Form 8 Study Trip to France, 18th-22nd September

Date: Sunday 30 September 2007

40 pupils and 5 staff took a "voyage culturel" to start the new school year. A bit early for a foreign holiday? Mrs Kroiter told the group this was strictly a study trip, with a seriously cross-curricular theme at that, from the moment of budgeting and paying for du fromage et du pain in the market at Wimereux (in French, naturellement), and then sharing the remaining euros for delicious poulet rôti above the beach.

If that took care of the food technology, it was now time for some geography and history in Boulogne - a town trail with questionnaires - and le Tréport, with its elaborate Chinoiserie seafront architecture. At St Martin and le Hourdel, close to the mouth of the Somme, careful mathematical and scientific measurement of coastal features was supervised by Mr Pearce. But the main lesson learnt was probably more about teamwork! The prospect of street interviews in French at St Valéry caused some anxiety and sometimes the practised phrases dried up in the heat of the moment, but the promise of being let loose in the sweetshop meant there was a reward to follow. One older interviewee patiently corrected any mistakes on the worksheets!

For the first two nights all stayed at the rural Demeure d'Hautebut, hosted by Franck, who gave a wide-ranging introduction to cuisine with moules, pâté, and frites served in a distinctively French style. The English schoolchild's palate is notoriously inflexible but Harriet Burden's comments were discerning: 'The hostel was not as smart as the hotel in Paris but it served real, home-cooked French food, even if I couldn't always get used to the taste.'

So on to the Somme battlefields with an introduction by Mr Hooley to the effect of artillery fire on the fighting in the Great War, with its shift from mobile cavalry action to the stagnation, horror, and decay of trench warfare. An excellent commentary from our Canadian guides at the Newfoundland Park memorial site brought home the extent of losses during the Somme offensive in 1916. As we surveyed the preserved trenches and read the gravestones at Y Ravine cemetery pupils understood that statistically speaking only 4 would have returned from our group of 40....

At Thiepval Matthew Barker was caught on camera viewing his namesake's inscription among the 73,000 dead inscribed on the Anglo-French memorial. Daniyal Jafree read a moving poem as the pupils and staff formed two lines to lay a wreath for two old boys fallen in the Great War and commemorated on the colossal memorial.

The atmosphere was muted as we ate our packed lunches. On to Paris for the final night's stay - at a real hotel! - with a stop en route at a Parisian restaurant after admiring the blend of modern and Renaissance architecture at the Louvre. The FIAP Jean Monnet was spacious and welcoming, if cosmopolitan rather than intimate. The jewel on the itinerary was what we have learnt to call la Tour Eiffel, where the effect of altitude was increased by low cloud at the top level of the tower. Fears of height were overcome largely thanks to the care and understanding of Matron, Nieves Luz-Mendez.

Unfortunately our next stops, the cathedral of Nôtre Dame and the Dali museum, had to be cancelled owing to the driver's apparent unfamiliarity with the city, but the chance to enjoy crêpes or croque monsieur in Montmartre after the photocall at Sacré Coeur helped make up for this. A quick stroll to the artists' quarter in the Place du Tertre and a little haggling with linguistic tips from Mr Walters gave most the opportunity to have their portrait sketched. Clarisse Luckhurst's portrait artist was voted the best, if a bit 'stressy'! This year's group was especially helpful and enthusiastic, making the trip memorable and worthwhile.

All photographs: copyright Thomas Hooley 2007