TWINNIN toons wi ither toons in far aff furrin kintras seems tae be the dane thing in the north-east. Aiberdeen itsel has five twin cities – Stavanger in Norway, Regensburg in Bavarian Germany, Gomel in Belarus, Clermont-Ferrand in central France an Bulawayo doon in Zimbabwe. Growen up, Ah wad tak notice o the sign as ye enter the Broch sayin “Fraserburgh twinned with Bressuire, France” jist aboot ivery day. If nae, it wad be the sign wi “Peterhead twinned with Älesund, Norway” plaistert aa ower it that wad catch ma ee. The latter wad aften spark a wee flicker o jey in ma young hert – it is ayeweys fine tae ken that the place that ye caa hame has ties o some kyne wi the kintra o yer ancestors.

Ither than these wee fleetin thochties as a bairn, Ah niver pit ower muckle thocht in tae the act o twinnin toons an cities wi ither anes owerseas. Forby, a doubt that mony ither folk div either. Weel, nae up til this month onywye. Recently, the idea has pruiven popular. It has been suggestit by a puckle o business men an a local councillor that oor Banff in Aiberdeenshire shoud twin up wi the mair highly populatit Banff in Alberta, Canada. An bi the leuks o it, their dream micht becam a reality. Canadian officials hiv said that they wad be mair than willin tae consider an official request for a twinin arrangement atween Banff in Scotland an the Banff ower the watter, wi jist about double the size o population o oor ane.

The main motivation tae jyne the twa toons wi an official twinnin is tae bring mair siller intae the north-east through tourism. Nae ony surprise, fan the twinnin was the idea o twa business men – the chiel fa ains the Banff Springs Hotel, Ken West, an Des Cheyne, fa ains the weel kent Spotty Bag Shop. Shuir eneuch, mair tourism in the north east wad be fine, as the area seems tae (unrichtly) get a bittie left oot o the usual tourist circuits. If twinnin wi the Canadian Banff did increase the nummer o visitors tae Aiberdeenshire, it wad bring mair cash intae the area an wad likely create mair jobs in the tourism industry. It wad even mebbe mak wey for new local businesses sic as restaurants an hotels. Aye, it wad be a guid thing, but, business isnae the be-aa an end-aa o the north-east, an it isnae the anely advantage tae haein a twin toon either.

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Fit ither purpose coud there be for a toon tae hae a twin? Div they serve for onythin ither than bringin in the siller? The repone is easy – aye. Above aa, haein twin toons strenthens oor international ties, an teaches oor young anes o the importance o haein freendships that span the globe. Aftentimes, in oor wee neuk o the warld especially, it can be affa easy tae get wrappit up anely in fit is gaun on in oor pairts. Sae muckle sae, that we can forget fit a big wide warld is oot there. It can hairvest xenophobia fan a society in general has an ower closed-minded mentality taewarts onythin considered tae be furrin. But, haein connections wi oor twin toons seems tae hae the opposite effect. For example, bairns fae Gomel, ane o Aberdeen’s twin cities fit is still affected bi the Chernobyl mishanter cam ower here tae visit ivery ‘ear, thanks tae the twinnin an a charity caad The Chernobyl Children’s Life Line. Ilka ‘ear Aiberdonians open up their herts an their hames tae the bairns fa aften cam fae puir backgruns, gien them an experience unlike ony they hiv hane afore, an gien their wee bodies a chunce tae detox fae radiation. Traivel is aften food for the saul, an the mind, but in the case o the bairns fae Gomel, camin tae their twin city must dae their bodies the warld o guid ina. Local bairns also benefit fae twin agreements. Back in 2016, pupils fae Hazelhead Academy were invitit tae visit twa o Aiberdeen’s european twin cities in France an Germany. Them fa went tae Germany were invitit tae Regensburg got tae attend a youth forum, far they were in contact wi young anes fae even mair kintras. An invaluable experience allowin the bairns tae lairn mair aboot ither cultures an weys o life. In Stanehaven, haein a twin toon has lead tae sportin connections. Stanehaven is twinned wi Achères, near Paris. Golfers fae Achères hiv aaready been ower tae tak pairt in a tournament at Stanehaven Golf Club this ‘ear. Last wikend Stanehaven had even mair visitors fae its twin toon, this time for a tennis tournament.

Considerin the current political environment in the United Kingdom, an the dreaded ward stairtin wi ‘B’ an endin in ‘rexit’, showin solidarity wi the rest o Europe has niver been sae important for mony Scots as it is the noo. Scotland didnae vote tae leave the European Union, an mony o us want tae show that we are open tae connections wi ither kintras. We want tae gie the warld the exact opposite impression tae that fit the British government is gien it at the mínty. Makin an maintainin international twin arrangements maun be a sound wey o daein this.

Makin new twin agreements is likely tae bring mair siller intae the kintra through encouragin mair fowk tae cam an visit their twin toons an cities, an it warks baith weys. But, siller shoudnae be the anely, or even the main incentive for sic arrangements. Nae maitter fa ye are, or foo auld ye are, we aa need a reminder, fae time tae time, that there is a wide warld oot there tae be explored, ane that is fu o fowk that micht need or help, or that we micht be able tae lairn fae. Fit better wey is there tae remind oorsels o this than engaging wi oor twin toons?