Tuesday

Our last day but probably the best! ( well through the eyes of tired teachers anyway!) We visited Camp Nou buying souvenirs and pelotas a plenty! We also saw the Sagrada Familia and had lunch in Parc Guell. The Ramblas were packed as always but everyone was sensible and no pockets were picked! We really enjoyed the actors performing even if they did make us jump! Our final activities were visiting the Acuario, staying away from the sharks and climbing Montjuic by bus to see the Villa Olímpica as mentioned- again- in our textbook Mira 2. The flight home was an opportunity to share stories of the trip and a 6th form versus Year 8 ‘snap’ marathon!
This was Cheney’s first visit to Tarragona but maybe not the last – ¡nunca se sabe!

Monday

Although our trip to Reus was to the Gaudi centre we did also manage to sneak in some shopping. Alice, Kira and Elizabeth buying matching outfits and the boys enjoying the traditional Spanish snack of pipas – and more golosinas of course! We tried to learn enough to help us understand our visit to Barcelona for tomorrow.

Saturday and Sunday

Saturday

What an exciting day! We took the train to Port Aventura to have 9 hours of scary rides and fun! Señor Rico and Miss J headed straight for Dragon Khan with its 8 loops – definitely our favourite ride of the day. Callum was extremely brave and went on far more rides than he thought he would. Sorry Callum, but you did scream for England! We were all impressed when he even dared to do Dragon Khan and came off smiling. Rosie took care of Junaid – but I didn’t find out who screamed more! It has been amazing / scary the amount of golosinas Year 8 consumed, the sugar rush obviously more addictive than the rides.


Sunday
Everyone did something different today. We all got to spend time with our families and Rosie and Elspeth had another marathon eating session- their ‘ madre’ was such a good cook!

Friday

In class today we were learning all the ingredients of paella and key verbs to help us understand the cook. Next, we went out to the Mercado Central where students had to find out from the market stall holders what to put in the paella and how much it would cost. Afterwards we all took the bus to ‘ El Rancho’ restaurante. We put on our aprons and started to cook la paella. All the students had a job to do and managed to cook an edible paella- both for themselves and the teachers! Once back in Tarragona we went to the casco antiguo and had fun doing the photo rally. A sort of part quiz, part scavenger hunt, getting clues from key shops and buildings in the area. Unfortunately, one team disqualified themselves by leaving their work in a shop which then closed for siesta!

Thursday

Something smells very fishy today. I’m not sure if this is due to the visit to the Fish subasta or many unwashed year 8’s! We had lessons as normal and had lunch in the park. Next we stopped in Parc Central shopping centre where Robin just had to buy a vibrating massage hand! Then we walked to the Port Museum and toured the fish auction house. We also got a boat trip around the harbour – we could see the Dragon Khan rollercoaster and it looked huge even from miles away! We finished the day with a long walk back to meet our families. ¡Qué sueño!

Thursday 17th July

We arrived at Aquopolis and changed - Fergus had a bikini!! The rides were really good and even Señor Rico enjoyed himself! Caitlin was brave going on the zipline and now has a rope burn as a souvenir of her trip. After Aquopolis we had time for a bit of souvenier hunting but Elspeth and Rosie found crepes and chocolate sauce instead! Callum did an excellent job of haggling a t shirt down from 25 to 10 euros then decided he didn´t want it after all! Anna found some nice earings and then we headed off for the bus home.Today in lessons we are visiting the Port of Tarragona and taking a boat trip. Today is Louis P´s birthday. ¡Feliz Cumpleaños Louis! We have some special churros y chocolate lined up for later...More about our trip "mañana" as they say in Spain...

Wednesday 16th July

!Hola a todos! After a few eventful moments at the airport - including Louis P losing his boarding card- we all enjoyed a bit of shopping. Jonny now has enough toblerone to last for several months and Sean has a kilo of Galaxy to help him survive the trip! After a short delay we boarded the plane and, apart from a vey bumpy landing, had a good flight. As we descended into we could see the Villa Olimpica and the Torre Agbar all mentioned in our textbook Mira 2.
Our minibus arrived and took us to Tarragona where everyone met their families and departed for the evening.
This morning we all met up at the university and swapped stories about where we are staying. Fergus is well pleased as his room has a ps2 and Kira and Ellie have a swimming pool! Everyone is trying out their Spanish and, with some families having French students staying, it is quite an international experience!
The group has been divided into two and they have met their ´profesores` Gabriella and Joel. Now we are getting ready to go to AQUOPOLIS waterpark and have an afternoon of fun in the sun - although some people have forgotten to bring their suncream!
Photos will follow tomorrow of what everyone is up to. !Hasta pronto!