Visits & Exchanges

Visits and Exchanges

Geography Field Trip to Arran, June 2017

DAy 1: TrAVEL DAy

On Saturday morning we gathered at school to begin our long coach trip to Ardrossan Harbour. We loaded our overflowing bags onto the coach and began the journey which included what Mrs Tooby-Smith called ‘a two minute toilet stop’ but constituted a ten-minute stop for the boys to ensure their food supplies were fully stocked! When we arrived at the harbour we had some time in which we all took a quick trip to Asda to, again, grab some snacks to get us through the final leg of the journey. As you might have already guessed, food was a recurrent theme during our trip! On our arrival at Brodick we took a final coach journey to our home for the next few days: Lochranza fieldwork centre. Unsurprisingly, our first priority that night was to suss out the best mobile signal spots (behind the equipment storeroom) and we received the good news that for the first couple of nights we were the only school in the centre, which meant optimum seats in the common room for our nightly Love Island viewing.

DAy 2: SALTMArSH AND SLoPE DAy

On the first morning we arrived into breakfast feeling slightly sleepy from the boys’ late-night competition to who could bang the wall the loudest. Nevertheless, we fuelled up for the day and were raring to go for the first morning of fieldwork on the salt marsh followed by an afternoon collecting data on the hills. Here we learnt lots about the geology (and the midges) of Arran from our two tutors Gayle and Hannah. Despite our best negotiation we did not have the night off classroom work, but were reassured that we would be finished before Love Island came on, which eased our clamour.

DAy 3: CoAST DAy

Tuesday saw a slight drop in numbers from Monday on the optional morning run with Mrs Tooby-Smith; however, her stamina had not put everyone off. After breakfast we headed to the coast where we collected some data before spending the rest of the day walking the many miles to Blackwaterfoot. Luckily the sun shone on us for the whole walk and we further added to our knowledge of geology and enjoyed a cairnbuilding competition in which Ollie and Eddie came out on top. That night when we returned some of us were sporting a slight glowing tan while others wore a more reddish flush and learnt that even in Arran you can burn!

DAy 4: HuMAN GEoGrAPHy DAy

On Wednesday we found ourselves doing human geography. However, this really meant being chased around Brodick by Mr Bowden! At least we were reconnected with civilisation for the first time in a couple of days. We had to fill out several worksheets and talk to the locals (average age: 70 years) to complete our questionnaires. It made a change from measuring rocks and counting grass types in a one square metre quadrant. One of the highlights of the day was the opportunity to buy more food. Some of the ‘lads’ decided to stock up on the ‘Weetabix-on-the-go’ drink and protein shakes, as it was bulking

season for the gym-goers. That night another school arrived at the centre, and we quickly had to show them that we were top dogs.

DAy 5: INDEPENDENT DAy

We were split up into small groups to collect data for our individual coursework investigations. Groups were on the salt marsh, spit, coast, slope and around various settlements for the human geography topics. The salt marsh boys levelled out 110 metres with a couple of metre rulers and a spirit level: it was not the most thrilling experience but we were repeatedly reassured it would be useful for our investigation! Those of us studying the salt marsh and slope infiltration topics found ourselves back at the centre by two o’clock, and so had the whole afternoon to get in some serious football with the other school. The coast and human groups arrived back at around half past five. By this time the graft was well under way with certain individuals, choosing to prioritise it even over Love Island.

DAy 6: THE PoINTLESS DAy?

Initially we had not quite worked out the point of this day, but the teachers did stress that it was important for us to start writing up some of our coursework. In the classroom for the last session, the keen geographers filled out several tables and graphs while the rest of us (a little more tired at this point) had mastered the art of making ourselves look productive whilst we were actually twiddling our thumbs. That night a special mention goes out to Jeffers who was dressed to kill in his slick bomber jacket on our trip to the notorious Lochranza pub, at Catacol Bay (a guaranteed mad night) where we had a pub meal rather than canteen food.

We would like to say a big thank you to Mrs Tooby-Smith, Mr Bowden and Miss Ullstein for their help and making this excellent trip possible.

Lucy Moss & Will Farr, LVI

History of Art visit to Florence and Rome

Having lost our voices from inter-house singing the day before, we also lost our precious holiday sleep-in as the next day began for us at 1.00 am … So it was off to Manchester airport for our flight to the ancient city of Rome. Having rushed from the airport to our first venue, we managed to cram in our first taste of Italian cuisine with a ‘pizza to go’ outside the Vatican. With the help of Miss Matts’ confident strides, we managed to enter the Vatican and make our way through to the Sistine Chapel whilst marvelling at some of Michelangelo and Raphael’s most famous works. Soon after, we realised that we would have had to join the world’s largest queue in order to enter St Peter’s Basilica. The day, so far, was going well. A quick outfit change and showers were in order, to prepare ourselves for our first proper Italian meal out. Tired as we were, Miss Matts managed to tempt us to an experience of the Trevi Fountain by night.

We were up bright and early the next morning for a day filled with Roman culture including the Forum, the Palatine Hill and the Colosseum. Mr Noy Scott and his famous arm gesturing did not disappoint when learning about the Roman civilisation and the barbaric forms of entertainment that occurred inside the Colosseum. As Rome is an overwhelmingly large city, walking was not the only mode of transport we took: Miss Matts was able to figure out the underground system of Rome, whilst managing a group of nine girls. This had definitely been thought-through and had a prominent place on the risk assessment. Seeing as the previous day had entailed a lot of walking, it was

only fair to spend the next morning on a bus for a three-hour drive to the city of Florence. After dropping off our bags and having a quick sandwich, we were whisked off to the Bargello Museum for yet another experience of Italian art. During this trip, the art historians among us failed to remain calm when seeing Donatello’s David in the flesh, along with his St George. The second part of the day called us to the Santa Maria Novella, a church containing Masaccio’s Holy Trinity. However, the most memorable moment in that specific church was in fact the little tale Miss Matts enlightened us with. The façade of this church happened to resemble that of a humbug sweet, as it was built with a dark green and white stone. Somehow, Miss Matts managed to trick us that the humbugs originated from this church, in that if you tasted the stone, it resembled the taste of a humbug. We fell for her ploy, and giddily ran back towards the church, climbed its columns and began to lick the stone. Fools we were. The looks we got from passing tourists were beyond disapproving. The looks on our faces, however, when we discovered it was all a trick, were priceless. After all this extravagance, it was time to return to the hotel and get ready for dinner.

The final day consisted of a visit to the Medici family chapel which we had missed the day before – its opulent décor and mesmerising artworks were appreciated by all. The main excitement of the day however was a trip up Brunelleschi’s Duomo. Although the journey up it was incredibly cramped and claustrophobic, the view once we reached the top was breathtaking. However, the most exciting thing for a group of teenage girls climbing up the Duomo, was apparently bumping into the actress Rebel Wilson. It definitely made the aches in our legs worth it. Next on the agenda was the Museo

dell’Opera del Duomo, for a viewing of Donatello’s Mary Magdalene. Continuing with the sculpture theme, we then went to the

Accademia di Belle Arti di

Firenze, where some of

Michelangelo’s famous works are held, including his David and the unfinished Slaves. The final venue we visited was the Uffizi gallery, where we all absorbed works by Botticelli and Leonardo da Vinci before we headed back to England. The final morning began early, with a bus ride to the airport. We all left with heavy hearts, longing for our time in Florence to be extended. On behalf of all the girls, we most definitely enjoyed the trip and embraced the culture.

Amber Rose & Madeleine Day, LVI

Salamanca: a sunlit trip through history

The Spanish study trip to Salamanca began on a clear, cool morning in York as we set off at 9.00 am on Sunday 2 April towards Stansted airport. The drive passed without incident and the flight was just as uneventful, which made me worry that something amiss was about to happen and that we were about to land in the wrong airport. I need not have worried as when we arrived our Spanish driver, Javier, was waiting with a smile to whisk us off straight to Salamanca where our host families greeted us with kisses and best wishes and escorted us to our homes for the coming week.

The next morning was clear and dry but slightly chillier than anticipated and classes started at 9.00 am: the students were left in the capable hands of their teachers, whom they would be seeing for over four hours a day for the next five days. After the first day’s classes we managed to explore the local area and discovered a city similar to York which has the feel of a modern university town but with a rich culture and history which you can explore at your leisure without the fear of being flattened by an HGV. There is culture at every corner from the historic façades of the old university to the – very impressive – towers of the cathedral, but there was also the incessant succession of student and strollers who packed the inviting terraces of historic cafés that once played host to writers like Miguel de Unamuno and Ortega y Gasset. In the middle of the first day the sun began to emerge so we were able to enjoy sitting in the sunshine in the Plaza Mayor watching the world go by while stuffing our faces with every flavour of ice-cream that we could get our hands on.

Luckily the sun decided to hang around and we were blessed with summer temperatures for the remainder of the week, which were appreciated by all pupils – apart perhaps from Harry, who was slightly fatigued after helping his host family renovate their bathroom. As well as spending a lot of time in La Plaza Mayor there were many trips including visits to the cathedrals to search for la Rana de Salamanca, a visit to the Casa Lis to look at some very creepy dolls and a trip to El Huerto de Calixto, a lovers’ garden where couples have taken up the Italian habit of locking a padlock to a wrought-iron well in the gardens, to signify their everlasting love. None of the pupils could be persuaded to leave a token of their undying admiration for each other and preferred instead to strike model poses and take ‘action’ shots and a few thousand selfies.

We had lunch and dinner on most of the days with our families, and the majority of the group seemed to enjoy the meals as they were given a real gastronomic variety of Spanish cuisine. Our hosts collectively cooked every Spanish dish under the sun and gently tried to force-feed us every day, which we did our best to work off by walking miles around the city. My personal record was 32,000 steps (16 miles) so not only did we have culture and education but sport as well. It is a positive experience for the pupils to meet people this welcoming and our hosts were open and generous at all times in the homestay. All the other families and staff at the school were typically Spanish in their unreserved approach and showed a genuine welcome towards all members of the party. We did try to sample the local night life when we took a trip out for tapas, a movie (La Bella y la Bestia) and a visit to the zona de los bares but the Spanish work on a different body clock so while they were venturing out we were already tucked up with hot Cola Cao and galletas.

There were many highlights on this trip: the usefulness of the classes, the constant exposure to the language and the first-hand experience of Spanish history and culture, but I would say that the most important benefit that emerges from these trips is that our pupils learn more about the hospitality of a genuinely charming race of people and that our Spanish hosts experience the warmth and charisma of our pupils, of whom we should all feel very proud.

Thanks go to Mrs Robinson and the students for their full participation and good humour throughout the week.

Mr Mike Duffy

Girls’ Sports Tour to South Africa

In July 2017, forty St Peter’s girls embarked on the hockey and netball tour to South Africa. With anticipation buzzing through the air, the long flight landed us in Port Elizabeth. We had a quick stop at a beach before continuing on to Westering High School where we were staying with the girls from the school and their families for two nights. We learned so much from the families regarding South African politics, their society and their rich culture. Before playing our matches against the High School, we were lucky enough to have a training session with ex-national players and coaches, preparing us for the closely-fought matches ahead.

After a successful round of games, our next journey was to South Africa’s Western District to go on Safari. We stopped at Kentonon-Sea for a swim (or a paddle for some) in the freezing ocean

and then continued our journey, arriving at Kariega Game Reserve. Undoubtedly this was one of the most incredible and thrilling experiences of the trip. We were within touching distance of elephants, had the opportunity to lie underneath giraffes and watch the intensity of a live lion chase, amongst so much else. Hugely saddened to leave, but eager to play our next set of fixtures, we left the game reserve and headed to Knysna via Bloukrans Bridge where we watched the highest bungee jump in the world. After abundant hair braiding and shopping in the centre of Knysna, our focus was set on our next rivals, Outeniqua High School. They were a tough opposition yet the first XI hockey remained unbeaten along with wins from the netball teams.

Following Knysna, we headed for beautiful Hermanus, where we were able to see some whales from afar, and then onto Stellenbosch. Another training session with terrific university coaches stood us in good stead for our following fixtures against Rhenish and Pinelands High School where we further secured great wins. Following some intense matches, the excitement brewed for the proceeding venture into the breathtaking

mountains of Cape Town for the Canopy Tour Zip Wire. Flying down 300-metre cables from platform to platform, the experience was another that was unforgettable. Our next excursion proved a lot more heartfelt. After an authentic African meal, with traditional cuisine and a live African band, we had the opportunity to be toured round Langa, one of the poorest townships in Cape Town. An area which was undeniably rife with poverty yet filled with so many delighted, excitable and loving children that spent their day with us, braiding our hair, joining in on our warm-up and cheering us on from the sidelines when we played their hockey teams. After a wonderful day, we finished with another meal whilst we listened to some music and even got to partake with our own bongo drums. As the tour was coming to an end, our last day consisted of a trip to Robben Island to see where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years of his life. Finally, the airport was our next stop for the long return journey. The tour was incredibly successful, not only on the sports pitch but through the fantastic experiences we were able to have. None of this could have been done without our fabulous bus driver, Hanlou, and of course our world-class sports teachers. The South Africa tour was an exceptional trip which none of us girls will ever forget.

Charlotte Hollinrake

Iceland

Our trip to Iceland was an opportunity to explore the great outdoors, with a three-day trek and tours of some of the natural wonders of the country very much the focus for our week. 21 pupils from the fifth form and lower sixth joined Miss Ullstein and Mr Whitehouse on this trip to our Nordic neighbours.

The southwest of Iceland has some of the most iconic, and frequently explosive landscapes. The Hengill and Hveragerdi hills were the backdrop to our three days with Ulli, Snowy and the team from Iceland Activities. Between June and August, the sun barely sets – and even when it does go down the sky remains eerily bright. It took some getting used to, but it meant that our days out on trek were not cut short by the night sky. On our first night in camp Ulli cooked six legs of lamb in a muddy geothermal hotspot whilst we bathed in the hot rivers. We used water straight from the hot pools for hot chocolate, and cooked eggs in the boiling waters.

The climate in the southwest is usually relatively mild, despite it being the wettest, windiest part of the country, prone to fog along the coast and potentially heavy snowfalls through the year on higher ground. The summer had been quite unsettled, and our week in Iceland was particularly grey and wet.

The weather didn’t stop us from enjoying being outdoors. With bin-bag skirts and ponchos on top of our waterproofs we remained pretty dry, and Ulli took us off the beaten track and into some of his favourite places, showing us some of the remarkable places that make Iceland so amazing. Hveragerði and Hengill is famous for hot springs and lava formations. We witnessed nature’s extremes, ranging from small gurgling hot springs to super-heated pools of water and steam, and the sounds of nature in a magnificent

mountain environment. We spent one night under canvas, but the weather at the end of day two led us to abandon the camp and seek the comforts of our hostel in Hveragerði.

We had a day trip to the valley of þórsmörk – literally, ‘Thor’s Forest’, one of Iceland’s most spectacular but inaccessible wilderness areas. We travelled along the single dirt road into the park in a high-carriage mountain bus, and were rewarded with spectacular glacier views, fields of wildflowers, pure glacial streams and forests of birch. At the end of the valley we had the chance to walk on the edge of the retreating glacier. We visited the Seljalandsfoss waterfall, fed by melting water from the famed glacier-capped Eyjafjallajokull volcano. This powerful waterfall cascades into a pretty meadow, but is best known as the only waterfall in the world that it is possible to walk behind.

Our tour of the Golden Circle took us to Iceland’s best-known natural wonder: the waterfall Gullfoss (‘Golden Falls’). A path leads

down to the deafening double falls, where the River Hvítá tumbles 32 metres into a ravine. A visit to Geysir was an opportunity to experience the Strokkur geyser, spitting up its column of water every five minutes or so to a height of around 20 metres (66ft). The whole Geysir area is geothermically active, with walking trails marked out among steaming vents.

We had a day in Reykjavik, visiting Hofdi House, best known as the location for the 1986 summit meeting of presidents Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, a historical event that effectively marked the end of the Cold War. A tour out to Puffin island, Akurey, and some time exploring the shops and cafes rounded off our day in the city.

We had a great week in

Iceland, and this was due in no small part to the spirit and enthusiasm evident across the group of pupils who joined the trip.

Mr Jon Whitehouse

Ski trip to Davos, Switzerland

So we went back and it really could not have been better. This year we were fortunate to be the only group in the youth hostel, the slopes and lifts were quiet and we had the most fantastic instructors we could have asked for. Combined with some decent weather and good snow conditions this was undoubtedly the most satisfying trip I have led.

Each day was a full one with wake-up at 7 am and a filling breakfast before heading off down to the ski shop around 8.30 am. As I said last year, the quality of equipment was very high and it enabled our better skiers really to enjoy their week. As we had our own instructors, the days were as long (or short) as we wished, with breaks taken as and when we needed. Not that many looked for this – the fitness and energy of our students amazed me as well as the instructors! For some it was over 50 km each day with more than six hours of skiing.

Davos/Klosters is spread across five mountains with some long runs and a real sense of travel. The less experienced made quick progress and it was great to see their confidence and competence grow through the week. With four days of blue skies, we were able to enjoy the excellent scenery as well as experience what being in

the mountains can really be like on the two snowy days! Some good fun was had on the last day skiing together as a group, even if the 40-man snow chain was likely never to be repeated.

After tea there were activities each night of the week. The Eau-LaLa swimming pool once again was enjoyed by all (and the ice-diving was no less popular). Bowling, ice hockey and the ski demonstration filled other nights and each of these was a good way to spend an evening. This year the journey home was less eventful than last (a good thing) and we got back having had a week of great fun, no injuries and 33 students who were a delight to spend the week with.

Having been to Davos for two years it now seemed time for a change. So next year it is Bormio, Italy.

Mr Steve Gwilliam

A shining city on a hill?

The Washington Exchange

In October 2016 twenty-one St Peter’s students flew out to Washington DC arriving during the climax of the most polarising and controversial presidential election campaign in living memory. As Trump and Hillary battled it out we had a ringside seat in the nation’s capital.

Most of the families who kindly hosted us were supporters of Hillary and the Democrats so we were remote from the growing support for Trump in the Rust Belt. Nonetheless we enjoyed debating the election issues with our hosts and at Walt Whitman High School, with which St Peter’s has had a wonderful exchange relationship for nearly ten years.

Over the week we gained a deeper understanding of American life and culture as we got to know our host families and students well and spent time in the school. We were lucky enough to visit the Capitol to see both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The central, National Mall in Washington, which was planned from scratch as the nation’s capital city, is nearly two miles long and contains memorials of the United States’ great statesmen and war dead. We had a guided bicycle tour of the area with Mr Bob Mathis, the Walt Whitman teacher who has done so much to develop and support the exchange, and went on to Arlington National Cemetery to see the grave of John F Kennedy.

We were also able to take in many of the Smithsonian museums in the centre of the city – with the National Museum of Air and Space probably being the most popular. At the end of the week we joined some of the Whitman students at a community action project, Wider Circle, helping organise and repair recycled home and furniture items for those in need.

For most, though, the best parts of the trip were those spent with our new American friends who were wonderfully hospitable and welcoming. We’re very grateful to them, Mr Mathis and all at Walt Whitman High School who helped make our visit so successful and memorable.

After nine days we returned to York to watch the closing hours of the presidential race and await the result. Charlie Higginbottom, Cressy Killick and Mr Fuller joined the BBC’s Georgy Spanswick on the Radio York Breakfast Show on the morning after the presidential election to talk over the result – as we now know, much more was to follow.

Whitman in york

Having enjoyed nine days in Washington in October we were delighted to welcome the American party to York in late June. Walt Whitman High School legend, Mr Bob Mathis, made his sixth visit

to St Peter’s (despite having already retired from teaching) and was joined by Ms Laurie Safran and a party of students.

They arrived mid-morning after a transatlantic flight, and we began showing them York’s history straight away with a trail around the city’s highlights and a trip to the Castle Museum.

On the Wednesday we were joined for a day in London by the lower-sixth Politics students and a group of prospective lawyers touring the Inns of Court and sitting in on a trial with Mr Vann and Miss Loftus. The main group enjoyed a full tour of the House of Lords and a chance to sit in on the final day of the Queen’s Speech debate as Amber Rudd and Diane Abbott went head-to-head on Home Affairs matters. Following the debate, the first major vote of the new minority Conservative government backed by the DUP was won. We then saw the work of Prime Ministers past and present with a visit to the secure underground bunker from which Winston Churchill directed the war and a walk up Downing Street itself. We were scanned through the security gates and able to explore the street just after Theresa May and senior ministers had arrived for a meeting. Our party was greeted by Larry the cat who later had a twitter conversation with Mr Fuller (the internet was made for cat pictures after all.)

A favourite day for many saw us hiring bikes to ride to Beningbrough Hall to explore the house and gardens. Friday saw another full day out, taking the train to Edinburgh to tour the Castle and Mary King’s Close to get a flavour of the Old Town, before crossing to Princes Street for a taste of the modern city and its shops – the exchange rate being very much in favour of American shoppers!

Aside from the main programme the visiting and host students and their families enjoyed a good time together beginning to understand our shared but different culture and attitudes. The ten-year partnership between the two schools and students and families on both sides of the Atlantic continues to be a very valuable one and has opened up wonderful opportunities and new friendships to many.

Mr Ben Fuller

Visit to NASA, Florida

During the Easter holiday of 2017, 24 third- and fourth-form pupils embarked on an inspirational journey into the heart of the world’s biggest scientific and engineering venture, at the doorstep of humanity’s greatest achievement. The pupils had the chance to meet with some of space exploration’s elite on an exclusive journey behind the scenes of the NASA space programme with lots more besides. After a successful trip in 2015, this was the second time that St Peter’s have embarked on a space-related trip to Florida, which we hope will continue to be a biennial feature of the school’s tour programme.

55 years ago, John Glenn became the first American to be launched into orbit around the earth, making three orbits in the Friendship 7 Mercury spacecraft. And 50 years ago the Apollo programme to put a man on the moon found success in the flight of the Apollo 4 spacecraft, which travelled around the moon. These launches, as well as every mission to the moon and every one of the 135 shuttle launches, were from launch pads at the air force base of the Kennedy Space Centre (KSC). The KSC is an enormous interactive museum of all of NASA’s missions into space. Here the pupils spent two days learning the story of everything that has happened since those incredible early space missions.

At KSC the pupils were awe-inspired by the Saturn 5 rocket. Gazing up at the huge F1 engines of the most powerful machine

ever made was simply mind-blowing. Possibly the finest of the space shuttles is Atlantis, which now resides in its own exhibition space at KSC. Beyond the sight of the shuttle up close, another highlight here was to ride on a simulated shuttle launch which had been designed by ex-shuttle astronauts. There was a talk from a space shuttle astronaut Sam Durrance and the chance to meet with him afterwards. KSC is an enormous site and required a bus trip out to the launch pads of the cape. Pupils had a close view of the vehicle assembly building, which is so big that it has its own cloud formations on the inside; it is a single-storey building which has been used since the sixties to build rockets. The crawler which was used to transport rockets to their launch pads, with its four tracks each the size of the cricket pavilion, was simply an immense feat of engineering and a fascinating thing to see. The crawler, the VAB and launch pads are currently being upgraded ready for NASA’s future missions with the aim to put a man on Mars – this was a very strong message which was repeated by NASA during the visit.

Moving away from engineering and thinking about the astronauts themselves, one of the key aspects of an astronaut’s training is to learn to deal with a range of new and extreme forces. The group’s trip to the Aquatica waterpark offered an opportunity for the pupils to do so too. The vertical drop slides offered a zero-g effect, as well as other twists and turns providing a good range of acceleration and exhilaration.

Astronauts receive a lot of aeronautical training, which includes skydiving. This seemed like a good excuse to go to an indoor skydiving centre. The pupils were given a briefing about how to skydive, before then jumping into the 100+mph airstream. It is surprisingly harder than it looks on TV. The instructors gave a few demonstrations afterwards and seemed to enjoy showing off their awesome skills.

Future long-duration space flight will put a new set of demands onto future astronauts in terms of working in close proximity. The Cocoa Beach Escape Rooms provided the opportunity for some teamwork in a confined setting. One of the challenges had a space mission theme. However the stand-out game was called ‘Jailbreak’ and began with all pupils being handcuffed and locked in a cell. The pupils worked together very well in these activities and everyone did manage to get out of jail, free!

Kayaking is a great way to get around the still inland waterways of the Cocoa Beach area and has also formed part of the astronaut training in the past. Actually ‘astronaut’ is roughly translated from Greek words which mean ‘space sailor’. In all, a great excuse for the group to spend the morning out in the Thousand Island area in tandem kayaks. Looking for wildlife, particularly dolphins and manatees, pupils were lucky enough to see an amazing sight: a herd of very inquisitive manatees, many of whom came right up to the pupils’ kayaks. It was a really beautiful area to visit on the water and the pupils were exhausted, although they had lots of fun in their kayaks.

Dining out in the evening included visits to some of the restaurants which have been frequented by astronaut crews over the years. In fact, there were few places that didn’t have NASA memorabilia on display. The Juno mission crew loved shrimps so much that the Dixie Crossroads Shrimp was the mascot for that particular mission. The pupils had a meal with two NASA engineers, Ed Mango and Bob Linner. Ed was responsible for directing the development, production, test and supportability of the space shuttle fleet in a $750 million per year effort in his time at Johnson Space Centre. He also directed the programme to maintain services for the International Space Station. Bob is the chief engineer for

avionics for NASA’s new Space Launch System. Pupils and staff were enthralled by Ed and Bob’s amazing first-hand stories about launching spaceships. The fact that these NASA legends had given up their evening to come and talk to us was hugely appreciated by all.

A range of different active-relaxation activities were enjoyed by everyone on the trip. There was body-surfing at the beach, volleyball, basketball and visits to Ron-Jon’s Surf Shop and to The Mall providing retail therapy for some (apparently new trainers are called fresh creps?). There was also a fairly relaxing trip to the Florida University’s planetarium one evening. Everywhere we went, the food was terrific and everybody tried something new: corn dough-balls, waffles with cream for breakfast, six different types of shrimp – the list goes on. The pupils truly gained an all-round Florida experience.

The pupils have truly been inspired by their experiences and the people they met in Florida. Space exploration is surely one of man’s finest achievements, behind which are some very talented people. It was great that the pupils got to meet some of these NASA legends, who are outstanding in their field, but kind and down-to-earth too. There was a real sense of broadened horizons and greater aspirations for one and all on returning home – surely the hallmark of a great school trip.

Mr Andy Parr

Rugby Tour to Argentina

After lots of travelling the boys started the tour in excellent fashion with the first XV being too strong for the hosts whilst the second XV were held out by some excellent defence, eventually losing. Two great matches to start the trip.

The whole squad together after the final gruelling matches: fantastic opposition followed by a fantastic reception – a great way to end the rugby!

After a long journey the boys gather outside the ranch castle ready for a polo lesson followed by gaucho show and a traditional Argentine BBQ!!

The squad photo overlooking the city of Cordoba where the boys spent the morning playing touch-and-pass before having some downtime shopping in the city.

Both teams line up against a very passionate hosting team in Rosario to sing the national anthems. After two very strong performances the boys enjoyed a wonderful reception at the club before spending the night with their hosts. Last night in the mega-city of Buenos Aries: the boys await the steaks!

What a way to finish this fantastic trip, by visiting the Iguazu National Park to see the falls – a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the most amazing scenery and appreciate a very special place.