Enrichment Week – Seville Trip

By Marta E.P and Anaïs K, Year 8

Our year group was given the opportunity to visit another country for a language trip. We got to go to Seville for four days with 60 other students! Here are some of our favourite moments, including shopping trips, sightseeing, and so much more.

Tuesday 18th June: Travel Day 1 ~ To Seville

Our long travel day started at school with many fun Spanish language activities in groups. We also did some research into Seville (for our travel diaries) and had the chance to practice asking everyday questions we would use in Spain.

At around 11:45, we headed for lunch in the dining hall before setting off on a 2-hour journey to Gatwick Airport. Our flight left at 20:00, leaving us with plenty of time to explore the airport. We landed in Seville at 23:45 (local time) and went through passport control, got our baggage, and gladly took a seat on the coach to the hotel. We checked into our rooms and went to bed exhausted from the tiring travel day.

Wednesday 19th June: Day 1 in Seville

We started our day with a nice hotel breakfast and then left on a walk to our first Spanish language lesson at Enforex Language School. Next, we headed off to a market where we bought all kinds of things: fruit, cookies, bracelets.

We then began our walk to the Guadalquivir River Cruise. The weather was on and off. As soon as we got onto the boat, the weather worsened; it began to rain torrentially, almost as if we were back in London. But despite the poor conditions, the Andalusian (the region Seville is in) people kept our spirits high. They sang traditional songs and we were all having a great time. Even though a thunderstorm was occurring, we ignored it and listened to the Spanish singing.

The teachers decided that the weather was too extreme for us to continue the planned agenda in these conditions, so we walked back to the hotel and didn’t head out until two hours later. When we eventually left the hotel, we didn’t go far. We were given the chance to look around the Metropol de Sevilla and find out all sorts of things about it, like how the base was built out of wood and that it was the oldest wooden-based structure in Seville. We also got the opportunity to go shopping and all headed off to the jewellery store which had many bits and pieces. We ate dinner at the hotel and enjoyed a relaxing evening in our rooms.

Thursday 20th June: Day 2 in Seville

On Thursday, we were given a lie-in and woke up promptly at 8:00. We had a delicious breakfast and walked down to Isla Mágica, the largest water park/theme park in Andalusia. We were given approximately 3 hours to walk around and go on some rides. However, when we joined back at the cafe at 14:30, the teachers realised how much fun we were having and kindly extended the time to 17:00.

We then made our way back to the hotel in preparation for dinner. We ate at the hotel and left on time to go to the flamenco show, which was a 15-minute walk away from the hotel. We were all amazed at the talent and commitment of the flamenco dancers and could barely see their feet as it appeared that they were moving at the speed of lightning. We then went to sleep in preparation for the journey back to London.

Friday 21st June: Travel Day 2 ~ Back to London

We woke up at 7:00 on Friday morning with 45 minutes to pack. Everyone was stressed and worried, but we all made it down to breakfast on time and hungry. After a scrumptious breakfast, we made our way to Enforex Language School for our last activity before heading to the airport by coach. When we made it to the airport, we checked in and went through security. We were given a bit of time to go shopping and find dinner. However, when we eventually got on the plane, we found out that there was a two-hour delay! Despite this unfortunate situation, we didn’t let that upset us and ended up having a nice time with friends. We arrived in London at 10 pm but got to school at half past midnight, where our parents were there to pick us up and hear all about the trip!

Marta’s and Anaïs’ Favourite Bits

Marta: Marta’s favourite bit of the Spanish trip was Isla Mágica, the theme park where we spent a good 5 hours getting a nice tan along with having a marvellous time! She also particularly enjoyed how welcoming and understanding the teachers at the language school were.

Anaïs: Anaïs’ favourite bit was the flamenco show, as she found it very impressive and interesting. Anaïs had a lot of fun at the theme park, especially on the ride where you squirted water at each other and tried to get the opposite team more wet than they could get you. Everyone was soaking!

We would like to thank all the teachers who made this trip possible, one to remember and really special!