So Much to Learn...So Little Time

links for 2009-06-23

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  Blogging 'A Brilliant Trip' http://bit.ly/80o89 [from http://twitter.com/adamsutcliffe/statuses/2282519044]
  (tags: tweecious Google Technorati Flickr BrilliantTrip Web TypePad Trackback OnlineCommunities)

A Brilliant Trip

The eagle eyed reader amongst you would have noticed a whole swathe of films featuring Belgium and Paris cropping up on the pages of this blog during the last week and a half.

That's because I had the priviledge of leading a fantastic bunch of S3's on our annual MFL trip...except this year was different. In an effort to maintain it's currency we linked with the History dept and went to Belgium to visit the WW1 sites of the Ypres Salient.

I had never been there before and there were many moments when I couldn't speak for fear of blubbing: seeing VJ Strudwick's grave at Essex Farm, hearing the music played by a Canadian family as they attended the grave of a lost relative for the first ever time at Tyne Cot. Seriously moving stuff.
What made these vists for me was the guide we had around the battlefields, Wouter Sinaeve. Wouter works in the Education Dept at the In Flanders Fields Museum and he knows his stuff. BUT he doesn't just know it in a dry academic way he knows how to speak to children about it, he knows how to bring the stories behind the gravestones to life. He was an awesome guide, and I thoroughly recommend him if you are organising a similar venture.

However what made the trip an outstanding success for me was the interaction we got from back home. Thanks to free wifi in the hotels we were able to post films (me) and photos (my history colleague James Davidson (or as the kids called him Papa D...long story)). This allowed colleagues and parents to follow us. Although the blog didn't get many comments it certainly got hit and the students kept coming to us saying they had just had a text from so and so saying they had seen us on the rollercoaster in Parc Asterix. Everyone I met in the corridors today said how much they had enjoyed following our adventures...maybe that's why I didn't get so much of the usual "Enjoy your holiday then." I have to say though that for a trip like this my newly acquired Flip Ultra was awesome. Easy to use, light, showerproof and most of all a cinch to transfer the clips.

In case you might be interested here is a list of the what we did and where we stayed etc:

Pax Hotel, Diksmuide
Hotel Inn, Val de Fontenay (currently being refurbished and rooms too small for 3 to share, but easy access to RER)
In Flanders Fields Museum
Essex Farm
Yorkshire Trench
St Charles de Potyse Cemetery
Tyne Cot Cemetery
IJzer Tower, Diksmuide
Trench of Death, Diksmuide
Menin Gate Last Post Ceremony
Atlantis Bowling, Ypres

Evenings in Paris we ate in Flunch.

MFL History Trip - Wednesday 17th June

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Last Day. A Day in Paris.

Straight up the Eiffel Tower, then onto the boat trip up the Seine. 

Interspersed with driving around in Parisien traffic...fun.

Music

Thallaxia by Nexus

Waiting So Long by Metisse

Chillin by Outsider

Trance Planet by  Nexus

MFL History Trip - Tuesday 16th June

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WHAT A DAY.

A fantastic day today on the metro. First stop Montmartre and the Sacré Coeur. 

Next L'Arc de Triomphe...all the way to the top. After that it was luch (in McDonalds for some) staff had a great lunch watching the world go by on the Champs Elysées.

Then a walk. Down to Place de la Concorde, through the Tuilerie Gardens and on to the famous Louvre. Here Mr Davidson decided to leave his backpack.

Then we trundled along the Seine before turning up to the Pompidou Centre where we went for our Flunch.

After dinner it was off to Notre Dame and then home...via an extra couple of stations due to Mr Sutcliffe getting confused about which Fontenay to go to.

MFL History Trip - Monday 15th June

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It rained today, but that didn't stop our brave adenturers from enjoying Parc Asterix.

Watch out for the rides!!!!!!!!!!!

Music:

Ultyma Velocity by Nexus

Jeunesse by Metisse

All available to download freely and legally at Jamendo

MFL History Trip - Sunday 14th June

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Another full and hectic day.

Unfortunately this one didn;t start out too well. It was tipping it down. Never let it be said that it got this hearty bunch down.

Off we went down the road to the IJzer Peace Tower, a monumnet to the Mouvement Flamand and to peace. A fantastic museum which everyone seemd to enjoy.

Then to the Trench of Death. The fact that it had rained gave the students a bit of an idea what it must have been like in those trenches, especially when all the cly stuck to their shoes.

The weather was still not great as yet and we had learned that the swimming pool was closed due to leaky roof so we went to have a look along the prom at Nieuwpoort, where the boys decided to become bike riding tubers.

Then the sun cam out and Mr Davidson took an executive decision to abandon history and go to the beach. Well done that man.

Music

Planer N'est Pas Jouer by Cyborgjeff

Interface by Electro Latrine

MFL History Trip - Saturday 13th June

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Another day of varying emotions. Started with a trip to Bruges for some shopping (for some).

We then visited the Tyne Cot Cemetery: 12000 gravestones of British and commonwealth troops who fell in the Ypres Salient. 35 000 names on a wall of those whose remains were never discovered. At the time of our visit a Candian family were paying their respects to the grave of a relative. I found this an extraordinary and almost unbearable act of remembrance.

That evening we went to the Menin Gate which was covered in the previous post.

Finally we adjourned to the Atlantik Bowling Alley in Ypres were Patrick welcomed us most royally. Will was top scorer, but The Dude wasn't far behind; and yes Thomas did beat Mrs Sinclair.

Music:

A Dieu La Terre by Marie Delsaux from the album Sang Pareil!

links for 2009-06-14

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  Posted 'MFL / History Trip - Thursday and Friday' to blip.tv: http://blip.tv/file/2236062 [from http://twitter.com/adamsutcliffe/statuses/2151505004]
  (tags: tweecious FlashVideo JohnMcCrae MeninGate ITunes CreativeCommons RSS FileTransferProtocol Multimedia)

Menin Gate - Last Post Ceremony

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As part of the trip we wanted pupils to be able to take part in and watch the Last Post Ceremony which takes place at 8pm every single day of the year at the Menin Gate in Ypres.

The Menin Gate comemorates  the 55,000 British and Commonwealth soldiers who gave their lives in World War One and whose remains have never been found. All of their names are inscribed on the monument.

The ceremony is lead every day by the Buglers from the Ypres Fire Brigade and interested parties apply to lay a wreath. We were lucky enough to be able to assist in the ceremony and Jessica and Thomas laid our wreath on behalf of The Gordon Schools and The Ex-Servicemen's Club (who we would like to thanks for providing the wreath.)

MFL / History Trip - Thursday and Friday

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This is the story of our trip so far.

The bus and ferry journey passed off very smoothly with the group enjoying and calm crossing.

Friday was an intense day which started with a visit to In Flanders Fields Museum followed by a workshop in the Cat Attic of the Cloth Hll in Ypres. After lunch (and a first visit to a chocolate shop) we set off on an eye-opening tour of the Ypres Salient lead by Wouter, one of the tour guides.

He took us through John McCrae's Essex Farm Cemetery, to the Yorkshire Trench and Dugout, followed by St Charles de Potyse French Cemetery and Hill 60. We finished off at The Menin Gate which commemorate 55000 Commonwealth soldiers whose remains have never been found.

The music is taken from the album "Opus Solemnis" by Ehma, which can be downloaded freely and legally from Jamendo

Take a look also at our Photo Album.