Major operation to bring Nepalese dancers to Llan

 

* Sue McEvoy and Ben Sawin, of Llangollen International

Musical Eisteddfod, with Todd Lochhead, from Bristol,

and his wife, Lisa.

 

A major operation is underway to bring a troupe of Nepalese dancers from their home in the Himalayas to Wales for next year’s Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod.

 

The idea is the brainchild of Bristol man Todd Lochhead whose wife, Lisa, used to run a shop in the Denbighshire town and who has fond memories of its annual cultural spectacular.

 

Todd, a trained accountant originally from New Zealand, is co-ordinating the effort to fly the 34 members of the Rising Culture Group almost 5,000 miles from their base in the ancient city of Bhaktapur, less than 100 miles from Mount Everest and a dizzying 1,400 metres above sea level, to the iconic cultural festival in Denbighshire.

 

He has been a fan of the group’s traditional dance routines for almost 20 years and although he admits it will be a tall order to raise the estimated £40,000 necessary to pay for the trip next July, he hopes that with the help of his friends and contacts around the world and the group’s own determined fundraising efforts it will be possible.

 

Todd, who lives in Bristol where he works as a financial consultant, first came across the dancers when he journeyed to Nepal in 1995 to work as a teacher at the school where the group was formed.

 

He said: “When I went over to Nepal from New Zealand 19 years ago I noticed that everyone there seemed happy and I wanted to find out why.

 

“I heard about a school which had been started in Bhaktapur – it means `city of devotees’ - which is around 10 miles from the capital, Katmandu, and decided to pay a visit there.

 

“Called the Rising English School, it was founded by a man named Kapil Banebepali and his wife Chandika, who is now the principal, and offers lessons to children aged three to 13, many of whom would otherwise have ended up having to go out to work if they had not found some way to get into the school.

 

“The average wage in the area is just 300 to 400 US dollars a year and Kapil’s work with the school opened my eyes about how much can be achieved with so little.

 

“I took a job with him as a teacher and stayed for about a month doing all sorts of lessons including English. The following year I returned and spent another couple of months teaching there.

 

“It was during this time that I first saw the Rising Culture Group performing their traditional and very colourful Nepalese dance routines, the main one of which is the stunning masked dance that has its roots in Hindu culture, and thought they were just fantastic.

 

“The dance group was started by Kapil and is based at the school. He knew the children needed to learn about their own culture as well as getting an education and broke through lots of red tape to make it happen.”

 

Todd added: “As Nepal was in a state of civil war for around a decade from 1996 it wasn’t necessarily safe to go back to Bhaktapur but last October I returned there to see my friends and was invited over again to help them celebrate the school’s 25^th anniversary in February.

 

“I saw the dance group perform on the school stage and realised they are one of the strengths of Nepalese culture.

 

“I remembered the Eisteddfod from the time my wife Lisa ran a small alternative clothing and accessories shop in Llangollen in the 1990s and thought it would be marvellous if the dancers had the chance to come over to Wales and perform in 2015.

 

“I visited the Eisteddfod office in Llangollen Pavilion a few days before the 2014 festival was held and spoke to them about registering.

 

“I then had lots of Skype conversations with my friends in Nepal about them competing.

 

“They had never heard of the Eisteddfod but I told them all about it and sent them lots of pictures and they are very keen to be involved. In fact, they told me they’d love to come to Llangollen.

 

“They are now hoping to compete in three sections, Children’s Folk Dance, Traditional Dance and Cultural Showcase.

 

“We are aiming to bring over a group of 34 people, including 20 dancers aged eight to 16, plus musicians – one of whom is a drum master in his eighties – plus a small number of people to look after the children. 

 

“Raising the necessary funds to make the trip will obviously be difficult for them as I estimate the whole trip could cost at least £40,000 but I believe that if you don’t shoot for the stars you’ll never know. Their `can do’ attitude is exceptional and somehow we’ll make things happen.

 

“They’ll do their own fundraising over in Nepal and I will be asking my business contacts and friends in Bristol and around the world if they are willing to help. In my time I’ve worked in New Zealand, Australia and Amsterdam apart from in the UK.

 

“To get to the Eisteddfod the group will need a hand-up and not a handout and I’m sure we can do it because they have such an inspirational story. It’s my belief that culture isn’t local but trans-boundary.”

 

Eilir Owen Griffiths, Musical Director of the Eisteddfod, said: “This is what the Eisteddfod is all about, bringing together people from all over the world, from different cultures and backgrounds.

 

“It is a very inclusive and international event and what gives it its unique Welsh flavour is our tradition of friendly competition and it is wonderful that we will have dancers from Nepal competing alongside English clog-dancers, Scottish sword-dancers and others from Africa, Europe and China.”

Police theft warning to van owners

North Wales Police say they want to make all owners aware of recent incidents in which vans have been targeted and items stolen from inside.

In a warning issued through Neighbourhood Watch the police say: "It is believed the offenders are using an electronic device which can open the vans without causing damage. 

"We would therefore urge owners to empty your vans of all contents overnight or when leaving the van unattended for a long period of time. Vans have been targeted in Abergele all the way through to Holywell.

"If you noticed anything or anyone suspicious please contact North Wales Police by dialling 101. Alternatively, you can provide information anonymously by calling Crimestoppers Wales on 0800 555 111. North Wales Police would like to urge residents to always report suspicious activity to them at the earliest opportunity."

MP welcomes aqueduct report

Clwyd South MP Susan Elan Jones has welcomed a report on the future of Pontcysyllte Aqueduct  jointly commissioned by Wrexham Council and the Canal and River Trust. 

 

The report recommends how existing land and buildings within the Trevor Basin should be developed and what facilities should be provided in order to meet the expectations of visitors.

 

The report will be discussed at a  committee of Wrexham County Borough Council tomorrow (Wednesday). 

 

The plan will be considered by the World Heritage Site board at its meeting in February, where decisions will be made on how the delivery is to be taken forward.

Ms Jones said: "It's a massive honour to have a UNESCO World Heritage Site in our locality. That makes our home area every bit as significant as the Taj Mahal and the Vatican as far as international tourism is concerned.

 

"I warmly welcome the fact that Wrexham Council and the Canal and River Trust have commissioned the recent report and that visitor numbers have increased.

 

"What's vital now is that we do everything we can to increase the length of time people stay around here. Ensuring that car parking stays free in the long term not just the short term is one important principle the Council needs to commit to.

 

"Imagine weddings and other major celebrations taking place to the backdrop of a flood-lit Aqueduct. Think of how local businesses could grow if we took on board some of the creative ideas that local people have already come up with for a Marina. Picture Cefn's newly opened historical museum as the heart of an industrial heritage centre. 

 

"Very few places in Wales and the UK have our combination of natural beauty and industrial heritage. The possibilities are endless if we are prepared to think big about how we can develop the Aqueduct area."

Campaign helps Llan business to get switched on

 

* From left, Adam Bishop from Cadwyn Clwyd, Chris Smith and Dr Les Pritchard.

 

A campaign has been launched to get businesses in North East Wales switched on to the power of social media.

 

The Digital Clwyd pilot project was aimed at helping members of business groups and community organisations compete more effectively in the digital marketplace.

 

After attending the courses, one businessman in Llangollen says his Welsh gifts website has just enjoyed its busiest ever week.

 

Chris Smith was able to access the training as a member of the Llangollen Chamber of Trade and Tourism.

 

The courses were put on by the rural development agency, Cadwyn Clwyd, whose contribution came via the Rural Development Plan for Wales 2007-2013, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the Welsh Government.

 

According to Chris, whose company, Gifts from Wales Limited which encompasses Cottage Cards and Crafts, Cottage Tea Rooms and Cottage Cream and Candy, the internet was particularly useful for drumming up business outside the main tourist season.

 

He said: "Llangollen is very much a seasonal town, mainly from Easter through to September. 

 

"We’ve got our own website which is giftsfromwales.com but we wanted to promote that even more and also through the use of social media, Facebook and twitter.

 

"We're selling to a world-wide marketplace so, especially during the winter period when it’s quieter in Llangollen, we want to try to increase the traffic for sales in the gift shop and promote our products.

 

"Social media has revolutionised retail. As a result we sell all over the world as far afield as Canada, Australia, Singapore and China.

 

"In the last few weeks we’ve found that orders online have increased quite significantly and we've just had our busiest week for online sales.

 

"The courses were extremely useful in helping me to understand social media a lot better.

 

"They gave us a lot of hints regarding different sites that produce advertising material for the businesses, such as business cards, flyers, posters and also help if you want to do your own web design, how to use Facebook efficiently and productively and also a lot of other sites that I hadn’t even heard of.

 

"By being a member of the Llangollen Chamber of Trade and Tourism it opens up these opportunities for these courses which have been brilliant for us and the others who attended."

 

Organiser Sue Haygarth, who coordinated the courses on behalf of Cadwyn Clwyd, was delighted with the excellent take up for the courses which covered things like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, building websites, email marketing along with search engine optimisation and online security.

 

She said: "We had a six-week window to deliver the 19 courses and we had over 180 attendances at those courses.

 

"Cadwyn Clwyd were aware that a lot of small businesses, micro enterprises who employ nine or less, really struggle to access training sometimes, either because they’re small, so there’s only a couple of people in the company, or because of their location.

 

"We know how important social media is becoming to business and growing business, interacting with other businesses and contacting customers, so Cadwyn put forward a project in rural Denbighshire that would assist these businesses to access the training they need.

 

"The best way to deliver to these very small businesses was deemed to be through networks and groups that were already there, like business groups, chambers of trade, tourism groups along with social enterprises, community businesses and community shops.

 

"Collectively, all these businesses are really very important to the local economy, so anything we can do to help those businesses and boost them to bring in more customers and more income for them, is really important.

 

"Cadwyn Clwyd has seen the benefit already and they’re talking to the Welsh Government about the doing more in future to help these very small micro enterprises which are isolated or working together because they are so important to the local economy."

 

The tutor was IT expert Dr Les Pritchard, who runs a company called Neterix and is a lecturer at Bangor University's School of Computer Science.

 

He said: "The aim was really to deliver some really attractive courses to local communities and businesses and to really fill that gap in what we thought was missing in the area.

 

"Lots of small business were coming along and saying they’d heard of these things but they didn’t know want to do with them and in some cases they were a little bit scared of using social media.

 

"It’s vitally important these days that businesses embrace these new possibilities. The first place people look now, if they’re looking for a business, is online. It's a virtual shop window that brings people in."

 

It was a sentiment echoed by David Davies, the Chair of Llangollen Chamber of Trade and Tourism, who said: "Any business that’s going to be successful has got to market themselves in every possible way.

 

"These courses helped business people move with the times and offered them on a plate how to engage with audiences across a range of media platforms.

 

"The members who have used the course have been very enthusiastic."

Railway passes another milestone

* The diesel railcar at Corwen East, crewed by Karl Latham

and John Joyce, on arrival from Llangollen.

Llangollen Railway passed another milestone in its development when it operated the first passenger service to Corwen with a diesel railcar.

Although diesel railcars were generally introduced by British Railways during the 1950s, these modern trains were never introduced on passenger services between Ruabon and Barmouth prior to closure of the line by Dr Beeching's axe in January 1965.

But the two-day Winter Warmer event staged by the heritage railway on January 2/3 offered visitors a mix of train operations with both steam and diesel hauled trains routed along the recently-opened extension to the new station at Corwen East.

 

The first train of the day last Friday ran from Carrog and provided a 09.30 passenger service from Corwen to Llangollen.

 

It made several further runs to Corwen on both days and proved popular with visitors as it allowed the route of the new extension to be seen in detail from the windows behind the driver's cab.

 

Services with the heritage railcar continued on Sunday as the final day of the festive season of trains.

 

With the line closed for essential track maintenance in January, next public train services to Corwen will operate from Saturday, February 14, prior to an official opening ceremony on March 1 - St David's Day - when VIPs will be present to unveil the station name board.

 

George Jones for the railway said: "This was an historic occasion and provided a service which British Railways never aspired to 50 years ago."

Kayakers rescued from river

The Denbighshire Free Press is reporting this morning that two kayakers had to be rescued from the river in Llangollen yesterday afternoon (Sunday).

For the full story see: http://www.denbighshirefreepress.co.uk/news/142616/kayakers-rescued-from-river-in-llangollen.aspx

Corwen greets first New Year's Day train for 50 years

 

* Engine number 5199 hauled the first New Year's Day train into Corwen for 50 years.

 

Corwen welcomed its first New Year's Day train in 50 years on Thursday.

 

Steam engine number 5199 rolled into the new Corwen East station, which is now the far end for Llangollen Railway, hauling the final Mine Pie Special of the season. 

 

Photographers gathered at the gate at Bonwm to see the train heading towards Corwen from Llangollen where there was also a throng of keen snappers.

 

George Jones, for the railway, said: "Looks like we just had enough mince pies to feed the passenger complement on a day when trains were well supplied despite the late afternoon rain.

"Pity all the snow has been washed away, but still a wintry run along the Dee Valley.

"So ends the Santa/Mince Pie season, but there are still three days of train left to enjoy with the final day of railcars today, Sunday, January 4."

 

 

* Photographers wait for the train to pass by at Bonwm.

 

 

 

* The Mince Pie Special back at Llangollen station.