We got up at 7 in the morning and put our stuff together. Showered, packed our big bags and went off to breakfast and had big hot chocolate and some cornflakes to start us off on our adventure for the day. It was a fresh morning as everyone jumped on the coach to the Musee d’Orsay. As we travelled there Mrs Hayes set out a few challenges which were very good fun. We got in teams of three and had to get a photo posing in the same pose as the sculpture or painting but gradually add another person until you got up to 4 people in the photo. This was very difficult when you had to have a random person and another stranger taking the photo posing! I’m sure the teachers will have a lot of enjoyment at looking at the winning photos.
At the Musee D’Orsay there were some very famous artworks by Vincent Van Gogh, Monet and Renoir. They were magnificent on the eye after looking at paintings for two weeks at the Louvre and the Vatican and knowing so much about the different styles of artwork. After the Musee d’Orsay we travelled to the famous Luxembourg Gardens which were full of life and fun surprises! Some of us ventured into the gardens and came across a club game of Petanque (Boules) at which we cheered on the local team with great enthusiasm. Meanwhile others relaxed and soaked in the wonderful local flora. Everyone got a bite to eat and we set off on our next foreign adventure to Belgium.
While on the coach, the scenery changed from the busy Parisian streets to the beautiful long green grassy farmlands. When we arrived at Ieper it was like a castle with a big wall around it with a nice moat. We arrived in the middle of town almost at the town square right next to the local Church. This was destroyed in the First World War and had been repaired and looks absolutely beautiful.
The one thing everyone enjoyed was that people here in Ieper can speak good English. We arrived at the Hostel, dropped our big bags off and hopped back on the coach to travel for five minutes out of town to a beautiful little family restaurant where everyone enjoyed a fabulous meal which involved meatballs, salad and some very delicious potato chips. The view was amazing with lush green fields and a beautiful sunset. But the highlight of dinner was when the owners dog high fived everyone that said “Basil, High Five”. Now I’m asleep.
By Josh and Tyron.
