In the end....

The tour is coming to a close and the kids will have the final say and how this blog ends. If a picture says a thousand words then these guys have a lot to say....let’s just say that thankfully this is a digital world and very few of these pics will ever be printed!!!  Far too many to print for sure....I have a lot of people that I want to thank and this is the easiest place to do some of it for sure....first of all the entire staff of Three Oaks for letting us take advantage of this opportunity, it truly is a once in a lifetime experience and personally I have been able to experience it a few times.  Principal Nicole Haire for backing us and me  up personally in all aspects of this gigantic endeavor.  Thanks to EF for their hard work in making sure that all of our needs were meet while we are on tour, yes they are a business but yes the really do care about the kids that are involved.  Thanks to tour director David Harrod, who makes us run(and I mean run) to keep on time...I should probably have David organize every day of my life so I run on schedule for a change.  Thanks especially to you the parents for intrusting me personally, and us as group, with your children......I know it must be nerve wracking at times thinking about sending your kids across the world, but I ask you to encourage it and not discourage it because they have grown and they have become better people because of this educational travel experience.  A special thank you to Angela Carragher and Danny and Kim Brawn and Lisa Ronahan who have simply melded into the group as if they were the students and never a complaining word was spoken and this also makes my life easier while on tour.  

   To my chaperones Kelly, Amanda, Barb, Forrest, Alex and Margie.  The hard work that you all put in, unfortunately sometimes it goes by the wayside when people talk about the trip and it being mine as Group Leader.  I hope that you realize that is not the case and the group is only as good as its weakest link and we had no weak links...we were good!  Your work over the last 14 months has made me look good as a group leader with people life David Harrod and EF, but please let it be known that I always mention and talk about how well we worked together as a team.

    Finally to the kids...each one of you has grown, you might not realize it, but someday, in fact many days, you will look back to this opportunity your parents and guardians provided you with and say that it has influenced some of the decisions that you have made and will make in the future.  Each one of you have accepted a challenge from us and the rest of Canada.  Do not take this challenge lightly...be a leader in your peer group....be a leader in your community when it comes to remembrance and pass the stories along that you have discovered, you owe it to the veterans and you owe it to yourselves to keep that challenge going forward.  You have an advantage over me, not that I didn't have a great teacher or two in high school(haha),  but I didn't have the travel opportunity that you guys were just presented with.  Learn from these experiences and make your life one that is a commitment to being the best person that you possibly can be, each and every day of your life.  That is a very difficult thing to do; however, if you challenge yourself and set your goals high you will be shocked at what you can accomplish.  I am honoured and proud to have travelled with everyone of you!!!

dc

Paris .... Au revoir.... Munich.... Auf wiedersehen..Bonjour Canada

Just a quick note to say we are all tucked into our beds adjusting to the time change. Kids are well and we will in the city tomorrow and eventually on to Charlottetown... Will post final update on weekend... My body is done!

From Paris with Love and Tears and Laughter....mixed in with a fair bit of culture....a great way to finish things in Europe...

    Up early and on our way, this is our final day in paradise so the kids are saying and my god it is sunny!!!!  Uh oh Tanton you better break out the 95 SPF...for the 10 minute walk to the metro station to make our way to the Louvre.  Last night I had said that I would write a small note about everyone....just realizing that I can’t muster the energy because it is already 1:15 and I have just started this thing!!!!  I will be doing it but just not tonight, I have also asked the kids for their favorite pics of the week and that will be the next post, I can’t wait.  

The Louvre is our first stop and the kids are pumped...for the first exhibit Alya, Abbey, Becky, Becca, Ellen, Marissa and Mallory stopped at a more modernist style of Art called Le Starbucks.  They were able to sit at the exhibit and read all about it...they seem quite knowledgeable.  C'mon girls get in the museum....

     Most of the kids looked forward to checking out many of the exhibits....of course the main targets would be the Mona Lisa, the Venus Demilo, and the Winged Victory.  This is the #1 museum in the world for a reason...my god this place is huge.  The last time i was in Paris, I was only in Paris in for 10 hours and wanted to see the city more so than a few paintings and sculptures.  Thinking about it right now and wondering if I made the proper decision.                        
        Thoroughly impressed and the crowds are immense each and every day except for Tuesdays when it is closed.  The Mona Lisa is the Mona Lisa for sure and she is beautiful in her own way...and as small as people say.  I was still at wonderful site to see....

      The exhibit that really caught our eye was the Napoleonic Apartments....in order of you to get some kid of realistic impression of this little set of rooms you need to see some pics and some video.  It was unbelievable and not hard to understand why the people revolted when you see these things.  People were starving and the kings and queens were living in splendor like this.  Completely, it was probably the most stunning piece in there because I have never heard of them.

      From the Louvre, after a couple of hours of viewing, and drinking coffee for some, we are moving onto the Champs D’Elysees.  The question is what store can we stop into to buy something....Louis Vitton, Mercedes Benz and many others.  The girls did find and H&M with some very good prices however...off to the power shopping and we still have about 4kms to walk down to the obelisk in order to meet the group.  This day is certainly all about the kids....they have paid their respects, they have represented their school, their city and their province, and they deserve a day to enjoy the sights, sounds, smells and $$$$$$$$ of Paris. They do really deserve it!!!
       From there we move onto the Lafayette Arcade....kinda like the Champs...just don’t think I will pull the trigger on that $124,000 euro watch....not in the budget this yet.....then again if I hadn’t bought the $209,000 euro Mercedes on the Champs I probably would have been able to afford the watch.  The building was also a center point as you will soon see.....
I am not sure how I can describe the trip, we have been able to accomplish many of the goals that I have set out for this group.  They are ready to head home, but of all the groups I have traveled with...they are ready to keep the tour going.  I am going to talk to them tomorrow and let them know what I think about them all...not sure if I will make it through without a tear, but I will try.  
     The kids say they have noticed that I am more relaxed since Vimy has finished and I agree.  No matter what is said...this trip is about the kids, but it also defines me and the other chaperones based on what happens.  I put a lot of pressure on them to perform and meet the high expectations and I want you all to know that I do that in my home.  The kids can achieve anything they put their minds to and they need to make sure they do not sell themselves short...the sky is the limit for these young men and women and I hope someday that I am reading and hearing about their exploits around the world...and maybe just maybe I have played a role in that...that is why I teach!  They have it in them, I know it!!
     From the high end shopping once again we head to dinner.  I have to admit that almost everything has been impeccable...we had maybe one meal, steak hache(look it up its rare meat and the French love it) was not loved by all.....in the end we have certainly lucked out with our hotels and meals for sure.(and not everyone will agree, but hey...having done it before...you need to trust me on this one)

      After supper at Flam’s, and of course eating their famous Alsace flat bread pizza and the dessert on the same flat bread with chocolate and apple as a topping, we move on to our Seine river tour.  The sad thing for me is that they are starting to talk about the end of the trip and they are getting sad...lots of hugs throughout the entire group and much reminiscing, and it’s not even over.  After a brief shower, we are presented with beautiful sunshine for the next hour and the trip gets many photo ops, especially when the Eiffel tower rolls into view.  Well that won’t be the last time we see her, because after the river tour we have added on a trip to the tower and the majority of us are going to walk up to the 2nd level.
     AWESOME and I am pumped for all of us!!!  I have never done this before, so I am as excited as the kids are.....this is unreal.  For 6 euros or 3.50 under 24...apparently Lisa Ronahan and Angela Carragher are, but I am not(not happy)  lady said $5.00 for you sir, but I tried to negotiate as my 25th bday was just yesterday....didn’t work!!!  As the walk begins I am always conscious of the height...not scared nut certainly conscious.  It is the same feeling I felt heading underground in the catacombs the less time I was here as I traveled underground.  No worries I can make it up!!
     WE are having a blast here on the first level and we can’t believe the view.  The kids are relishing every last minute that we can and I love it...these are the moments that I cherish as well.  These kids truly care about one another and its fun to see.  There are many personalities on this trip and the other groups travelling with us have remarked about how well they all get along....grateful for this beyond belief.
      AS we hit the 2nd level, the view just jumped up a notch...didn’t think it could.  All of a sudden the tears start to flow and of course the pictures.  The kids want to stay here forever but I have told them we only have another 30 minutes up here.  Alex and I are ont eh level with them, as the Vertigo twins(Kelly and Amanda) make it up, but it sounds that after a short stay head back down to solid ground.  MR. Eiffel you have done a wonderful job. AT 10 PM I tell them we need to leave....just then the twinkling light show starts and we are delayed by laughter, tears and picture taking once again...not sure if I am getting out of here if this keeps up.  No worries we don’t even need to go to bed...well yes they do but maybe not me(its 2:45 and I leave the hotel at 7:00)  only a few minutes before I drop.....I am awake again and it’s 6:00 Am and we need to get the kids up and moving.
     The trip has been a whirlwind and we have spent each day in constant motion.  There has been plenty of emotion, for the right reasons, and we have been forever joined together by a few commonalties that we will always have.  I hope that the kids always think of Europe and the year they went on a journey with friends and family(for some of us) and acquaintances for some.  I hope they share what they have been taught, not just about the veterans, but about the countries and the people they have visited.  The world has become a smaller place and for some these opportunities will never arise again.  
    Although the trip is not officially over we are coming to the end.  WE are heartbroken to leave Europe(some more than others) but we will forever be excited to come home to Canada....just that because it is our home.
    Like it or not I will have more to say once i get back to Canadian soil and get my wits about me again.  Let the joys of travel begin again!! Chat soon...
dc