Upper IV Belgium and France Trip
The Upper IV Group have been enjoying their time on the History and French trip to Belgium and France this week.  On Tuesday the group visited Langemark German cemetery, honouring the German soldiers, which was peaceful and serene with trees and shade. This space commemorated more than 44,000 soldiers of the Great War; many soldiers were placed in large graves together.  Following that, we moved to Tyne Cot Commonwealth cemetery honouring the sacrifice of around 12,000 soldiers, each with their own grave or a space on the wall for a name for the 35,000 missing in action.  This was a considerably larger plot with flowers, tended carefully.  The students considered the comparison between the two memorials. 

Following this, the group had time to relax and eat lunch before enjoying some time to explore the trenches and tunnels of Sanctuary Wood.  The owner of the land had created a lifetime collection of artefacts and uniforms, bullets, ordnance and photographs for the girls to see and enjoy. 

After this we moved to Bedford House Cemetery which contained the grave of Emily D’s relative, which we found amongst peaceful gardens and rolling lawns. 

Then we drove to Essex Farm where the infamous ‘In Flanders Fields’ poem was composed by John McCrae. The poet was well remembered with a memorial to his work, and the original hospital bunkers set into the banks of the canal where he worked as a doctor.  At the same cemetery was buried one of the youngest soldiers killed on the Western front at age 15, Private Strudwick and also Private Barratt VC, a truly remarkable soldier showing remarkable bravery above and beyond the call of duty. 

After the long day, we headed to Ypres town and the Menin Gate. The students had time to explore the town and browse the beautiful town rebuilt after the First World War in its original style. 

We enjoyed supper at The Depot Restaurant and then moved to the Menin Gate for the moving Last Post ceremony.  We were very fortunate to enjoy the music of a guest piper as well as the bugle that day.  The Menin Gate was under repair at the time, which was a shame, but it did not lose the impact of the Act of Remembrance 

On Wednesday we explored the delights of Bologne Sur Mer, walking through the old town, negotiating in French with the stall holders in the market and enjoying the cafe’s delights.  

A visit to an authentic artisan boulangerie was next.  Our students shaped the bread and used their French language skills to translate the baker’s explanation.  The students learned how the bread was made by hand everyday, baked in a 150 year old oven, heated by burning sticks from the nearby wood, gathered by hand.  Nothing was wasted, with the ash placed in bags and sold for composting, to feed the wheat and the fields.  The students were given bread, croissants and pain au chocolat made that morning in the bakery by Bruno himself. 

The students were allowed a short time on the beautiful sandy beach, playing rounders and football, making sandcastles and enjoying the sea breeze. 

Visit to Ypres
Our trip to Belgium has been a wonderful experience. The trip has been educational and enjoyable. 

The war graves were interesting and the graves and the architecture was pretty, in a restful atmosphere. It was very moving to see the large amount of graves and how much the surrounding area has been impacted by World War I.

We had lots of exciting trips such as visiting a traditional bakery where the baker explained the process of making bread in french, and interacting with the class, giving us a great opportunity to practise our french with a native speaker. We even got to have a go by rolling and placing the dough in baskets, ready to be baked.

We went on a lovely trip to the beach as well – it was fun to enjoy the nice weather with our friends. On the last day, we went to see the site of the Battle of the Somme…it was very interesting to see the site of such an influential battle.

Overall we really enjoyed our trip. It was incredibly interesting to learn more about World War I, and we enjoyed spending time with our friends.