24 March 2014

Our trip diary

Day 1

Our day started early in the morning at 7 a.m., when we arrived at Riga airport. We were a little bit sleepy.

Suddenly we saw a famous Latvian group “Brainstorm” and we took photos.

 Our flight lasted 2 hours and a half .
 At the airport Sharles de Gaulle while waiting for our coach we went to Starbucks !  During the trip to Lannion, we enjoyed beautiful landscapes and we saw cream cows that were called limousine cows.

 The coach was very comfortable and seven hours of driving passed fast. When we arrived to Lannion it was sunny, and we were very excited, because we wanted to see our penfriends. Our friends gave us a hug.

Our host families took us home and we had dinner with them.

Day 2

 After breakfast with our host families, we arrived at school at 8 A.M. We went to the project opening ceremony, which started with the Latvian national anthem. The principal of the school Mr Le Faou had a welcoming speech. And the coordinators of the project congratulated us on the beginning of the project work in France!

French students gave us project handbooks.

 We had a guided tour of the school St. Joseph.
We were impressed by the size of the school and its well organized structure.

French students made a presentation of their school and we started working together in small groups on finding similarities and differences between the education systems of two countries.

After that we had lunch in a cafeteria. It was huge and the food was very tasty.

Then we watched a film about Lannion, and we went on a sightseeing tour, where we saw a music school, concert and exhibition halls, historical city centre, Brélévenez  and Saint jean du Baly churches, the first world war memorial and the water stadium.

Day 3

On the first lesson we learned Breton language, which was very new to us. We sang a song “Tri Martolod” by Nolwenn Leroy . Then we had a French lesson. We found out that these languages were completely different.

We were very lucky to visit the Orange Labs because they don't allow visitors, but made an exception for us. Orange is popular in France. It's the main telecommunication centre, which is about 60 years old and is presented in over 30 countries. We listened to 3Dimensional sounds, visited a room which blocked sounds, we also saw a new project where you can share videos in real time. Our trip to Orange Labs was concluded by a brief lecture about Orange Labs' history. We received a bag as a visit gift.

We returned to school just in time for lunch. Once the break was over, we had a presentation about famous French scientists, and then we went to update our blog.

After that we had a great time in bowling!

Day 4

In the morning there was a presentation of French history, monuments, symbols and architecture.

Then we looked for information about famous castles on the internet.

 Later we had an excursion to La Roche Jagu, and had a picnic provided by our host families. We had free time to walk around a beautiful garden and enjoy the view of the river. Then we had a guided tour around the castle. There were a lot of rooms. Some stairs were very narrow and hard to walk.

When we returned to Lannion, we had one hour of free time. Most of us split up in groups, and went to the city center. In the evening we had a disco and pizza. It was a great day!

Day 5

The day started with Breton and French lessons. In Breton, we listened to a song that was sung by St. Joseph's school choir. It’s called “LIBERTA”. And during the French lesson, we read a love poem, and learnt some phrases we could use in the market.

Then, we had an excursion to Lannion's market - the biggest market in the C?tes d’Armor department. There we found a wide variety of local food: fresh fish and meat, cheese, bread and pancakes, sweets and caramel, fruit and vegetables. There were also stoles with clothes, bags, shoes, jewelery. A lot of the students went shopping and bought some delicious and pretty looking things! It is a pity, but we had too little time.

 Then we wrote postcards to our parents about our superb stay in Lannion.

After the presentation of French gastronomy we went to a cooking class. The chef of Catering school showed us how to cook traditional Breton dessert. It was very delicious!

Later we went to Saint jean du Baly  church, where we met Jean Marc Kernin, a master of St. Joseph choir. He explained how the organ worked and played several music masterpieces on more than 400 years old organ.

Day 6

In the morning we had a presentation about the Pink Granite Coast and its main characteristics.

Then we had an all-day excursion. Our first stop was at the Aquarium, where we could touch starfish, crabs and clams. We were told about different types of sea animals and the marine life of the English Channel.  

After having our lunch at Ile Renote beach, we walked along the seashore, enjoying the sea view and very large pink rocks.

Our second stop was at the Biscuiterie of Britany. There were lots of sweets, biscuits and different types of tea, fancy cups and souvenirs, that the students decided to bring back to Latvia.

Then, we all went to the Trestraou Seaside Resort. We had an hour of free time and enjoyed the lovely sight of the sea.

Then, we visited a farm that produced an organic apple juice and Breton national drink – cider. The owner of the farm showed and explained all the process of making juice and cider. He makes about 20 000 bottles of Cider a year.

The evening was organized in a traditional Breton style. First, we watched presentations of Celtic legends, traditional dances and listened to the popular French music.

Then we tasted traditional Breton buckwheat pancakes with an egg, ham and cheese, pancakes with caramel and pancakes with butter and sugar. They were very delicious!

We practiced Breton dances and listened to national songs. One of the boys was playing a bagpipe. We enjoyed the evening very much!

Day 7

Today we went on an excursion to Ile De Brea and to the city of Paimpol. Our trip started at 8:30 A.M. and we set course to the Island, first by coach and then by a small ferry. The weather was gloomy and the air was cold, but we were still very enthusiastic! The Island was big, and also very beautiful. The sand on the shore was a bright cream colour, and the houses were mixed of white - grey bricks and colorful roofs. Unlike the other excursions, during this one we didn't have to follow a guide, instead we walked around the island and had fun with French students. Even though we spent four hours there, it didn't seem enough, and we were rather sad to leave the Island. Our next destination was Paimpol. It was big, and had a lot of shops and souvenir carts.

Then  we went to the Saint – Tugdual Cathedral. It had two parts: one built in gothic style and the other in romanesque. It  looked monochrome outside, but when we came inside,  the decoration and the lit candles made it looked like a palace. Towards the end of our trip, it started raining, so we had to return to the bus half an hour earlier, than we were supposed to. But we were all very delighted with the trip, and had a lot of fun!

Day 8

  It was the day at the host families. Some of us went to the aquarium, others visited an amusement park. Some students met up in the town center, and some stayed at home and slept after the exhausting week of work and getting up early.
  Sunday was a very relaxing day for all the students, but we waited for Monday to come faster so that we could reunite with our friends.

Day 9

In the morning we gathered together to talk about the EU, its symbols and the role of France and Latvia in it.

We visited a museum and a photo exhibition at L’imagerie.

Later each of us visited a different lesson and we did sport.

At the farewell ceremony we presented the results of our mobility: we sang a traditional Breton song, showed our trip diary and movie that we had been working at. The coordinators of France and Latvia said their speeches and  we received our project certificates and souveniers, took our last group photo.

 After the official part at school we went to the Town Hall to meet the Mayor of Lannion. It was a great honor for us! Unfortunately, the Mayor had to leave to some urgent meeting, but we were kindly accepted by the Deputy of Mayor.  During the reception, he made a welcome speech, offered us some treats and gave us portfolios, we could use for working on our project. We also received a Medal of Lannion that is usually given to special guests! There were representatives of several local newspapers, who later wrote articles about our visit and project work.   

Day 10

   Early in the morning we met all together at the main bus station. Everyone was sad, because it was time to say goodbye and we did not want to. Some of us cried, so did the French students and their host families.
   We got on the bus and took our way to the next destination.

   Finally, we arrived to Mont Saint Michel. The amazing castle blew our mind, the view was fantastic! We had a guided tour around the Abbey and free time to enjoy the beautiful view over the bay and to walk around souvenir shops and houses dating back to 15th and 16th centuries.

Then we went to the city near Paris – Trapes, where we stayed for a night.

Day 11

The day started early in the morning, we took our bus to Paris – the capital city of France. On our way there were some traffic jams, but we finally arrived at the city centre. When we saw the Eiffel tower, we were very excited and we took lots of panoramic photos.

We were lucky to get closer to the Eiffel tower and walk underneath it. Then  we were ready to take a small cruise on a boat called Les Peniches. It was pretty unique and we could see almost all sights of Paris. We discovered magnificent French architecture and beautiful ancient bridges!

        Assemblée Nationale or Bourbon Palace

The bridge of Russian tsar Alexander the third  

    The train station

The Louvre palace  

  The Notre Dame de Paris.

The Eiffel Tower  

Finally, we visited the Avenue des Champs Elysees - the most famous street in Paris. There we had free time. We went shopping and took photos near the Arc de Triomphe.

We really enjoyed Paris and especially the atmosphere of this famous and beautiful city!

Unfortunately, all good things come to an end and we had to tell goodbye to France…

We are grateful to the coordinator of the project Mrs Sylvie Lissilour for organizing fascinating programme that fully covered different aspects of life and culture in Brittanny and France, for ordering special summer weather for us! It was a great experience for us and we will never forget it!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH! MERCI  BEAUCOUP ! TRUGAREZ!

Day 1:

We left Lannion at 2:00 am and we took the bus to Paris. We arrived at Roissy Airport at about 9:00 am, and we registered our luggage. We were allowed to have one bag of 20 kg and another one in the cabin. Then, we went through the customs and we arrived in a waiting room. There, we could sit on chairs and have a snack or do shopping into the duty free stores. Our plane was due to leave Paris at 12:00, but it was a bit delayed. Finally, we went on board the plane and everyone seat. Unfortunately we didn’t sat next to our friends, so we changed seats. In the plane, some of us slept because we were very tired. The others listened to music, ate sweets, or just chatted. At the end of the flight, we could see the forest and the snow by the window of the plane. We arrived at the airport at 3:15. Our host families were waiting for us. We said goodbye to our classmates and we went with our pen friends and their families.

Day 2:

We arrived at school at 8:30 am and the official opening ceremony of the project “crossing cultures” in Latvia started at 9:00 am. First, Latvian students presented their country and Riga. Some of them wore traditional costumes and children danced traditional dance. After, French students did presentations about France and our school, St Joseph. After the presentations, Latvian and French teachers made a thank you speech and gave us a student handbook and a badge. To close the ceremony, a Latvian girl sang an Eddie Piaf song. After this very good ceremony, French students had Latvian and Russian lessons.

After lunch, we took the tramway to go to old Riga. We walked into the city. It’s a wonderful city, and it was snowy. We saw the cathedral, the black head house, the freedom monument... The main architectural style is new art. After this walked, we took the double decker bus, and we toured around the city. We had an audio guided visit. As we could choose the language we took French. The visit lasted two hours, it was very interesting and we learnt a lot of thing about Riga. To end we went to souvenirs shop, where we can buy amber jewels, scarf, postal card, key ring... We came back to school at 6pm, and we left with the host family.

Day 3:

We arrived at school at 8’25am. Then, our Latvian pen friends showed us the famous sightseeing in Latvia. We had to do some exercises about the places we would like to visit. After this, we left school at 9:15 am and we went to Laci Bakery. We saw how to make bread and we had the chance to make our own loaf. We wrote or drew something on it and put it in the oven. At 1:00 pm, we went back to school for lunch. We ate salad, potatoes and chicken. After lunch at 1:30 pm we took the bus to go to Ethnographic open air museum. The guide welcomed us and explained us what we would see. We saw old houses and the church. Then we walked in the snow to the pottery workshop. While we waited for the potter, we had a great snowball fight, it was really funny ! Once back to school, we ate at the cafeteria at 5:00 pm and 30 minutes later, we had the disco party. First we learnt break dance and then we danced with the Latvians and enjoyed it !

Day 4:

In the morning, we worked on the project. Then, we watched the presentation of the History and the famous people of Latvia. After that, we went to Riga Dome Cathedral to listen to an organ concert. After this visit, we saw the Museum of History of Riga. We had lunch in a restaurant called Lido where we ate traditional Latvian food. In the afternoon, we went to St Peter’s Church, where we could admire a beautiful view of the city. At the end of the day, we went to the shopping mall Galerija Center to do some shopping.

Day 5:

    When we arrived at school we wrote blogs about the project. Then we had a Latvian and a Russian lesson. After that our pen friends showed us the Latvian national costumes.  During the last hour before lunch we made bookmarks. After lunch we went to national history museum of Latvia. We had to answer a quiz about that. Later we visited Riga art nouveau museum. The guide who was wearing an ancient dress explained us how was the life during the art nouveau period.

Day 6:

In the morning we did a dance activity and we had sport. We played hockey. After this we had a Russian and a Latvian lesson. During the last hour before the lunch we worked on the blog about the project.  In the Afternoon, we tried to cook Latvian traditional food and then we tasted it. After cooking some of the students went back home and the others stayed in Riga. In the evening French and Latvian students went to the opera to see a ballet called “Carmen”.

Day 7:

    We left the school at 9:00 and we took the bus to Sigulda. There, we had a guided visit of the castle and Turaida Museum Reserve. Then, we had to get dress in characters from the middle-ages. After that, we had lunch in a restaurant where we ate French fries. After lunch, we took the aerial cable-way and then, we had to walk in the snow to visit the caves. Finally, we went back to school.

Day 8:

On Sunday, we spent all the day with our pen friends and host family. The majority of us went to the shopping mall alfa, to see a film in the cinema, to do some shopping or to have a lunch.

Day 9:

    During the first our, we worked blogs about the Project. Then, we had a quiz about latvian culture, history and traditions. After that, we had our latvian and russian lessons. Before the lunch, latvian students of all the school showed us their latvian traditionnal dances. We spent the afternoon in Sigulda. There, we saw the beach with the frozen see and we walked along Jomas street. Some of us spent this time buying their last presents for their family. Before to go back in our families, we went to a shopping mall.

20 December 2012

Comenius Project Meeting in Lannion, France 15th – 18th September 2012

Visit : Programme
Saturday 15th September
Arrival at Dinard Airport at 17h50
Arrival at Lannion at about 20h00
Meal at Nathalie and Michel’s place

Sunday 16th September
Visit of Lannion town centre (medieval houses, water stadium, Brelevenez stairs and church…)
Meal at Sylvie and Alain’s place
Visit of the area (Perros Guirec port and beaches, a walk around Tregastel …)
Meal in a “Crêperie” specific to Brittany

Monday 17th September
8h45 Meeting at St-Joseph school and visit
12h00 Meal at the restaurant of the St-Joseph Catering School
Work on our project
Meal at “La Pataterie” serving specialities from different parts of France

Tuesday 18th September
Departure from Lannion at 8h00
Departure from Dinard Airport at 11h55 

  On 15th September 2012, the principal of private school “Klasika” Svetlana Šibko – Šipkovska and the  project coordinator Jeļena Korņejeva  travelled to France for the first meeting with our partner school Lyçée Collège St-Joseph. We were met at Dinard airport by the project coordinator Sylvie Lissillour and driven to Lannion. . There we met the Principal of St-Joseph school Mr Le Faou and our partners in this project. It was fascinating to share each other knowledge and experiences from different cultural backgrounds as well as to learn about history and lifestyle of French people.

  The next day in the morning we had a lovely walk around Lannion town centre and enjoyed the view of the medieval houses, the town market and ancient churches. In the afternoon we went to Tregastel and had a walk along the Granite Rose coast full of pink granite rocks which have been sculptured by the sea into varied shapes.

  On 17th September we had a visit to St-Joseph school. First we met school authorities and gave PowerPoint presentations presenting Latvia, private secondary school “Klasika” and our project “Crossing Cultures”. Later we had a tour of St-Joseph and visited nursery, primary and secondary schools viewing classrooms, a library, a canteen, the school’s church and meeting students and staff. We also met the students who were involved into the project. We presented them the poster and the video made by our students in Latvia.

  In the afternoon there was the Coordinators' Meeting, where we discussed our work programme, future mobilities (agreement for students’ mobility), activities, the structure of the website; defined partner roles and responsibilities.

  The Comenius project meeting was quite busy and full of work. But it succeeded well as the objectives and activities of the project were discussed and the timetable of the first year work programme was planned. Moreover, it gave us an opportunity to share information and experiences which helped us strengthen friendly relationships among teachers and school authorities.

  We would like to say a huge "Thank you" to our French partners for making this visit wonderful; being incredibly friendly and hospitable; for getting acquainted us with French culture and traditional food.

Lyçée Collège St-Joseph,  LANNION, BRITTANY, FRANCE
(15 September – 18 September 2012)