Saturday, April 8, 2017

Sister Cities

INGRID THOFT

Tucked away in Seattle’s International District, you’ll find the Kobe Terrace park.  With its pine and cherry trees and stone lantern, the park offers a quiet respite in the city, compliments of the citizens of Kobe, Japan.  Seattle and Kobe are sister cities—Seattle has twenty-one sister cities—and they’ve shared a bond since Sister Cities International (SCI) was launched in 1956.  
  

Sister Cities International recently celebrated its 60th anniversary and given the current political climate and various conflicts around the globe, its mission is as relevant today as it was in 1956.  Seeing people as individuals who are a sum of their parts, not just a religion or a political party, would go a long way to humanizing and de-escalating the acrimony of the times. 

Created as a bi-partisan nonprofit by President Eisenhower, the organization’s mission was to foster peace and prosperity between citizens of foreign countries.  Started not long after the end of World War II, the birth of SCI was seen as an optimistic and bold move.  One of the earliest partnerships was between Seattle and Tokyo—largely for trade purposes—but a surprising alliance given the deep wounds of the war.  A speech by President Eisenhower at the time, identified the unique and vital role that individuals could play in bringing peace to the world:


If we are going to take advantage of the assumption that all people want peace, then the problem is for people to get together and to leap governments—if necessary to evade governments—to work out not one method but thousands of methods by which people can gradually learn a little bit more of each other.


It’s no surprise that Seattle has a sisterly relationship with cities in Asia, given the city’s location and business relationships.  Nor was I surprised that Bergen, Norway is also on the list; Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood was traditionally a destination for Norwegian immigrants and still cherishes that part of its history.  But other sister cities like Gdynia, Poland and Sihanoukville, Cambodia have less obvious connections.  And the relationship isn’t always smooth sailing.  During the Amanda Knox murder case, relations were strained between Seattle and its Italian sister city, Perugia.    



If I were to choose a sister city for myself, which city would I chose?  A spin of the globe landed on Essaouira, a seaside town in Morocco.  Its location on the ocean holds great appeal, and the art, architecture, and textiles of the region are spectacular.  A city so different from any place I’ve lived would undoubtedly provide rich opportunities for learning about another culture and other religions.  I’m not the only one who’s drawn to Essaouira, however; it’s already a sister city with La Rochelle, France.


If you have had to choose a sister city for yourself (we’re just brainstorming, so it’s allowed) or your town or city, where would you choose?  And why? 



And congrats to Celia in Colorado!  She won the signed copy of "Burning Bright" from Nick Petrie!

27 comments:

  1. Sister Cities are a wonderful idea, Ingrid, but there are so many possibilities . . .
    I couldn’t come up with any “same name” places so that left me to simply choosing a place by following your idea of spinning the globe. I landed in Le Havre, France . . . .

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    1. You would have to get in line, Joan. Le Havre is sister cities with St. Petersburg, Russia; Southampton, England; Dalian, China, and Tampa!

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  2. This is so interesting Ingrid! I looked up Key West, and we have one sister city, Green Turtle Cay, Abaco, in the Bahamas. Now I'm curious how that came to be.

    If I was to choose another? Maybe Mumbai/Bombay, as that is where many of the novels and memoirs from Thrity Umrigar are set. If you haven't tried her yet, you should!

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    1. It's interesting that Key West's sister city is comparable in climate, which seems a bit unusual based on the not scientific research I've done!

      I'm not familiar with Thrity Umrigar. Thanks for the recommendation!

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  3. I looked up Boston. Turns out we have 10(!) sister cities. Who knew? I've been to five of them: Melbourne, Hangzhou, Barcelona, Strasbourg, and Belfast.

    I'd love my personal sister city to be Felipe Carrillo Puerto in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo on the Yucatan peninsula. My daughter spent a year living there and I developed a fondness for this non-touristed city with its many Maya with their own language and rich culture. It's a gentle place, steeped in the past and trying to thrive in the present.

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    1. I couldn't believe that Seattle has 21, Hallie. Seems like overkill, but what do I know!

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  4. Cincinnati has nine sister cities. Munich is the most obvious, since our two cities have the largest Oktoberfests, and with our intense German heritage here. Harambe, Zimbabwe would probably be the least obvious. There's an amazing park along the Ohio, Friendship Park, where dozens of works of public art celebrate our Sister Cities. A good friend whose an artist oversaw the installations.

    A lovely sister city choice for me would be either Urubumba, Peru, or Innsbruck, Austria. Both lovely places, and I just realized, at high altitudes and among mountains. Hunh.

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    1. I had no idea that Cincinnati has a large Oktoberfest. I haven't been to Urubumba or Innsbruck, but it sounds like they should be on list.

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  5. Rochester has twelve, many in Europe but also in Africa, China and Japan. My favorite is Rennes, in Brittany. I've been there although I can't pronounce it. But if I could pick another, it would be Lourmarin, in the south of France. Or anywhere in France. Did I mention I like France?

    Ann

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    1. Ann, what is it about France that is such a draw for you? The wine? The cheese? The scenery?

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    2. I am not certain, Ingrid, but it is the place I feel at home. And no, I don't speak French. Except for enough to get my way around the market, the menu and find a toilet anywhere. French food is good because French FOOD is good, the raw materials. I am never tasted anything like it. So one of my pleasure is gathering fish and nuts and berries and the odd croissant in the market each day and making many of our meals. Don't even get me started on French eggs with those dark orange yolks! And once I mastered bonjour and au revoir and merci beaucoup, the entire French populace begain to speak French, so no language difficulties at all ever.

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  6. I have been to Essaouira, Ingrid! It's lovely, and the little fish restaurants on the dock are delicious - you can't get fresher. Now if you could get a glass of wine (hard to come by in Morocco) with your dinner, I'd vote for it, too.

    Amesbury has a sister city in Kenya, but there's also an Amesbury, England, complete with its own Quaker Meeting. Several fFriends made a pilgrimage there a few years ago.

    I might pick a little beach town near Odawara, Japan, where I spent several nights in the 70's. Absolutely charming, and quiet. But since I can't remember the actual name, I'll vote for Banfora in Burkina Faso. I spent some time there in 1999, visiting an American grad student friend doing doctoral research on diviners. It's a small town near Bobo Dialassou, and is also charming (if you like dry and dirt poor) and completely quiet. My office curtains are made from cloth I bought there. The town would benefit very much from a sister city connection.

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    1. You've traveled to such interesting places, Edith! Did you grow up traveling with your family or is it an interest you developed as an adult? I love having objects in my space that I picked up on trips. We have some decorative plates that we got in Istanbul; the trip home was worrisome wondering if they were going to arrive in one piece.

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    2. Sorry I missed your return questions. No, we only traveled to Sequoia National Park (from the LA area) every summer to camp while I was growing up. But spending an exchange student year in Brazil when I was just seventeen changed my life and gave me the travel bug! We also traveled home with a couple of treasured pieces of pottery from Morocco and were grateful they didn't break on the way back.

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  8. McKinney doesn't have a sister city! How disappointing. Our latest population estimate is 168,000, so I certainly think we deserve one. We have a big October Fest, and a Dickens Christmas. We're very green March through October, and have lots of sidewalk cafes and shops on our town square. So I am choosing Strasbourg, France, which is only a little bigger (if considerably older and more historically important!) Strasbourg is on the Rhine River, on the French side of the French/German border. It has gorgeous architecture and the average summer temps are in the 70s. I think I need to plan a visit...

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    1. McKinney sounds lovely, as does Strasbourg. This post is turning into a To Be Traveled list!

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  9. (I should perhaps add that metro Strasbourg is around 700,000, but then metro Dallas, of which McKinney is part, is over 4 million people.) So McKinney is both bigger and smaller:-)

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  11. Newton has three, one in Israel, one in Italy, and the other one I forget. SO anyway, I Iooked up the one in Italy, and it the WIkipedia entry listed all its sister cities, and Newton was NOT on the list. SO there seems to be some sister city chicanery.

    And I started thinking what sister cities are for--to bicker with, and stand up for, and take each others clothes? What would brother cities be for? If I had to choose a city, I would choose Paris. I already feel a kinship. Plus, she's such a good cook, and I'd love to share her clothes!

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    1. If my husband's family is any indication, brother cities would be for fighting one another. Not sure we need more of that! It looks like Newton has a partnership with a city in Nicaragua, but I'm not sure if that qualifies as a sister city.

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  12. I just looked it up and I was amazed. Houston has 17 sister cities. I shouldn't be too surprised as Houston itself has grown to be very international since I was a kid here. Abu Dhabi, UAE; Baku, Azerbaijan; Chiba, Japan; Grampian Region, Aberdeen, Scotland; Guayaquil, Ecuador; Huelva, Spain; Istanbul, Turkey; Karachi, Pakistan; Leipzig, Germany; Luanda, Angola; Nice, France; Perth, Australia; Shenzhen, China; Stavanger, Norway; Taipei, Taiwan; Tampico, Mexico; Tyumen, Russia. My favorite relationship was between two schools back in the late sixties: University of Texas (Austin) and Slippery Rock College in PA. The Longhorns supported Slippery Rock in all their athletic endeavors and used to announce their football scores at our football games. We always gave a rousing cheer when SR won!

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    1. I love the idea of the two schools being connected. What a great way to spread school spirit! I wonder if there's a limit to the number of sister cities one city can or should have. As I mentioned, Seattle has 21. Is it possible to have meaningful connections with that many cities?

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  13. Our city of Owensboro, Kentucky currently has two sister cities and two on the horizon. Olomouc, Czech Republic and Nisshin, Japan are our two active ones, with Olomouc being a source of travel for many in the community. My daughter went on a trip to Olomouc and other Czech Republic sites, and then she did an extended trip through Europe. Nisshin is a bit newer to us, but it's gaining in popularity. The two proposed future cties are Stamford, England and a city (yet to be confirmed) in India. I'm especially excited about the Stamford site. I think this program is amazing.

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  14. Halifax, Nova Scotia would be my sister city! I simply love it there. The city of Phoenix has loads of sister cities and I used to enjoy it when the foreign delegations would stop in at the library for tours. I felt fortunate to meet so many people who shared the same global perspective.

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  15. Providence RI has 3 sister cities. Praia, Florence and Santo Domingo. They all make total sense as each of these cultures are largely represented in our population.

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  16. Chicago has 28 sister cities, so not sure if I really need to add any to the list. I love that Osaka, Japan and Busan, S. Korea are among our sister cities since those are two of my favorite cities in the world ^^

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