Allez, allez, allez

One of the more enjoyable aspects of my job is leading the annual french trip to, er, France.

Each year we bung around 45 bright eyed 11 and 12 year olds on a coach and a ferry across Le Manche to enjoy the all the cultural delights that France has to offer.  And this year is no exception.

We are going to stay in a youth hostel kind of accommodation in Poissy on the outskirts of Paris to allow us to get to the city centre and Versailles with the minimum of fuss.  It’s going to be great.

And what’s more, the children have to set their own tables and do their own washing up!  They’re not going to know what has hit them.

So tonight it was my great honour to host a meeting of the 6 members of staff who are going to accompany these dear little children to France and back and not throttle them in the process.  We had a great meeting in which we planned the itinerary and discussed all the things we’ll need to pack in addition to 43 children and our own luggage.  Top of the list was snacks for teachers which included chocolate hobnobs (my personal choice), all manner of M&S snacks and (and this was my favourite addition) pickled onion monster munch.  You can keep your French cuisine, us Brits know how to party.

I’m feeling really excited about the trip now.  It’s not long until we go and as long as I have no more scares about the collective passport (the passport agency wrote a capital lettered request to call them – to sort out a date of birth) I’ll be in the starting blocks along with the rest of the staff team and pupils in April.

I’m also getting quite excited about Greenbelt too.  I Spent the rest of the evening (after the French trip meeting) sending off emails left, right and centre trying to organise a light entertainments programme and if (and boy that’s a big ‘if’) the programme comes off in the way that I’m planning, this year will turn out to be one hell of a shit kicker as far as light ents is concerned.

So book now while tickets last.