. Formost, the second
day beganwitha trip to theMercedesBenz
museumandUntertürkheim factorywhere
thousands of vehicles areproducedevery year. A
personal highlight formewas theopportunity to
sit behind the steeringwheel of oneof the latest
Mercedes andalso toobserve the company’s
many intelligent roboticmachinesworking
effortlessly to create these vehicles in the factory.
In theevening, wemadeour way downtown to
the famous ‘Cannstatter Volksfest’ –Stuttgart’s3
week longbeer festival. On takingour seats in the
giant Göckelesmaier tent, whichholds over 2,500
people, andorderinga few ‘steins’ wewereall
struckby thewonderful atmosphere–many
localmen, includingPeter, wearing lederhosen
and thewomenwearing traditional dirndl. It was
great tobeapart of theexperience.
The followingdaywe visited thenearby city of
Ludwigsburg, wherewewere treated toa guided
tour around thebeautiful Residential Palace,
oneof the largest baroquebuildings inEurope.
Wealso visited thePalace’sbloomingbaroque
gardens, temporary home to the largest pumpkin
festival inGermany.
It waswith great sadness that our triphad toend
after 4days. Reflectingonour time inGermany,
weall agreed that it hadbeena fantastic
experienceandhopefully the start of a longand
fruitful friendshipwith LudwigsburgBranch–
themembers arewonderful people. As anew
member of the IPA, and speakingas someone
whohas experienced first hand thebenefits that
it canoffer, I would certainly recommend it to
others. The trip gaveme theopportunity tomeet
many new friends, seeadifferent part of the
world, and gavemea real insight into lifeas an
officer inGermany.
I would like to thankall themembers of
Ludwigsburgbranchwith specialmentionof Peter
Kowle,Walter Reichert, UweFritz andHelmut
Wonka for their friendlywelcomeand tremendous
hospitality that they providedonour trip. Finally, a
special thank you toChrisCharlton, Secretary of
Scarboroughbranch for organisingour schedule
andkeepingus all out of trouble.
We look forward towelcoming the Ludwigsburg
branch toScarborough soon. They have certainly
set thebar high!
DaveLingwood
, Scarboroughbranch
14
POLICEWORLD
Vol 59No. 2, 2014
Article
Theofficial signing
Vintage IPA
