25 maart 2025

Day two opened with two breakfasts…I kid you not! Our first of course in the hotel, but this was followed by breakfast in the partner Lycée of the collège, which happens to be a hotel school! With fresh crêpes, with butter and sugar or for the diehards with Nutella, we were welcomed to the school by the headmaster and the staff of both schools.

Once breakfast was digested, it was time to work off both, with some intellectual work and some physical exercise as the group was split in two. One half went off to a gymnasium hall to meet inspiring people with a disability. We learnt how far sport has gone to include everyone, regardless of their ability and learnt from the presenter how his life was irrevocably changed after a motorbike accident that severed his leg from the hip down.

A circuit was laid out with obstacles for pupils to work with and understand how difficult it is to live without sight. The presenter himself lost his sight due to diabetes, only 6 years ago. He allowed the pupils to use his white stick to let them feel how sensitive it was to the tactile tiles that he had brought. Our pupils have learnt more about them and their purpose at train stations and at stairs which can signal to the user the direction of the steps.

A sport similar to petanque was demonstrated to the pupils how it is played if a player is in a sitting position and misses a limb or indeed doesn’t have the ability to use a limb. Whilst confronting, it was inspiring to see what is now possible and that inclusion in sports is truly getting stronger.

After a group change, the groups then started reflecting on traditions and cultures and created mixed legends taken from their three countries, creating a new tome for the contents of future legends. A playlist was created from the eclectic tastes of the students from the three countries, which will be played at the farewell party. Fashion too wasn’t forgotten as pupils had to design new clothes that represented all three of our countries in one outfit. Food wasn’t omitted, with our wannabe chefs cooking up a storm in the kitchen with their menus pulling together foods from all three countries into fusion food.

On the note of food, our pupils headed off to their French counterparts for their evening meals and to sample French hospitality and cuisine for themselves. What an experience these pupils are having – one that remain with them and that they’ll be telling their children about.

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