After a very long day of travelling, a very tired yet excited group of pupils arrived at collège Richelieu ready for the week ahead! It wasn’t long until the fun started the next day. From going to school, playing games, relaxing on the beach to family celebrations, everyone had a lot of fun, C’était génial!
Up early Monday morning we all arrived at school for 8am. After a quick meeting we got straight to work in French classes including Maths, Geography, English and Science and we all learnt something new. After a tasty French lunch in the canteen, we caught a local bus into the town using our French skills to talk to the public. On arrival we were faced with the challenge of a treasure hunt. This challenged us to use our French in real-life situations. Dans le resto we ordered a drink in French. C’était fantastique! We then returned home to our French families to learn a bit more about French lifestyle and culture.
On Tuesday the LGS group had a full-day excursion to the famous Futuroscope where we enjoyed the lively atmosphere, exhilarating rides, delicious food and friendly people which made our experience so much better! C’était très bien!
On Wednesday, a competitive and ambitious bunch stepped off the bus ready to take on our exchange partners canoeing and kayaking on a gorgeous lake. This was an excellent bonding experience and lots of fun. After a bit of dancing to “Cotton eye joe”, we spent the afternoon with our host families bowling, shopping and visiting the local beaches.
All pupils, French and Irish, had a full day excursion to “Puy du Fou” on Thursday. This is an exciting History park where we watched numerous exciting spectacles and learnt lots more about French History and culture. C’était passionnant!
On Friday, after a long jam-packed week, it was nice to relax on the beach in “Les Sables d’Olonne” and play some beach games, Mr Laird even joined in. We also visited the local market and did some shopping for those final souvenirs. After returning to school we were greeted with a tasty meal and a little soirée organised by all our families to celebrate the 30th anniversary of our friendship! C’était magnifique!
Finally, Saturday came too quickly and we had to say our goodbyes with lots of hugs and even some tears before we hopped on to the bus for our return journey to Limavady. What a wonderful week of delicious food, new experiences and life-long friendships. Nous attendons leur visite en octobre avec impatience!
By:
Rachel Pluta
Ruby Young
Emma Cowdry