On Thursday 15th December thirty-seven pupils and five members of staff set off on the biannual trip to the German Christmas Markets. We travelled through the night, taking the Shuttle, ably driven by our elderly duo of Welsh speaking drivers who were excellent value, being friendly and helpful at all times. Their arguments over the new fangled device, satellite navigation, were a source of much amusement.
We arrived safely in Cologne on the Friday morning, to be greeted by fierce winds and rain lashing across the square in front of the famous cathedral. Fortunately the weather improved for our guided tour of the city in the afternoon, which proved to be interesting and informative. Our hotel was situated in a village close to Aachen, only 200 metres from the Belgian border. The rooms were allocated and we enjoyed a good meal before everyone retired for some much needed sleep.
On Saturday we had a well-planned day, which was appreciated by all. With typical German efficiency we even arranged for it to snow. We travelled back to Cologne to visit the Sports and Olympic Museum, which gave the more sporty pupils the chance to show off their athleticism.
This visit was followed by a browse around the Medieval Christmas Market. The stallholders were all in period costume, as were the entertainers, and the food was excellent. The rumour that it was donkey or goat meat was completely untrue!
Before travelling back to Aachen we visited the ever-popular Chocolate Museum, not forgetting to take some supplies with us. Saturday evening was the highlight of the whole trip, as we had ample time to tour the Aachen Christmas Market, enjoying the special Christmas atmosphere. To join in the spirit of the occasion, the staff was obliged to sample the Glühwein… We had a late meal in the hotel and most pupils were then happy to retire to their rooms.
On Sunday we had a long coach journey up the Rhine Valley. We travelled first to Marksburg Castle, which overlooks the Rhine, where we had a guided tour. The armoury display was impressive, although the helmet tried on by William Melville was not particularly fetching.
After this visit we drove to Coblenz, where there was another market to visit. This one had an outdoor ice-rink, which was enjoyed by several members of the party. Christopher Allen skated impressively. In the late afternoon we returned to Aachen for our evening meal, which was followed by an excellent seasonal quiz prepared by Christopher Troth, Richard Crampton and Oliver Mayman. The victorious staff team was harshly disqualified for not having enough team members.
On the Monday we said our goodbyes to the obliging hotel staff and slept most of the way home, again taking the Shuttle to Folkestone. I should like to thank all the staff who took part, Mrs Mynette, Miss Holden and Mr Chacksfield, but especially Dr Troth for his invaluable help in preparing and planning the trip. Thanks also to the pupils, who were a credit to the School.
Mr J McGowan