Day 2 in Berlin - Friday

Isn't it nice - we're back to school! RLO is really different from Cheltenham College but it was nice to see our classmates again. We stayed only for 3 lessons and then left for a lesson on history: We went to Checkpoint Charlie where we looked back at the time when this great town was divided. Afterwards, our tour took us to Potsdamer Platz - perhaps a place where you can see most impressively how a barren area where only walls and soldiers could be seen before the wall came down has been changed into a lively meeting point for people from all over the world,  with quite impressive architecture.

Day 1 in Berlin - Thursday

We're back to Berlin - and the first thing that's really different is the weather as it is much warmer. Unfortunately, we will also have to go back to school but it's only for a few more days ... Now we are the hosts and our English partners stay at ours. Not an easy time for our parents ...
But today we showed our guests one of the nicest parts of Berlin: We started at Alexanderplatz and then went to Brandenburg Gate and Reichstag via Unter den Linden.

Day 5 - Tuesday

It can't betrue - tomorrow we already leave! Time is running ... But after the great cabaret ebvening yesterday we had a rather relaxed day today , with some time in the morning for some late shopping or joining the hosts for some last lessons. Later on there was  an introduction to playing rugby ( the light version: touch rugby). The participants enjpyed it very much and got great praise from their coach, Mr Weir.
In the evening, a jazz concert is waiting for everybody interested, and perhaps some will already start packing for our return tomorrow.

Our 4th day - Monday

Today we had our second outing. This time a bus took us to Oxford!!! Having arrived, we first climbed the tower of St. Mary's Church from where we had a great view of this beautiful town. Afterwards, everybody had some time to explore the town and its many shopping facilities on their own before we met again for a guided tour. Unfortunately, the moment the tour started a drizzle set in but thanks to our great guide we got a good impression of this great town, nevertheless.We even visited a Jesus College and  I was very proud that our students were able to follow the guide's explanations in English.
After a relaxed journey back some went to rehearsals and everybody met again at 8pm for a European Cabaret evening. We first saw a play in French, then listened to German comedy (Loriot at its best!) and songs in both English and German as well as Spanish guitar music played by a boy from Hong Kong. One of the highlights of the evening  were the various performances by our students which were warmly appreciated.

Our 3rd day - Sunday

Today was different from all other days in that the sun was shining and the Cheltonians weren't wearing their uniforms. Activities were rather varied toady - some went paintballing with their house, others had rehearsels for tomorrow night and some also used the beautiful day for a first exploration of Cheltenham's town centre and especially its many shops which were mainly open though it's Sunday. Tonight we'll all meet for Chapel.

Our 2nd day - Saturday

This day had another rather wet start but this time everybody was dressed appropriately and we were lucky as the rain stopped shortly after we had arrived in Bath. Unfortunately, only one of the English students could join us on this trip. We first explored the Roman Bath which has a very impressive exhibition, and thanks to our audioguides we got a good and lively impression of life at Roma times. Afterwards, there was some time for individual explorations of this beautiful Georgian town and some first shopping.

Having met again, we paid the Abbey a short visit and then went to the Fashion Museum. At first some of the boys seemed to see no sense in going in ( whereas it was hard to stop Rosi ) but once inside they quickly learned about the beauty of really gorgeous dresses and what craftsmanship can really mean ( especially compared to H&M). The most interesting section seemed to be the place where you could try on old-fashioned clothes. Here not only the girls but also some of the boys learned what it may mean to wear, for example, a corsage. Some even got blue in the face!

On the way to our bus we passed by the really impressive Royal Crescent but arriving in Cheltenham, we were greated with rain again.
You thought this was all? You can't be more wrong: After dinner, we went to the school's theatre for a performance of "School for Scandal", a funny but rather old-fashioned play about love, intrigues, marriage and false rumours. But as the English spoken here was much too complicated for our students they were allowed to leave in the break and on their way to their houses, guess what thought they had? Right - sleeeeeep!

The 1st day in Cheltenham

Our first day in Cheltenham was very emotional: We were among hundreds of students singing hymns at the school's church - even before lessons started! Later on everybody joined his partner in his lessons - what also meant having swimming lessons! Later, we returned to the impressive dining hall for lunch and then we were off to the world-famous Cheltenham Gold Cup horse race! Unfortunately, the race was accompanied by a permanent drizzle which made it not so easy for some of our students who weren't dressed for such weather. But thanks to Mr Umbrella's jacket and his umbrella all of them survived and could enjoy the vibrant atmosphere and emotional ups and downs among the many thousands of visitors. One of them even won some money!

The journey back to school seemed endless as we got stuck in a huge traffic jam. Nonetheless, everybody was back, now dressed up for a jolly evening at Zizzi's, a church converted into an Italian restaurant where we enjoyed great food and everybody got to know his partners much better. And like the day before, our only thought on the way "home" was - sleeeeeeeep!