Camp Journal
Mission Day: Operation Black Socks
16th July 2011
Corporal Smith, to Sargent Joe Public…….
The final challenge for the Camp Suisse Campers involved the navigation of 5 missions designed to test their skills in agility, balance, problem solving and team work. Campers were assigned to a task force (Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta or Echo) and prepared for their missions by camouflaging one another before being debriefed by Lt Col Ian in the briefing room.
Once they had been debriefed they were whisked off to complete their 5 missions by their Squadron Leaders. Champions of the Archery field were Squadron Bravo, who racked up an impressive number of bull’s-eyes. The whole team participated valiantly and managed to earn vital points towards their final score.
Testing the Squadrons hand/eye coordination came with exercises on the tennis court. Squadron Charlie were experts at grenade handling and the points kept stacking up thanks to the grit and determination of the Charlie’s.Vertical infiltration on the climbing wall was another mission with Alpha Squadron claiming vital points taking them top of the leader board.
This meant that Squadron Echo had to take to the wall knowing nothing less than a complete team performance would be sufficient. Difficult ascents were made to look like child’s play, with all members excelling in the tasks they faced. Individual speed climbs combined with great communication in blindfolded climbs saw Squadron Echo’s points score increase rapidly. When the half day scores were counted, the inevitable became reality and Squadron Echo secured a comprehensive lead to cries of…… “Who are we!?……. Team Echo!”
Testing the intelligence and team work of the Squadron required the completion of a propaganda film. The Delta Squadron worked well together, with a few budding Spielberg’s emerging from the team. Needless to say, the Delta Squadron took maximum points.
Alpha Squadron were full of energy in the afternoon and performed majestically on the mountain bike course, the chant of “We are the Champions” echoed through Torgon as the team navigated over balance beams and see-saws.
Tensions were high as the scores were counted and the Squadrons gathered for their final mission, building a bridge using simple materials, such as plastic cups, string, cardboard and sticky tape. Squadrons were permitted to trade point’s won earlier in the day for additional items. Delta Squadron’s performance in the final mission lifted them from 5th to 2nd, with the final standings being;
1. Bravo
2. Delta
3. Alpha
4. Charlie
5. Echo
A great completion of missions by all Squadrons.
Over and out Sargent.….
Session 1 draws to a close
The campers arrived by car, train and plane,
They came from all over, even from Spain,
Luggage unpacked, it was time for fun,
Maybe some football under the sun.
Red or Yellow, Green, White or Blue,
The moment of truth, which colour are you?
After dinner, we were ready for bed,
But no-one could wait for the adventure ahead.
Tennis, rounder’s and basketball,
Archery, hiking and a climbing wall,
Around the centre, there’s loads to do,
Just look through the window and check out the view!
Hop on the coach for trips far and wide,
A day at the Aqua Parc to try out the slides,
And off to the Glacier, go huskies go,
An Alpine roller coaster, definitely not slow!
Parc Adventure, shoot down a zip wire,
And singing in France around the camp fire,
Back for the Olympics, who’s going to win?
I doubt it’s the staff, their chances look thin!
Thursday morning and mission day was here,
Into our squadrons we had nothing to fear,
Soldiers assemble, war paint on,
Chants at the ready, the challenge has begun!
“Guten tag”, “Bonjour”, “Hola”,
Here at Camp Suisse, the language talent goes far
Now’s where’s the DJ? We hear you shout,
It’s disco time, get those dance moves out!
Before we knew it, it was departure day,
Parents arrived and we’re off and away,
Laughter, hugs and even a tear,
But don’t you worry, we’ll see you next year!!!
Aqua Parc & Montreux
14th July 2011
As the rain came down over Camp Suisse, our spirits were certainly not dampened as the Greens and Yellows headed to the biggest indoor waterpark in Europe!
The Aqua Parc certainly did not disappoint; the adrenaline was pumping after endless rides certainly not for the faint-hearted. For a relaxing break, campers chilled out on the lazy river and in the wave pool before braving the rapid slides once again. Several hours later, having finally exhausted everything the Aqua Parc had to offer (including the waffle and popcorn stalls!), it was back on the bus for a trip to Montreux’s world renowned Jazz Festival!
Campers enjoyed a relaxed stroll along the banks of beautiful Lake Geneva, browsing in the stalls and listening to the music blasting out over the lake. The campers soaked up the electric atmosphere and filled the streets of Montreux with excitable laughter. Many purchased interesting souvenirs from the stalls and everyone took advantage of the fantastic selection of international cuisine on offer. It was back to camp for a late dinner and then to bed for our campers after an action packed day. A swinging day was had by all!
International Camp Suisse Olympics
13th July 2011
Today the Olympic torch passed through Torgon on its way to London 2012, just in time for the Annual Camp Suisse Olympics. Teams representing twelve nations of the world battled over eight different events for the coveted Camp Suisse Gold Medal and accompanying chocolate!
Teams were mixed across the camp so that all ages were represented in each country. The teams started by learning about their country and applying necessary country themed war paint before the opening ceremony.
Each team paraded in front of the adoring crowd whilst their national anthem echoed throughout the Alps. And then the games commenced with the lighting of the Olympic Torch.
Countries went face to face with another, across six initial disciplines including: Egg and Spoon, Tug of War, Water Carry, Shoe Relay, Obstacle Course and Three Legged Race.
The athletes had to demonstrate agility, power, endurance and speed in order to gain as many points as possible before the evening finale. Whilst carrying out these highly technical sports, each team remembered the core Camp Suisse theme of teambuilding and came up with a country song which was scored by our esteemed judges. Australia excelled in the creative aspect of the day and boosted their points tally and team moral equally.
Following a pit-stop dinner during which the athletes refuelled, the finale tested the athlete’s linguistic skills in a mass game of Scrabble! Teams used their wide vocabularies from across the world to spell words in any of the Camp Suisse taught languages.
It was a tense game as the day’s front runner Spain was dramatically overtaken on the home straight by Russia. In the final play Spain could not pull back their earlier successes and the final winner was indeed Russia. Congratulations to all the athletes – now time for some well earned rest before another day of fun in the sun!
A view from above!
Today the Green group were given their first navigation experience, learning how to navigate using a map and grid references. After they all returned to base where some afternoon refreshments had been served, it was time to create some murals. All the groups found their creative side and some excellent work was produced. This evening Green group joined forces with the White and Yellows to practice for the up and coming Language Talent Show.
The White and Yellow groups started today’s activities with a session scaling the dizzy heights of the Camp Suisse climbing wall. Activity Leader Joe imparted his pearls of wisdom, gained through years of climbing and had the campers up to the top in no time!
After conquering the climbing wall it was time to navigate ourselves around Torgon using the skills learned during last week’s orienteering session.
Reds & Blues go camping
The long awaited camping trip finally arrived for the Red and Blue groups. To say that we were excited would be an understatement! After checking and double checking that everyone had packed what was asked we were driven a few minutes up the mountain to our starting point at La Bourri.
The hike to camp started with a rather steep climb, which lead to the kids moaning that they were tired after 5 minutes! However, once we had crossed over the border into France it was plain sailing downhill. Upon arrival at the camp site we assigned tents and played a game of ‘splat’ which helped us settle into our new homes.
Taff, one of the Activity team members took us all on a walk to the lake where he told us many stories including the one about the infamous brown trout!
As we made our way back to camp it was with great pleasure to see that the kitchen team had prepared a BBQ around a camp fire. The evening began with a few songs and jokes, followed by the traditional roasting of marshmallows. 
As it got dark the children started to tell some scary stories. Phil (Head of Blue group) saved the best story for last about a guy called ‘Chris Austin’ that would sometimes haunt the camp.
As the moon started to fill the clear sky, it was bedtime and the children headed to their new ‘rooms’ for a well deserved rest.
After a good nights sleep, and with a hearty breakfast inside us, we started our return walk with the sun rising over the mountains to our rendezvous point with our coach that would be taking us to Lake Geneva for some banana boating.
The weather was glorious as everyone took it in turns to ride the banana, with very few managing to stay on.
We returned back to camp, slightly soggy, sun kissed and rather smelly with great memories after a fantastic two days.
If you go down to the woods today…
9th July 2011
After a scenic hike through the beautiful Swiss Alps, across the border and into France, the excitable Green, White and Yellow groups arrived at their overnight camping destination.
The campers learned the art of wilderness survival as they pitched their tents, collected fire wood and diverted a herd of cows from the neighbouring field.
Following a hearty barbeque dinner, a relaxed evening stroll to the lake as the sun went down was just the ticket! Some lucky campers even managed to spot some wild trout in the crystal clear glacier waters. By the time darkness fell, a roaring fire was well on its way and for many the toasted marshmallows and chocolate banana boats were the highlight and perfect end to a wonderful day!
This morning we were greeted by glorious sunshine as we packed our kit away and headed back to camp in preparation for tomorrows International Olympic Event.
Blue group go off road
8th July 2011
Yet another action packed day for the blue group at International Camp Suisse. This morning’s language classes were buzzing with talent Show preparations as the halls were filled with Europop classics and theatrical role plays.
After refuelling at lunchtime, the blue group headed for the hills with their mountain bikes. Thanks to our great Activity Staff the blues were soon ready for action and were divided into two groups. The more adventurous of the group took a challenging route down the mountain back to base. The blue boys were as competitive as ever, accompanied by an adept Veronica. The rest of the group (including me) enjoyed a more leisurely ride and weren’t put off by the threat of rain.
The much anticipated Camp Suisse Casino is taking place tonight as the campers stack their chips in the hope of winning some Nogrots.
Until next time, over and out from the Blues.
Glacier & Villeneuve Pool
7th July 2011
Never seen snow before!? Afraid of dogs!? Attempting to ride the world’s highest alpine rollercoaster!?
Wanting to conquer a 3000m glacier!? All of this was achieved by lunchtime by all of the stars of the day – Red Group!
The beautiful husky dogs were extremely excitable and after a thrilling sledge ride we were able to stroke and cuddle them. After admiring the amazing scenery from the viewpoint we tackled the world’s highest alpine rollercoaster, at full speed and without using the brakes!
Spirits were high as we set off for Villenueve and Lake Geneva. Spectacular diving talents emerged as everyone was keen to follow their Group Leaders off the 4m and 7m diving boards into the lake – a scary prospect even for the bravest of staff.
The sun continued to shine as everyone enjoyed themselves relaxing by the pool. As time went by, more and more children faced their fears and leapted off the 7m diving board to the amazement of many watching from the pontoon.
All that was left was enough time to grab an icecream as we boarded the coach back to camp in anticipation of this evenings activity – the Talent Show!
Talent Show
Last night opened the doors to the debut of 2011 Talent Shows here at Camp Suisse to a roaring success. From the dazzling gymnasts of red group right through to the stunning piano rendition from the yellow group a plethora of talents were brought to the table here in Torgon.
Although nerves were running high amongst certain performers, the campers who did manage to brave the receptive crowd did not disappoint. Standing ovations were a plenty as the campers were treated to a vast range of talents (and the children most certainly showed up their staff counterparts!).
With the language talent show now less than a week away, as well as having two talent shows remaining, all that remains to be said is that the bar has been set exceptionally high. Will it continue? Roll on next Wednesday……
