Normandy Trip 2011
11th May - 13th May
The trip helped us to understand more about what happened in the D-Day landings.
5:00am Wednesday 11th May- We had to arrive for school in the early hours of the morning so we could catch an early ferry.
9:00am- After boarding the ferry we started to explore the boat- we had our own lounge to relax in. Also there were two cinemas, several cafes/restaurants and two shops. Split over nine decks we had a ball of a time, however, it was a six hour journey to France!
2:00pm (Local time)- We arrived to a sunny France and had a short coach drive to the hotel.
2:45pm- We had 45 minuties to settle into our hotel rooms which featured one bunkbed, two beds and an en-suite.
3:30pm- As a group we went to the beach (which was right on our doorstep) and enjoyed paddling, football and mucking about.
6:45pm- Dinner was next on the agenda with a lovely French style meal.
8:00pm- Most of the boys enjoyed a brilliant game of football to finish off the day.
11:00pm- Lights out and bed.
8:00am Thursday 12th May- Breakfast was delicious and a great way to start the day, as we had lots of travelling and sight-seeing to do.
10:00am- Our first stop of the day was Pegasus Bridge- this was a fundamental place that needed to be captured by the Allies before the landings could take place. They used gliders so as they were not to be seen or heard. While there we saw the grave of the first solider to die in the D-Day landings.
12:00pm- Afterwards we travelled to the Arromanches 360 degree cinema. We saw a short film which featured clips from modern day and from the war. There were no words, however I felt this helped the message sink in.
1:40pm- We stopped off for lunch in a town where we had a classic French lunch of bread, ham and cheese. Some people were still hungry so bought ice-creams to finish up.
2:30pm- Next we went to the American Millitary Cemetery at St Laurent- this was a very moving experiance mainly due to the huge scale of the place. We spent a long time paying our respects- one grave I found particularly moving was of a Jewish man who died on Christmas day 1944. This made me think how it would not have been any different from any other day.
4:15pm- We then went to Point de Hoc which was a battlefield on the edge of a cliff inbetween the two beaches that America attacked. There were loads of defensive bunkers which were great fun to explore. The landscape featured hundreds of shell craters which proved the large scale of the battlefield. There was even bits of rusty barbed wire still left over!
6:00pm- We did not have time to visit St Mere Englise, however, instead we went to a very historical Carrefour!
7:30pm- Dinner
8:30pm- After dinner we enjoyed playing football by the beach again.
11:00pm- Lights out and bed.
8:00am Friday 13th May- We started off the day with Breakfast.
10:00am- Our only stop of the day was to the British Cemetery at Ranville. It was very moving, but had a completly different atmosphere to the American Cemetery. I believe this was because it was on a much smaller scale and it was more relaxed and less serious.
12:15pm- We departed Caen on a faster ferry meaning only three and a half hours instead of the original six hours!
2:45pm (Local time)- We docked in Portsmouth after a shorter ferry ride and headed back for LVS.
5:15pm- BACK HOME
5:00am Wednesday 11th May- We had to arrive for school in the early hours of the morning so we could catch an early ferry.
9:00am- After boarding the ferry we started to explore the boat- we had our own lounge to relax in. Also there were two cinemas, several cafes/restaurants and two shops. Split over nine decks we had a ball of a time, however, it was a six hour journey to France!
2:00pm (Local time)- We arrived to a sunny France and had a short coach drive to the hotel.
2:45pm- We had 45 minuties to settle into our hotel rooms which featured one bunkbed, two beds and an en-suite.
3:30pm- As a group we went to the beach (which was right on our doorstep) and enjoyed paddling, football and mucking about.
6:45pm- Dinner was next on the agenda with a lovely French style meal.
8:00pm- Most of the boys enjoyed a brilliant game of football to finish off the day.
11:00pm- Lights out and bed.
8:00am Thursday 12th May- Breakfast was delicious and a great way to start the day, as we had lots of travelling and sight-seeing to do.
10:00am- Our first stop of the day was Pegasus Bridge- this was a fundamental place that needed to be captured by the Allies before the landings could take place. They used gliders so as they were not to be seen or heard. While there we saw the grave of the first solider to die in the D-Day landings.
12:00pm- Afterwards we travelled to the Arromanches 360 degree cinema. We saw a short film which featured clips from modern day and from the war. There were no words, however I felt this helped the message sink in.
1:40pm- We stopped off for lunch in a town where we had a classic French lunch of bread, ham and cheese. Some people were still hungry so bought ice-creams to finish up.
2:30pm- Next we went to the American Millitary Cemetery at St Laurent- this was a very moving experiance mainly due to the huge scale of the place. We spent a long time paying our respects- one grave I found particularly moving was of a Jewish man who died on Christmas day 1944. This made me think how it would not have been any different from any other day.
4:15pm- We then went to Point de Hoc which was a battlefield on the edge of a cliff inbetween the two beaches that America attacked. There were loads of defensive bunkers which were great fun to explore. The landscape featured hundreds of shell craters which proved the large scale of the battlefield. There was even bits of rusty barbed wire still left over!
6:00pm- We did not have time to visit St Mere Englise, however, instead we went to a very historical Carrefour!
7:30pm- Dinner
8:30pm- After dinner we enjoyed playing football by the beach again.
11:00pm- Lights out and bed.
8:00am Friday 13th May- We started off the day with Breakfast.
10:00am- Our only stop of the day was to the British Cemetery at Ranville. It was very moving, but had a completly different atmosphere to the American Cemetery. I believe this was because it was on a much smaller scale and it was more relaxed and less serious.
12:15pm- We departed Caen on a faster ferry meaning only three and a half hours instead of the original six hours!
2:45pm (Local time)- We docked in Portsmouth after a shorter ferry ride and headed back for LVS.
5:15pm- BACK HOME
Created by Jamie McMurtrie
2011 ©
2011 ©
