Paris Cuisine and Culture - Day 1

Day one has been about getting to know Rob, our wonderful driver, an important task as he is to be our chauffeur for the whole trip, including the stress-inducing drives into Paris itself.

However, we’ve been rewarded with a balmy evening with dinner and then a game of rounders to let off steam after being cooped up in the bus. Our lovely reps here also put on a French food-themed quiz almost entirely in French and Oscar’s team pipped two other teams for the post (although I suspect that Gwen was the power behind the throne). We’ve also decided to spread Rowan’s birthday celebrations over two days in order to make him feel extra special while he’s away from home.

We’re staying in a lovely château and there’s even a pool – we’re hoping the weather will hold off till tomorrow so we can go for a dip after a day at a local market and then meeting Pierre and his snails in the afternoon. The flamingo pink sunset should bode well … does the saying translate literally? Ciel rouge le soir, bonheur des pasteurs …? Whoops – it doesn’t rhyme. Answers on une carte postale.

Over and out …!

birthday boy enjoying his cake!

 The evening quiz after the rounders match – some fiendish questions all en français

 Flamingo pink sunset …

Paris - Day 4 - ETA 6pm

Jour numéro quatre a Paris, et maintenant nous parlons couramment le Français (avec un petit peu d'aide). 

The concerning lack of pupils at obnoxious-o'clock-teacher-led-boot-camp continues, but the engagement and enthusiasm for eating is still palpable: peculiar and concerning behaviour from teenagers... we'll have to hand this mystery over to the parents! 

After we flip-reversed the morning's activities from yesterday (so that everyone had a chance to visit a bakery and do a cooking course), we headed to the Jardine Luxembourg where there were sights, sounds, atmosphere and a bucket load of rain. 

After another short jaunt on our much loved coach, we arrived at the Eiffel Tower for a boat tour along the Seine in - and this sentence should not be taken lightly - some glorious sunshine! The irresistible allure of a childish perspective photo with the eiffel tower proved too much for Mr. Birchmore and Mr. Seymour, but, luckily there were some pupils on hand to roll their eyes and disown them appropriately. 

Then, the inevitable question... How do you end such a wonderful week in Paris? Food... Food is the answer! More specifically, a wonderful meal in a lovely Parisian restaurant followed by a coach disco and an impromptu - and disconcertingly brilliant given the quality of the mic and speakers - a cappella session by Sody on the coach home; Mr. Birchmore's enthusiastic rendition of Whitney's "I Wanna Dance with Somebody" was also worthy of note... but for very different reasons! 

Paris - Day 3

Wednesday started with another disappointing turn out to the 6:30am teacher-led-bootcamp (4 teachers, 0 pupils!) but a suspiciously prompt arrival to the meet point for the cooking course...

Once we’d convinced ourselves this probably wasn’t personal, the group split into two. One group strolled the streets of Paris between Notre Dame and the “2nd best bakery in Paris”. The pupils learnt about and tasted crisp baguettes, buttery croissants and fluffy macaroons, but it was clear they were all preoccupied thinking “how do we become a judge in these contests?!”. 

The other group was led through a three course meal of cold avocado and prawn lasagne, beef patty with potato gratin and tarte tatin. The enthusiasm was significantly less variable than the pupils’ culinary ability, nevertheless, the pupils had a great time, and unanimously agreed (don’t believe them when they say this didn’t happen!) they couldn’t wait to recreate the dishes for their loving families when they arrived home.

Nothing tops off a day of eating non-stop like some more eating, so it was back to the centre for some dinner and then a crepe making contest. We had everything from Jackson Pollock-esque dishes to decorated elephants which - we were subsequently convinced by some very passionate Year 9 girls - were an "artistic and culinary depiction of the struggles of the modern elephant against extinction": messy and inedible! 

Paris - Day 2

As teachers, we know all too well that teenagers love three things: early mornings, traffic jams and snail farms. Not in the mood to disappoint, Tuesday dished these up in spades! 

This was no ordinary morning for the residents of the small market town of Brie Comte. Bang on 9:30a.m. they had the pleasure of 40 Latymerians eagerly charming and haggling their way to the best bargains in the Prep a Manger challenge. Once the 3 euro per pupil budget had been spent on sourcing lunch (or eclairs in some cases) it was back to the centre for some light competition and a feed. Whilst Blumenthal himself wouldn’t have dreamt some of the combinations of offer, it was Mr. Seymour’s carefully carved apple swan that stole the show.

Montmartre was next on the agenda, and the hill up to the Sacré Couer provided an opportunity for the pupils to redress the caloric balance for the day (having already spurned Ms. Monahan and Ms. Harvey's offer of a 6:30am boot camp). When finally at the top, memory cards were filled with selfies, and the creperies and ice cream stands in the area did a roaring trade!

The afternoon then took a very authentic turn. Although the Euros were ploughing on in the capital, the Parisians were adamant that playing host to a continental football tournament would not get in the way of their national sport: going on strike! Sadly for us the resulting road closures meant over two hours in nearly stationary traffic. It turns out the England football team weren’t the only ones crawling out of Paris feeling a little glum that afternoon. 

As evening rolled around the group experienced one of the more niche entertainment options available this activities week: a trip to Phillipe’s snail farm. Forty fascinated teenage faces acted as testament to the character of the man who talked for an hour and half about topics including the hermaphroditic reproduction of snails; a fascinating topic, coming soon to a dinner-time conversation near you!

Paris - Day 1

Ahhh, Gay Paris (well, the outskirts of Gay Paris anyway), famed for the Eiffel Tower, Culture, Romance, Haute Couture and… silly games and dance-offs? Welcome to Paris - Latymer style!

Unperturbed and not remotely jaded by a long day on a coach the pupils settled in quicker than a French person dismisses my French accent, and threw themselves into some team bonding, led by the exceptionally professional and engaging PGL staff. Running races, acting like you’d lost £1m, dance-offs and bin-bag-couture all came naturally to the West Londoners and it was fantastic to see the Year 9s and 10s getting to know each other and chatting away happily. 

The only downside to the day so far? Our evening ends with the mood of the group in the hands of the England football team… oh, dear! 

Paris Day Four

Paris a la Carte Day Four

Today has been another busy one, full of activities in the heart of Paris. We started the day by visiting the Montparnasse tower and experienced the stunning 360 degrees view of Paris. 















After this we visited a traditional French Boulangerie and learnt about the various types of bread and made our own croissant and pain au chocolat. 

This afternoon we visited the Centre Pompidou (Modern Art Exhibition) and the students were able to explore various pieces on display as well as the local area.

In the evening we went for a classic French meal in the Latin quarter near Notre Dame.

Final scenes of Paris as we walked to the coach. Bonne Nuit Paris!

Trip Returns

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Paris Day Three

Paris a la Carte Day Three

An early start this morning as we drove into the centre of Paris for a French cooking course. We made a traditional 3 course meal including the perfect tarte tartin!

 After lunch we explored the city further by boat.

This evening we managed to fit in a swim back at the Château and then visited a local snail farm, although these weren't the only animals knocking about! 

Paris Day Two

Paris a la Carte Day Two

The day started with a trip to the local markets of Brie Compt Robert where students were given €3 each and put into groups to buy local produce for lunch. The groups then set about making their lunch back at the Chateau, which was judged by the PGL staff.

After lunch we departed for Paris city centre and visited the beautiful Sacré Coeur and Montmartre.

This evening the groups further developed their culinary skills by making classic French crepes.

Paris à la Carte

Arrived safely, a little later than expected due to long delays on the Euro Tunnel. We ended up taking the ferry to cross the channel and arrived to a very wet France!! 

Stopped at a chocolate factory en route to our accommodation, which was very well received by all!

Weather set to improve for tomorrow as we head to Brie Comte Market and Sacrè Coeur!

PARIS a la CARTE - THURSDAY'S NEWS

On Thursday we began with a visit to the iconic Eiffel Tower, where we took many a photo and bought many a souvenir. We then proceeded to take a waterborne tour of the city, taking in such famous sights as Notre Dame, the padlock bridge and back to the Eiffel Tower.

After this we stopped quickly for lunch, and went on to the Chocolate Museum and factory. There we concocted some delicious treats, including white chocolate buttons and milk chocolate lollipops. We also had some interesting feats of dining, including Tristan gulping down half a packet of liquid white chocolate. We then ate at Flunch for dinner, and went back to the hotel for a quiz on general knowledge and mastered the art of building marshmallow buildings.  

p.s. Mr Charlwood told us some really fascinating facts about the Paris sewers today. He is, in no way, running out of interesting things to say. Voilá!

p.p.s. It is Mrs Shepheard's birthday tomorrow. Joyeux Noël!

By Joe Stimson

PARIS - DAY 2

After an early wake up call, we took a rather long coach journey to a local boulangerie. At arrival we split in smaller groups to venture inside the fascinating day of a baker. We learnt how to bake bread in an efficient way and how pastries can be made. The bakers, who were working from 03:00 in the morning yet were still enthusiastic in baking, gave us a small glimpse of what they do in a day in a short and compressed presentation. Even though my height played an important role of making my unable to see some of the processes, what I did see was great! 

Apologies - I cannot get this photo to rotate!

Next, we headed to the Centre Pompidou. We each grabbed a small lunch (mine consisting mainly of cherries) at the market and then began our long walk to the modernly designed arts centre. As we came into view of the of the Centre Pompidou, we glanced endlessly at the magnificent design of the building. Having seen the interior of a building be put exterior to the building worked well and was aesthetically pleasing. As a group we hurried up the slow paced escalators. All the different arts were intricately designed yet different. My favourite had to be the block of needles, were each needle was placed to align with the next, as it was a great optical illusion. I had grown a headache after staring at the needles for so long.

Dinner was next and we went to a restaurant called "Flunch", which had confused us all. The food was good and Jayesh took great advantage over the fact we had unlimited access to the fries.

To conclude our day we went to bowling. It was an amazing way to finish our day. Many of us scored strikes and with the aid of the railings, I did too! It was a splendid day!
 

By Amir Rafati-Fard

PS - Mr Charlwood is really getting to grips with the French language. Many Parisians actually think he is a local! Mange tout! (Mr Charlwood wrote that!)

PARIS A LA CARTE - DAY 2

Post written by Omar Kahn-Osbourne & Luca Marino

Tuesday was a very hectic day. We began our journey in Montmartre, the art district of Paris, in which we visited the Basilique de Sacre Coeur. The view from outside was stunning and the inside was serene in the candlelight. Montmartre was full of artists that were eager to draw us and Amir got a very charming caricature.

After wandering through the streets and eating in the nearby parks we went to the Cathedrale Notre Dame which had a very long line from the outside. The inside was full of statues that were accompanied by large stained glass windows that were awe inspiring.  The island itself was full of alleyways that were really fun to navigate through and it was great when we found a delicious ice cream shop nearby.

We headed afterwards to have a cooking lesson. Our teacher, Eric, was very enthusiastic as we diced up apples and mixed batters, with the whole class given a try at rolling out the pastry before it covered the tarte tatin.

     

The dinner was very delicious and soon after we finished our day walking down the Champs Élysées. The shops were closed by this time as it was so late so we were mostly staring into the windows, wishing we could go in. After this exhausting day, it was a relief to finally come back to our hostel. I hope tomorrow is as exciting as today.

PS - Mr Charlwood is excellent at leading us around Paris without getting lost and he knows many interesting Paris based facts.