Police World Edition 2 2014

Article

SteveandKarenmakingnew friends

These reportsare just twoof themany published in thiseditionof Police World. Read theaccountsbelow todiscover thebenefitsof nurturingand makinguseofworldwide IPAcontacts.

Berlin: SteveHunt, 10RegionSecretary andSouth East Essexbranchmember, andhiswifeKaren flewout toBerlin tomeet upwithmembers fromMonchengladbachbranch for an IPA tour of Berlin. Monchengladbachhasbeen twinned withSouthEast Essex branch since1989. Around10members ofMonchengladbachbranch travelled toBerlin tomeet upwith localmembers whoactedas guides. After tasting thedelights of a ‘Currywurst’ the group tooka tripon the river Spreewhich gave great views ofmany famous landmarks - including theGermanParliament buildings. Steve said, “After theboat tripwewent toaWW2 air raid shelter/bunker at Brunnenstrasse - one of the few remaining suchbuildings still in its original formandnowpreservedas a tourist and educational site.” Themilitary theme continuedas the tourmade its way to thewell known tourist spot of ‘Checkpoint France: Duringanextended visit toFrance, and with theassistanceof IPAFrance, I had the opportunity tomeet IPAmembersand take part in their ‘ceremoniesof bestwishes’ - NewYear celebrations. It appears that throughout January, the various IPARegions throughout France, organisea function to celebrate theNew Year (‘ceremony of best wishes’). This gives members theopportunity tomeet eachother and thank individuals andorganisationswho havebeen supportive in thepast - and towish themwell for the future. Georges Lakser, SectionFranceVicePresident, arranged formy attendanceat three separate ‘ceremonies of best wishes’ and tobeanobserver at theSection’sSocial Commissionmeeting. I alsohad theopportunity tomeet several members, including theSectionFranceNational ExecutiveCommitteeandalso visited two IPAoffices. Onanother occasion I was takenunder thewing of IPAmember Olivier Boulenguez. He introduced me to fellowmembers includingMichel Cadin, the President of theEcosseaMontmartreAssociation – (Scotland&MontmartreAssociation) and Director of Hotel Britanny.Michel organises abi- annual Scottishorientatedevent to tie inwith the

Checkpoint Charlie

Charlie’ and thenon toan exhibitiondedicated to the BerlinWall.

Steveadded, “We thenwalked to the BrandenburgGate.We sampledour first Gluhweinat theSiegessäule, theGerman ‘Victory’monument, and then tookabus ride toKurfürstendamm–oneof the first avenues tobebuilt inBerlinwhich isnow famous for all thewealthy andwell known Berlinerswho live there.” Thenext day saw theGermanparty leave for home. Steveexplained that after waving them goodbyeat theundergroundhe continued toexploreBerlinand visitedamuseum that showed thebeginnings of Berlin to themodern day. Another highlight for SteveandKarenwas a visit to the ‘Topographiedes Terrors’ exhibition inNiederkirchnerstraße formally Prinz-Albrecht- Straße, on the siteof the infamousSSand

GestapoHQ. Thisbuildingportrays the riseand subsequent fall of theNazi party. Steve summedup the trip saying, “Wewould highly recommenda visit toBerlin– there is so muchhistory thereandgreat places toeat and drink. It is oneof themost cosmopolitanand vibrant capitals of theworld– somake themost of your IPAmembership.Wedid!”

Ronniewithmembers of SectionFrance

Rugby Internationalmatch that sees France take onScotland inParis. The interior of hishotel is decoratedas a tribute toScotland. Fourteen years agomy family homehosted the daughter of aFrenchmember, her cousinanda friend. A fewmonths after their visit toScotland, I was inFranceandhad theopportunity tomeet the girl, Christealeandher parents.My family hadanovernight staywith them ina village in Normandy andenjoyed their hospitality. At oneof the ‘ceremonies of best wishes’ that I attended, I had thepleasureofmeetingChristeale’sDad JeanYves Lesage. Hewas very surprised to see me there. Hephonedhisdaughter andpassed the phone tome. It was great to catchupwith themand demonstratedwhat the IPA is about.

I am very grateful toall of the members of theFrenchSectionwhomademe feel verywelcomeduringmy stay inFrance. During this summer wehave twoUKparticipants attending the International YouthGathering inFrance. Anexcellent programmehasbeen prepared. I am convinced that it will bea great event andabrilliant opportunity to continue to foster good relationshipsbetweenour twoSections. I look forward tohearingabout their experiences. RonnieDukes , VicePresident

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POLICEWORLD Vol 59No. 2, 2014