On Monday 3rd July, 35 students from Years 7 and 8, accompanied by Ms Kazi, Ms Rashid, Mr Banin and Mr Hobbs, set off at 6.45am from BGS, for the long coach and ferry journey to Château de Chantereine, in Criel-sur-Mer, in beautiful Normandy.

For Ms Rashid, this was the third 5 day residential trip in Europe, in just 5 weeks! True commitment to the BGS MFL cause! 

The chateau was actually a series of buildings forming one very large complex, including the main chateau itself, which was very attractive, surrounded by a series of beautiful and very large gardens. BGS was one of three schools staying there and we had a floor to ourselves in the Aile Gauche, the Left Wing.

On the first morning we headed to a local artisan chocolate factory, Chocolaterie Beussent Lachelle, where we were given an excellent demonstration in English of how they make their wonderful chocolates and also got to taste some of their wares. After a few purchases for friends and family, we reboarded the bus and headed to the seaside town of Boulogne-sur-Mer, to eat lunch in the park, followed by a visit to the largest aquarium in Europe, Nausicaa. This was an incredible experience - the aquarium really is vast, with exhibits divided into 3 separate sections. The pick of the three, in my opinion, being the deep sea section which featured an absolutely enormous tank full of fish, sharks, rays and the biggest manta ray any of us had ever seen! There were a number of viewing points around the tank allowing the visitor to get different perspectives of submarine life. Highly recommended for anyone travelling to Northern France!

The second day saw us travel to a local artisanal market in Criel, followed by a visit to Auchan supermarché. This was the perfect opportunity for the students to demonstrate what they had learnt in their lessons back at BGS, as they were given some money to go and buy the products they wanted for their lunch. The range and quality of products was vastly superior to what we find in our own domestic supermarkets. In the afternoon, we headed to the Baie de Somme, a vast wetland nature reserve. The plan had been to do a nature ramble with two local guides, but when it became apparent that this would involve wading through deep mud and we had not been briefed to bring suitable attire or wellies, a change of itinerary was required. Instead, we headed for a walk around the beautiful fishing village of Saint-Valery-sur-Somme. This was a lovely place to visit, giving fabulous views across the Baie and was also the terminus for the local Baie de Somme steam railway. In the evening, after dinner, our animatrice, Ruby, came up with some very silly French games; one of which involved everyone removing their footwear and students having to try and recover the correct pair of shoes while blindfolded. Their teammates would give them instructions in French to tell them where to go. Needless to say, everyone had a great time.

Day 3 saw us head to the beautiful city of Rouen, the biggest city in Normandy, known as “Little Paris”. Our first stop was the stunning 12th century cathedral, Notre Dame de Rouen. The architecture was breathtaking and inside, the serenity and calmness of the place contrasted with the noise and hectic bustle of the city outside. The quiet allowed us to reflect on our visit, to admire the beautiful stained glass windows and to think about how lucky we were to be there. Some of the Year 7s, however, just wanted to take selfies.

We then headed to the Place du Vieux-Marché, the square where the French heroine, Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc), was burned at the stake. Ruby gave us all a history lesson on how she came to be executed - many of the students amazed at the brutality of her death and how women were accused and convicted of witchcraft and heresy at the time. The square was really beautiful with centuries old buildings all around. After some free time, we headed to the Abbatiale de Saint-Ouen, another stunning abbey, which had a lovely park next door. Here lunch was taken, along with more photos.

After saying our farewells to Mr Banin, who was leaving early to return to the UK, we boarded the coach and headed to a dairy farm, La Vache de Louvicamp, near Neufchatel-sur-Bray. Here the students had the opportunity to learn about how cattle are raised, to feed the cows, to pet the baby calves (some of which were only 2 or 3 days old, but weighed the same as the students themselves!), to get on board a tractor and even to milk the cows. We also were able to see how butter was made, as well as sampling some of the farm’s own butter, cheese and biscuits. This was a fabulous experience, and Lucie, the owner, made our students feel incredibly welcome. 

The final evening saw us have the traditional farewell disco, which the kids decided to have outside, as it was a very pleasant warm evening. Dancing, ball games and lots of fun ensued, except for poor Ms Kazi who smashed herself in the nose with a water bottle, whilst playing bottle cricket with some of the Y7 boys!

On the Friday morning, we said our goodbyes to the staff at the Chateau and headed back to Calais to catch our ferry back to Dover, and then journeyed onward to Burnham. 

It must be said, the children were a credit to their parents, the school and themselves and it seems clear that they had a fantastic time and more importantly, have deepened their cultural awareness, knowledge and dare I say, even love of the French language and the country itself. 

My sincere thanks go to Ms Rashid, Ms Kazi and Mr Banin for their support throughout the week and for giving up their time to come to Normandy, and also to Ms Baldacchino, who has been superb with the administration and organisation of the trip, and Mrs Rowdene for her help with financial matters.
Huge thanks also go to Mr Earnshaw-Crofts for his support of this trip and his organisation of the Y8 visit to Barcelona. Finally, thanks go to Mr Lennon, Dr Gillespie and the governors, for their continued support of educational visits to Europe, which are massively beneficial to our students and must never be taken for granted.

À la prochaine,

Monsieur Hobbs