A group of students and staff left Woodham Academy, in the very small hour hours of the morning, to spend the last week of the summer term improving their French in the small town of Etaples on the Opal Coast of Northern France.
Sadly, for the first day at least, the soggy English summer accompanied them, so their first sight of the sweeping pearly white beaches was accompanied by pouring rain! Fortunately the weather improved for the rest of the stay.
The students enjoyed a packed itinerary of activities, testing their French skills in a French hypermarket and buying presents in the bustling market in Le Touquet.
They were introduced to French cuisine, and enjoyed the opportunity to have a behind the scenes visit to a traditional boulangerie where they learned the secrets of producing a perfect baguette. Afterwards they were were able to sample delicious pain au chocolat, piping hot and crumbly from the oven.
The visit included lots of fun activities; extreme rides at the Bagatelle theme park, a morning at the Boulogne “Nautica” sea life centre, followed by an afternoon at the “Aqualud” water park.
The visit also included a visit to the Le Breussant Chocolate factory where Monsieur Le Breussant explained how to make the perfect chocolate while students and staff watched drooling, wondering when he was going to let them taste some samples.
The students enjoyed every minute of a wonderful week.