Paris on Monday. Comments from the students :

It was surreal, mind-blowing, extraordinary aaaj-mei-zing !! The Eiffel Tower was probably the highlight of the day, overwhelming by just being sooo humungous ! But not forgetting the Pompidou Centre, where we got to see various artists’ (Picasso, Matisse, Braque and others) pieces of work.
We started off after breakfast, walking to the Père Lachaise cemetery, a quiet place, with very grandiose graves and monuments. We got to see the graves of Jim Morrison (the lead singer of The Doors), Oscar Wilde (a famous poet and playwrite), Frederic Chopin (a famous composer of classical music) and Victor Noir (a famous journalist who was assassinated). Some groups went to see the graves of Pissaro and Seurat, (both impressionist painters which year 7 have been studying).

I like Paris. I liked the tour in Paris. I hope I will enjoy everything in this week.

When we had our picnic this evening, I saw the Eiffel Tower light up at night. It was beautiful !

I had so much fun !

Dimanche, Paris!

Day 2,

Bonjour sunny Paris! The bags and we arrived safely at 6:30 am. This morning, which seems like weeks ago now! What a full, fun packed day!
After a quick mini tour of some main sights, we left our bags at the hotel and strolled to a local café for a typical French breakfast.
After that we took on the challenge of travelling by the Metro, first stop, the Trocadero, where a “living statue” amused us all.
A short walk past the bottom of the Eiffel tower took us to our boat. We enjoyed a wonderful cruise down the scene in the sunshine.
Back onto the Metro like true Parisians we make our way to the Cité des Sciences where we had a fascinating guided tour followed by a 3D film and then time to try out and play with many hands-on exhibits. Suppertime by then and we have now got back to our hotel, very ready for another day of interesting cultural experiences tomorrow. We are so impressed with the students’ eager, open-minded attitudes as well as their stamina. It’s going to be a great week!

First pictures

Addis Ababa

So far so good! Arrived here in Ethiopia on time after a smooth flight from Lilongwe, everything under control, no problems, sorry... Next flight will leave -on time as of now- in a little over 3 hours: Paris here we come! Mood excellent. Great group of kids!

Leaving time Saturday

Leaving time tomorrow will be 11 a.m.(parents' letter)and not 10 a.m. (latest itinerary on blog)by bus at school. Sorry about the confusion. Gathering time however: 10 a.m. I hope to see you tomorrow!

updated itinerary and latest parents' letter

Saturday 24th September Departure 10.00 school, 15.20 (ET871L) by Ethiopian Airlines to Paris through Addis 20.45-23.55 (ET704L)

Sunday 25th Arrival 6.30 (ET704L), breakfast in café La Cantoche, a.m. Bateaux Parisiens boat ride on Seine., p.m. Cité de la Science guided tour + Géode 3D experience + evening Montmartre district

Monday 26th a.m. Père Lachaise p.m. tour Pompidou (1.30), Eiffel Tower, evening: bowling

Tuesday 27th a.m. shopping/market and Catacombes, surprise p.m., tour Quai d’Orsay/Notre Dame

Wednesday 28th London by Eurostar 6.43-7.59 departure (packed breakfast) Paris, 20.42-23.17 departure (packed meal) London: City trip, London Eye, tour Tate Modern Gallery, little shopping, some “Olympic London”, live show surprise 2 .00-6.00, lunch in pub

Thursday 29th a.m. guided tour Versailles, p.m shopping and tour Louvre 4 p.m., evening Aquaboulevard

Friday 30th September Visit to Disneyland Paris (Disney Park, Disney Studios + surprise); night flight 22.05 (ET705L) back home through Addis 6.20-9.30 (ET871L)

Saturday 1st October Arrival Kamuzu Airport 14.35, expected arrival school 16.00





Lilongwe, 20th September 2011



Dear parents/guardians,

In a few days we will leave for beautiful Paris and London, time for some final information:

*transport: we will leave BMIS (car park next to hall) by school bus Saturday 24th September 11 a.m. sharp and would like you to say goodbye to your children at school; please do not come to the airport in order not to confuse students and arrangements; Saturday 1st October we will be back in school 4 p.m., please come to school and not to the airport to collect your child; in case of delay we will post that on our weblog; if you wish you could call the airport to find out about arrival times
*luggage: make sure all appropriate luggage is in your son/daughter’s suitcase; for a clothing list please check weblog and do not forget about swimming clothes and drawing stuff; please anticipate on autumn conditions = chilly and wet; use 1 piece of 20 kgs as a guideline + maybe have a spare bag to transport all the souvenirs your children will buy for you
*information:if you have additional questions, please consult www.bmisgoesparislondon2011.blogspot.com in the first place; furthermore: all chaperones will be available 9.30 a.m. onwards this Saturday to answer to your questions; in France we will update the weblog every night, so you will be informed about your son’s/daughter’s activities + photos on a daily basis; mobile phones and e-mailing are not allowed for all sorts of reasons; only in the case of an emergency you can contact me through our Head Teacher Mr. Paul Harrison: 0999785466
*passports: have your child bring in her/his passport Friday 23rd September at the latest; we will triple check all details (validity, visas (double (!) entry Schengen, UK), TEP/PRP/other etc.), but it remains the responsibility of the parents to have everything sorted; we will keep the passports in a safe place so we can do a group check-in (no pointed/sharp objects and liquids in the hand luggage please) at the airport; the chaperones will take care of the passports during the duration of the trip
* pocket money: please place the pocket money in an envelope (guideline 150 euros and 30 pounds) and write on it the amount of pocket money + name student on Saturday: staff will take care of the administration of the pocket money in order to avoid losing and spending too much money
*medicines: please make sure your child knows what medicine to take, when, how and do not forget to pack it; we do have a list of all needed medicines, together with dietary requirements and it is all taken care of
*valuables: are taken at own risk for the simple reason that we won’t have time to spend at police stations finding out about lost/stolen items
*import tax: anticipate upon paying import tax on newly bought items as soon as we are back in Lilongwe, although last year the customs were very cooperative; have your child keep receipts
*missed classes: will have to be caught up at responsibility students
*latest itinerary:
Check out weblog
*extra 1st break meetings students: Thursday 22nd and Friday 23rd September

Thank you very much for your cooperation and we hope to see you this Saturday.

Very much looking forward to have a fantastic time in France and UK with a fantastic group of young people,

also on behalf of the rest of the crew: Anne Taylor, Rachel Almeida and Sangamesh Rajeshwar



Willem Snieder, trip coordinator

Language training Wednesday 7th September

Wednesday 7th September 13.45 - 15.00 there will be a French language session for all trip participants in S5. The usual after school activities should be skipped for one time. Please arrange for transport back home. Thank you/Merci bien!