After a few months of separation the students were finally reunited with their French exchanges when they arrived in Arras on April 25. Hugs were exchanged as the students were finally introduced to parents and siblings with whom they were to spend the next week.
On Wednesday morning the group took a tour of the small town of Arras, far smaller than Auckland and definitely smaller than Paris which they had just left off. After this the students returned to the school and spent the afternoon attending their exchanges classes, making use of their French and trying to listen and engage in how their school system works.
Thursday included a quick day trip to Lille, the main city close to Arras. The group also took a town tour of Lille, which was much bigger geographically and included looking in some museums and a shopping trip. It was here that the group was reunited with Juliet, who was one of the French exchanges on the 2014 trip and who stayed at Sancta Maria College for a term last year.
The group stuck close to the town in Friday, with a morning trip to the Wellington quarry looking at where the NZ soldiers had close ties to Arras in WW1. This was a moving experience looking at the harsh conditions and obstacles the soldiers had to endure to secure the freedom that we enjoy today.
The students returned in the afternoon to Arras to attend classes and to the homes where they would spend the long weekend with their families.
Niamh Walsh
