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Out of School
the HQ of K-street lobbying giant Patton+Boggs. For the
politics students there was also the incredible opportunity
to watch a presidential campaign’s ‘October surprise’ play
out in real time as Mitt Romney had to sit back as Obama
got to act as Commander in Chief on visits to storm-hit
areas.
Overall the trip was not the one that we had planned or
expected, but it turned out to be a unique and amazing
experience. The hotel and restaurants in which we ate
were amazing, friendships were made and many photos
were bombed. The group took everything in its stride and
did the school and department proud.
Mr Simpson
Year 9’s Visit to Aachen 2012
In the last couple of weeks before Aachen, there was so
much hype from everyone who was going. After hearing
about how good the trip is from teachers and older
students, all the pupils were very excited. Finally arriving
at the coach at 6 a.m. was a great feeling. (
Olly
)
When I first got to the meeting place at 5.45 on Friday the
7
th
of December, the mood was surprisingly happy for so
early in the day. Although we were all tired and not fully
awake yet, the anticipation of the trip ahead was lifting
everyone’s spirits. (
Viktor
)
We were all very excited about the trip, but, at the same
time, most of us were wondering how on earth we were
going to entertain ourselves for such a long time on the
coach. (
Sarah
)
The ten-hour coach journey may seem long, but time
passed by surprisingly fast. I hate to think what it would
have been like without Mario Kart! Even though the
journey was a bit long, the market more than made up for
it. (
Loic
)
It was a long journey, but seemed short because of all the
excitement and banter. (
Alex G
)
An excellent example of Martin’s golden pieces of comedy
material was telling us to watch out for fish through the
windows of the Eurotunnel. “If you see one, we’re probably
in trouble.” He took a moment to giggle to himself, before
sitting back down. Nobody laughed. (
Alex B
)
People got in a few stunted French phrases, as we stopped
in Belgium for food and a toilet break. I had brought no
loose change with me, so I couldn’t go to the lavatory.
(
Ethan
)
As we arrived in Aachen, there was huge excitement,
as snow was all around. (Stefan) The streets resembled
picturesque postcards of trees dusted with snow. (Joe) We
had snowball fights, despite Mr Clegg constantly telling
us not to. (Lewis) It was a winter wonderland. (Fraser)
The snow was stunning and we hurled snowballs at one
another for about 20 blissful seconds, before Martin (our
coach driver, who is built like Santa Claus, but has the
jollity and sense of humour of the Grinch) told us to stop.
(
Alex B
)
After getting settled into the comfortable youth hostel,
we walked down to the Weihnachtsmarkt. I don’t think
that anyone was expecting such a busy yet incredibly
friendly atmosphere. The smells of gingerbread, hot food
and mulled wine in the air, the Christmas lights, the music
playing and the beautiful stallsmade it feel very festive and
I think that everyone was shocked by the surroundings,
as it was nothing like any markets we’d been to before.
(
Becky
)
The markets were absolutely beautiful. The stalls sold
baubles, candles, Currywurst, Flammkuchen, gingerbread
men, giant biscuits with Christmas messages on them,
hats, things for the bath, notebooks and much more.
(
Sarah
)
There were so many lovely gifts to choose from: sweets,
chocolates, biscuits, decorations and mugs and spoons
which I got personalised for my family. (
Ella
)
The market was a really friendly place to be. The Saturday
in town was brilliant and we visited a large number of
places, including the supermarket, the Bäckerei and the
very same Eiscafé as the night before. It was such a shame
when we got to 4 o’clock and it all came to an end. The
whole experience of Aachen was an amazing one, and I
will make sure that I visit the same place again eventually.
It was the first time I’d ever been to Germany and I really
enjoyed the entire trip. (
Olly
)
There was one store which had lots of decorations and, if I
had had the money, I would have bought them all. (
Claire
)
The market was bursting with adults drinking Glühwein
from the distinctive mugs, which looked more decorative
than practical. (
Nick
)
The market seemed to bombard all my senses – the aroma
of something unusual, the gleaming lights of the stalls,
and the numbness in my feet, due to the inappropriate
choice of Vans for the snow. (
Joe
)
