A sweet end to the year

Well, 2019 was certainly a busy year for us but it couldn’t have ended in a sweeter way! The team activity was planned and executed by our three new starters who came up with a selection box of activities.

Split into two competing halves, there wasn’t a twix between us as we grappled with cryptic clues to navigate around the village of Hawkshead to our destination. The map we were given, created by Jonathan, was like a chocolate box menu, full of visual delights and explanations.

One hour later, after walking cobbled streets, finding old pubs, solving clues and wondering where we were going and why, we arrived at The Chocolate Factory in Hawkshead. 

We were refreshed with a drink and, unusually for the Amphigean team, we put aside the fizzy festive variety and went for hot chocolate instead.

Shocked by the clothing we had been issued and with embarrassment in our new hair nets and pinnies, we entered the washroom and scrubbed up for the operation ahead.

In what looked like a laboratory, there was an air of sweetness as the chocolate aromas drifted across to our workbenches. We were met by the owner, Andrew Wilson, who pleasantly surprised us by announcing that we were going to make a box of 12 hand-made luxury chocolates ready for the festive season. 

A few hours later, with centres of champagne, sticky toffee, salted caramel and praline, along with toppings of strawberry, meringue, popping candy, caramel and drizzling chocolate, we finished with a pick and mix of err… Hotel Chocolate-like delights – well, not sure we’d win any awards for presentation, but the taste was pretty good.

Once we’d been shown how to box and wrap the chocolates and they were suitably secure, we headed for a celebration lunch at a local pub for chips and sandwiches, along with the opening of the annual Secret Santa. This year’s theme was ‘make it yourself’ and we were all delighted with the range of things that we’d managed to create and the precision with which they were made.

“Anna, Jonathan, and Tom did an amazing job organising the day. They created the route, walked it to check it worked and made it both a competitive and fun event. It certainly exposed some of us to an activity which we’d never done before, which is the whole idea of these activity days.”

Managing Director, Pete Simpson