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Newbottle Primary Academy

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France Trip

From Newbottle to Normandy

In May, Year 6 visited Château de Chantereine near to the French village of Criel-sur-Mer. This was the first Newbottle school trip outside of the British Isles!

This page is a record of our exciting adventures.

 

Day 1 – Lundi

Who thought they'd ever be excited to come to school at 3 o'clock in the morning? Well, today has been something a bit different.

 

We set off just before 3:30a.m. and began the long journey south. Initially, some people chatted excitedly with friends whilst others (including the teachers) tried to catch up on their sleep whilst it was still dark. Eventually, the sun rose and we found ourselves making good time on the quiet, early morning roads.

 

We stopped at Watford Gap services to stretch our legs and get ourselves some breakfast. It was strange to get back onto the bus and set off again knowing that the rest of our school friends would still not have started lessons!

 

A few hours later (after many questions of 'Are we nearly there yet?'), we reached the Eurotunnel terminal at Folkestone, already ahead of schedule. We managed to catch an earlier crossing and sampled the strange experience of sitting either on or around the coach in our own railway carriage, which resembled a moving garage.

 

After a short while, we emerged into daylight again and we were in France! We travelled a relatively short distance into Boulogne-sur-Mer and visited Nausicaa, a fantastic marine aquarium. It was really entertaining and allowed us to see many exotic species of fish, in addition to other interesting animals such as turtles, alligators and an amazing sea lion show. We were most fascinated by the shark tank and it was great to have a chance to see such scary creatures with tremendous appetites up close. The closest we thought we would get to that was seeing Mr. Burn tackling his breakfast!

 

We left the aquarium just after 4p.m. (French time – we're an hour ahead of Newbottle) and continued our journey to the château. Our trip through the French countryside brought us in bright sunshine to the fantastic building which is to be our home for the next few days. After a quick tour of the grounds and a short time to unpack in our dormitories, we made our way downstairs for a French four-course meal.

 

Next, we went out onto the field to run off some energy with a mini-Olympics challenge. Hopefully, we will all get a good night's sleep so that we are full of energy for our activities tomorrow, including a trip to Rouen, the capital of Normandy.

Day 2 – Mardi

What a day! There were a few tired faces around this morning after such a strenuous journey the previous day. After a long time of choosing which outfit to wear and applying many beauty products, the boys were ready to join the girls for a traditional continental breakfast. We were extremely happy to find such a warm and sunny morning for our first full day in France and couldn't wait for our day trip to Rouen.

 

The journey provided some with the opportunity for an extra sleep whilst others talked quietly with friends and admired the interesting scenery. We got off the coach not far from the River Seine in a place which looked just like any other European town. However, after a short walk through the streets, we were greeted by the sight of the magnificent Rouen Cathedral. Our Kingswood group leaders, Toby and Devon, gave us an interesting tour of this impressive building. We found out several unusual facts, including the information that the heart of English king Richard the Lionheart is buried there!

 

After our tour, we made our way through the old town with its range of superb buildings and narrow streets. We even called at a 'bone yard' which, despite being beautiful, used to be a place where the bodies of plague victims were processed. There was even a mummified cat which was used to ward off evil!

 

On a more pleasant note, we visited the park behind the cathedral where we had our lunch and then had a go on the play park.

 

Afterwards, we looked around more of the town and found out about Joan of Arc, who is a French saint, and has a church dedicated to her. When we left the church we received the good news that we had time to do our favourite thing: spend our parents' money! The shops in the old town gave us the chance to buy life's essentials, such as sweets (after all, we didn't have enough stashed in our cases already!).

 

Finally, we returned to our coach and made the journey back to the château. However, that wasn't the end of the fun. We went straight to the massive sports hall where we had the chance to try out archery! We were given some helpful hints then it was over to us. It was tricky but some bullseyes were scored and, even though they had put us through the ordeal of SATs just the week before, the teachers survived to teach grammar another day! Whilst this was going on, a tense table tennis battle was taking place. Somehow, Mr. Burn could only manage a draw with Mr. Pigford, although he did claim to have been hampered by an injured knee (sustained when losing a game of football to Miss Moran the previous night) and a horrific scratch to his finger which was inflicted by a rather vicious piece of crusty French bread.

 

After tea, the day was rounded off with team games on the field and then it was time to shower before bed; the thought of tomorrow's visit to Dieppe already in our minds.

Day 3 – Mercredi

We've had another busy day. Although not as sunny as yesterday, it was still another pleasant morning when we woke up and made our way to breakfast.

 

After we had eaten and gathered the things we would need for the day, we got onto the coach and made the trip to Dieppe. In this seaside town, we had a look around at the local sights and we were given the opportunity to look around the shops on the high street. This allowed us to discover the delights of French chocolatier shops and a crèperie. What could be better than a sweet pancake smothered in Nutella?!

 

We left the shopping area and walked towards the beach. The seafront at Dieppe isn't sandy but a steep, terraced slope which drops down to the emerald green water. We saw a memorial to the thousands of Canadian soldiers who lost their lives on the beach during an attempted landing during the second world war. Next, we had our lunches (with Miss Moran nervously avoiding the diving seagulls and pigeons) and spent some time hurling stones into the sea. Unfortunately, there were several billion too many for us to make a noticeable difference to the landscape. As we strolled back to the coach, the heavens opened and, when we set off, our journey was no longer in the kind of sunshine to which we had become accustomed.

 

In the afternoon, we visited a farm which produced a cheese called Neufchatel. We saw some of the cows which produced the milk used in the cheese-making process, then had a short lesson on each of the stages involved. The owner of the farm, Amelie, even let us try a piece!

 

After the farm, we drove up a small country road to a forest, where we found several abandoned and partly-demolished concrete buildings. It may not sound interesting but they were actually the remains of a Nazi base from the second world war which had been bombed by the allied forces. The base was responsible for firing the V1 'Doodlebug' rockets up a ramp which was aimed towards London. A replica of a V1 rocket has been placed at the site. In addition, there were memorials to the prisoners who died whilst constructing the base. It was fascinating and quite moving to consider the history of the place.

 

We arrived back at the château in sunshine again, not long before our evening meal. Once it was over, we headed over to the sports hall for an evening of fun activities.

 

It is hard to believe that tomorrow we will be having our last full day in France!

 

Day 4 – Jeudi

 

Our last full day in France, and we've done so many things! During the night, the weather was wet and windy but, fortunately, it had improved by morning. Even so, it was still quite grey after breakfast as we went to explore the local village. Once we had reached the beautiful town hall, we had the chance to play in the park whilst small groups were taken to visit the 'boulangerie' (that's a bakery for any of you who don't parlez Français). We used our rapidly improving French skills to communicate with the staff and buy fantastic bread, pastries or cakes.

 

Afterwards, we walked to a cider farm where we were greeted by its owner, Susan, and made friends with her cat. Susan took us to her amazing apple orchard and gave us a detailed description of how the fruit is harvested. We then went inside and looked at how the fruit is turned into a range of products, such as cider, Calvados brandy and cider vinegar. We were able to smell and look at the products at different stages of their development (we're too young to taste them!) and see how they changed by being aged in oak casks.

 

When we left the cider farm, we returned to the château for lunch. By this stage, the weather had improved and we now had warm sunshine to allow us to eat outside. After lunch, Toby and Devon took us into one of the classrooms and showed us how to make croissants before letting us have a go ourselves. It's not as easy as it looks! Any tan that the recent sunshine has given us was wiped out by the clouds of flour which filled the room.

 

Having washed and changed out of our dusty clothes, we walked to Criel Plage, with its tall, white cliffs and stony beach. Some of us went for ice cream whilst others played basketball. We also had the chance to take our shoes off and splash about in the water. A few brave people hunted for crabs to terrify the others! Cruel Mr. Burn even put a crab down Dylan's back but we soon got revenge! After much fun, we then set off back to the château with water squelching from our shoes.

 

Normally, we have a four-course dinner but today was a bit different. We had an extra course: frogs' legs and snails! Of those who dared to try them, most agreed that the frogs' legs tasted very much like chicken. The snails were more of an acquired taste: some people ate quite a few but there were also several who couldn't quite face swallowing them!

 

We finished off the day with a disco, where we had the opportunity to show off our moves on the dance floor!

 

It's hard to believe that we have to return home tomorrow. It's an early start but there will be a visit to the Cité d'Europe shopping centre before we travel back through the tunnel (which Miss Murrell now realises isn't made of glass like a SeaWorld attraction!).

 

Day 5 – Vendredi

It's hard to believe how quickly the week has gone. However, they do say that time passes quickly when you're having fun.

 

We had to get up earlier than normal as we had to finish off our packing before we went for breakfast. There certainly didn't seem to be much enthusiasm for tidying up and we all felt that we were sad to be leaving, even though we were looking forward to seeing our families again.

 

After breakfast, we set off on the long journey home. Before we entered the Eurotunnel, we called at the Cité d'Europe shopping centre in Calais. There, we had lunch and bought some last minute souvenirs, although the boys' favourites, Foot Locker and Toys R Us, didn't exactly shout out French culture!

 

Our channel crossing was brightened by the fact that we were accompanied on the train by a Lamborghini Aventador and a 1950s Porsche 356 Cabriolet. Strangely, many of the boys suddenly needed the toilet which was at the other end of the train. This meant that they had to walk through the carriage where the supercar was parked. All a coincidence, of course.

 

Before we knew it, daylight filled the carriage windows again and we were back on home soil. Unfortunately, the journey north wasn't the quickest with many traffic jams, especially around the Dartford Tunnel. When we reached the Stansted area, we stopped at a service area where we could refuel and grab a bite to eat. Unlike the snails the night before, there was no hesitation in our minds about devouring the contents of KFC Bargain Buckets!

 

Stopping only once more at Ferrybridge to change drivers, our journey home continued to be a slow one in damp weather conditions. Indeed, the rain was falling from a gloomy sky as we returned to Newbottle. However, our spirits were lifted as we saw our families and friends there to meet us.

 

During our trip, we visited new places, learnt new language and customs and experienced different cultures. An amazing five days were over, but the memories will stay with us forever.

 

Fin. The end.