Our Year 5 trip started on Tuesday at 06:20, when we said our goodbyes and set off. The coach journey was long, but we found lots of ways to entertain ourselves, such as books, travel games and loud chants of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (the boys’ rows chorused in football songs)! Twelve hours later, the hotel was in sight and we cheered with joy in our seats. After playtime outside, a delicious dinner and lots of laughs in our rooms, we settled down into bed.
The next morning was a busy one. Everyone had woken up waaaayyyy too early (except the adults!) and all you could hear was chatter. The coach drove us to a huge cheese factory (surprise surprise, it smelt very cheesy!) and we all had a tour and were shown the different steps of making the cheese. We could also see all the machines at work through the window! We bought lots of lovely cheese-themed souvenirs and Ayaan and Mrs Lord bought cheese. The next step in our Normandy journey was the Château de Falaise. With our stomachs full with a wonderful lunch, we were led by a guide through the winding corridors of this humungous building, filled to the brim with the history of the Duke of Normandy! We even went all the way up the spiralling stairs to marvel at the view from the high tower. After the exciting events of the castle, we proceeded to the gift shop, where we bought things like flags and magnets. We went back to the hotel on the coach, another evening of joy outside waiting for us. Dinner was even better than the day before (pizza is always a winner!) and bedtime followed.
The next morning, we woke up very early, as the coach had to leave at 08:00. We ate a good breakfast and set off to the village of Bayeux. When we arrived, we walked straight to a museum where we received tiny little audio guides (they were like TV remotes) and we went all the way along the 70m Bayeux Tapestry. It told the story of William, Duke of Normandy, conquering England, and the tapestry explained everything in intricate detail. Afterwards, we saw a video about the origin of the tapestry, wandered through the vast gift shop, peering at magnets and stroking soft toys. We finally left the gift shop and settled down on some benches and ate lunch. Lunch followed in a fun game of splat and a trip to the massive holy cathedral, where some of us lit candles and all of us took a trip to the spooky crypt. However, we were all hungry for something else… chocolate! The chocolate shop was half chocolate museum, half gourmet chocolate heaven. It was soooo delicious, the history of chocolate was interesting too. They even showed us how they made their specialty pralines! Almost everyone bought chocolate of some sort, either a chocolate bar or something crazy like a chocolate phone! Mrs Campbell, we don’t want to come home!
– Written by Imogen and Josephine (Year 5HG)
Here are a few quotes of the children’s highlights:
Leo: “I loved the Bayeux Tapestry because we learnt lots of information about the king, for example, we don’t know how he actually died.”
Molly: “I loved the hotel playground because there were two swings.”
Miles: “I enjoyed watching the workers make cheese and the cheese tasting.”
Evie: “I enjoyed learning how chocolate is made and how far it travels.”
Categories: Educational Visit
