At Notting Hill, in Guadeloupe or elsewhere, you’ve surely heard about the next encontro in Auvergne in 2011
“Where’s the Auvergne?” I hear you ask.
“Where’s the Auvergne?” I hear you ask.
Does anyone live there? What do they do? And what do they eat? Fair questions when you live in modern and civilised countries.
Well, the Auvergne is a vast area in the centre of France, dotted with volcanoes, (for the time being dormant), on the slopes of which bustle natives wearing berets and clogs, chasing cows or sheep, a stick in the right hand and a whole St Nectaire cheese in the left.
Exotic, isn't it?
In the midst of all this activity, at the centre of a crater, you will find a formidable group that spends all the Sunday afternoons that God made tapping their drums: to wake the volcanoes, and get the locals tapping their clogs and dancing to the sound of samba-reggae.
Arrival Thursday 2nd June
Our base is the Chateau at Alleret, where we’ll sleep within its walls or in tents in the park, eat (almost) all of our meals, enjoy the swimming pool, relax under the mature trees and listen to the birds; if we don’t make too much noise. Only we don’t plan to be quiet!
The day is dedicated to youth workshops and arrivals and the party on our first evening together is "Batala meets Batala”
Friday 3rd June
A day of informal workshops, (including preparation for Saturday's gig), percussion, dancing, song; plus opportunities to enjoy the outdoor activities available here: canoeing, mountain-biking, walking or tree-top adventures. And there’s always the pool and the park to chill out in.
The evening will be a musical encounter with local afro/latin musical groups and friends, and include a special creation based on Batala music, fire, juggling etc.
Saturday 4th June
Following a morning rehearsal, we’ll head off to a nearby town for lunch before taking over the streets as only Mundo Batala can do.
And since we have planned no commitments for Sunday morning, the Saturday night party is for letting rip BIG!
Sunday 5th June
And then fresh as roses, over brunch, we can discretely take a couple of aspirin and send out search parties to look for the completely wrecked, the lost and the simply bewildered, before getting out the hankies for the sad farewells … Sniff …
“How do we get there?”
Easy! Most of the roads are all tarmacked, the snow’s cleared by June, (usually), and there are even signposts for those of you wanting to drive over. If you’re coming by plane fly to Paris and get the train to Clermont-Ferrand, or fly direct to Clermont (with Flybe for example). We’ll have a coach waiting to bring you on to Alleret. Best to arrive there by about 15h00, to make the most of the evening’s entertainment. Coach back to Clermont on Sunday in response to your travel needs; let us know!
“How much will it cost?”
From a first estimate of 250€, we're down to a current maximum is 200€, (hooray!), inclusive of: accommodation, all meals from Thursday evening to Sunday brunch, t-shirt, workshops, parties and transport. Only booze and outdoor activities (canoeing etc.) will be extra. We’re still working hard to reduce this cost further with grants, and will let you know how we get on over the coming weeks as we get the decisions.
How do we communicate?
We’ll post more information as soon as we have it on the website – www.batalamassif.fr Questions? Easy – let your coordinator know and they’ll ask Huw. Or if that’s doesn’t work just e-mail Huw on info@batalamassif.fr
Booking!
We need one person from each Batala to coordinate things your end and deal with Huw directly for bookings. A booking form will be available during February, and you’ll be able to sign up until mid April. We’ll need a single payment per group by bank transfer (as for Gwada), by 30th April.
The booking form will help us get all the information we need to make your Encontro Vulcânico fab. Veggie? Bed or campsite? Which drum? Book for canoeing? It’ll all be there.
The rooms at Alleret
Batala Massif is waiting to welcome you to exotic Auvergne!
See you soon!
BATALA MASSIF
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