Camp Journal
30th July 2019
Today, the Reds and Blues spent the first half of their morning in their language lessons, learning about different topics such as food, colours, and adjectives. Then, they set off to the forest for Brunch with Bear. This super fun activity involved the children learning to identify and forage for edible plants they could eat or stew. Back at camp, the children cooked up a delicious lunch of wood sorrel salad, with added protein of crickets and mealworms, washed down with a cup of spruce-cone tea.
Time for a proper hot lunch, and onto archery! The campers spent some time learning the correct technique and perfecting their aim, before they were able to hit the targets dead on! Maisy even got a bull’s eye! The campers then went into the woods for a game of Eagle Eye, which Larry fought off all the competition and won. The young campers loved joining the older groups for their BBQ dinner in the evening, and sang louder than anyone during the Camp Suisse yodelling session!
The Greens and Yellows woke up bright and early to get to Glacier 3000. After breakfast the yellows and Greens got on the bus and drove to the foot of Glacier 3000. They took two gondola rides to the top of the Glacier, where snow and cold temperatures met the campers. Luckily, it was a beautiful day and with the sun the temperature gradually warmed throughout the day. The campers enjoyed sledding, husky dog sledding, an exhilarating alpine roller coaster, and a walk between two peaks. It was a wonderful day, capped off with a cookout with the whole of camp at the near-by picnic area. The Yellows are excited for a day of rock-climbing and languages tomorrow!
29th July 2019
Today, the Reds and Blues spent the morning in their first language lessons. They met their classmates and started learning their chosen language, mainly educational games that helped engage the children and make them excited for the weeks ahead. In the afternoon, they went to the wonderful Labyrinth Adventure Park, which has a variety of different activities, such as a maze, giant slides, and massive swings. The campers’ overall favourites were the 30ft tall slides, and the many merry-go-rounds. The Reds and Blues played the day away, but were still full of excitement for the casino night this evening!
The Greens made good use of Camp Suisse’s indoor climbing wall today! They spent the morning discovering the different uses of climbing equipment, learning some technique from the experts, and playing games like drawing a tryptic masterpiece, and blindfolded climbing. Their favourite challenge, the Vertical Obstacle Course, was won by Team Luke, with an impressive 14 points, while Sinéad’s Team came close with 11.
The Yellows’ day began with a mountain biking session on the hills above Torgon. The campers got the chance to bike down several mountain bike tracks of varying difficulty, and even show off their skills on the rollers near camp.
After lunch, the Yellows and Greens met their language teachers and had their first classes. The Yellows then got ready to ghyll scramble – an activity involving walking through a crystal-clear stream near camp. Although the water was chilly, the yellows really enjoyed adventuring through the ghyll. The Greens, meanwhile, had a contest to design and construct their own bottle rockets! All the teams worked well together, and every bottle was able to fly. The Yellows and Greens finished the day with dinner and sports, ready for an early day tomorrow at the glacier!
28th July 2019
This morning, the campers woke up bright and early to prepare for their language quiz! This assessment will help the Camp Suisse language team to assign them to the most appropriate classes for their level of ability. This session, our campers are learning French, English, Spanish and German.
The Reds and Blues enjoyed the rest of their morning by playing games in the Patinoire, while the Greens and Yellows went on their first excursion, to the Aqua Parc! The slides and rides there gave hours of entertainment, and it was a lovely chance for the new campers to make new friends in a more informal setting. The Lazy River was a favourite for the campers, and everyone came home satisfied and happy.
After that they tucked into a hot lunch served in camp. After a hot lunch in camp, the Reds and Blues were full of energy and ready to attack the climbing wall. They spent the whole afternoon there, trying as many routes as they could and taking on different challenges. All the groups were glad of the chance to tuck into dinner at camp, before a relaxed evening of quizzes and sports.
27th July 2019
The Reds and Blues went on one of the most highly-anticipated excursions today, to the wonderful Cailler Chocolate Factory! The campers were absolutely awestruck during their tour of the factory, and especially enjoyed the Tasting Room, where they learned to be expert chocolate tasters. They ate as much chocolate as they liked, and took home as much as they could carry in their bags. The groups then travelled to the beautiful town of Gruyere, where the campers had lunch in a playground surrounded by the town walls. The children were excited to explore the Old Town, and Daria’s group even tried the fabulous fondue! After a great day out, the Reds and Blues were all excited to come back to Camp to get ready for prom.
The Greens and Yellows spent their last day in Camp, some finally getting to earn their stripes on the Mountain Biking Trails, while others worked up an appetite at the Archery Range. After lunch, the Greens and Yellows had a relaxing afternoon in the sun at the Camp Suisse Garden Party. Playing games and hanging out was the perfect end to a busy session, and allowed the campers to reflect on their favourite parts of camp and spend some chilled out time with their new friends. Although the wouldn’t let it show, the Greens and Yellows were more excited than anyone for the prom this evening. Dressed in their best, they enjoyed a lovely dinner before dancing their hearts out at the disco. A fantastic last day for all our campers!
26th July 2019
A busy day at camp today, as ‘goodbye’ had to be said to many of the wonderful Session 2 campers. Each and every one of them helped to make Session 2 really special, and it was with heavy hearts that the Camp Suisse staff brought them on planes, trains and automobiles to head home. However the joyful reunions with friends and family made up for this, and we can’t wait for them all to return next year!
The remaining campers were treated to a fun excursion to the swimming pool in Aigle, and everyone really enjoyed having a smaller and more intimate group to play and hang around with. They are all looking forward to meeting the new campers arriving tomorrow!
24th July 2019
This morning, the Reds and Blues woke up to a beautiful morning on the hills above Torgon. After breakfast, the campers participated in a lovely yoga session to wake up their bodies for the walk back, and stretch to recover from the hike the day before. The groups walked down the mountain on a new route, and made it down to Camp right on time for packing for the beach!
The Reds and Blues loved their trip to Le Bouveret Beach, the highlights being the beach, the pool, and the giant slide that landed you into the lake! The campers had lots of fun in the sun, and were happy to head home to get ready for the language Talent Show! Nerves picked up as the Talent Show drew closer, and after one last practise it was time for the main event! The campers were all stars, and their teachers are so proud of them all.
The Greens and Yellows also enjoyed a short morning yoga session after their breakfast on the shores of Lake Taney. The campers then walked a much shorter distance before being brought back to camp. Their hike down whetted their appetite for lunch at camp before they had their last language lessons. Part of this lesson focussed on preparing for this evening’s karaoke session, which happened after dinner. The Greens and Yellows sang their hearts out, and cheered each-other on during their performances.
23rd July 2019
Reds and Blues began their day with their final language lessons, which they spent preparing for the languages Talent Show on Wednesday. The performances range from role plays, to singing, to comedy acts. So far, the young campers have demonstrated an abundance of talent!
The Reds and Blues then began their preparations for their camping trip. Bags packed and campers fed, the Reds and Blues set off on their hike to Torgon Ski Club, where they spent the night. The Reds were given a little head start, and began their hike at Plan de Croix, up the hill from Torgon, while the mighty Blue group trekked the whole way from Camp to the Ski Club. Not only this, all the campers walked up the hill and crossed the border to France. Everyone enjoyed this challenging but exciting day, and were deservedly proud of themselves at the end of the day. A delicious BBQ dinner was followed by a lovely evening of songs, stories, and stuffed bananas at the campfire.
The Greens and Yellows also went on a grand adventure today, hiking 16km to Lake Taney. The 30 degree heat meant it wasn’t for the faint of heart, but they made it up in excellent time and were extremely glad of a dip in the cool waters of Lake Taney. All the campers were impressed by the stunning mountain lake, and the clear blue skies made it the perfect weather for relaxing in the sun. Once the Greens and Yellows were snugly roomed in the auberge, nested right on the shores of the lake, they enjoyed a delicious pasta dinner! The evening was capped off with all the campers sharing stories and singing songs round the campfire.
22nd July 2019
The centre was buzzing this morning, alive with the sounds of children singing, acting and dancing in preparation for the talent show later this week. The Reds and Blues are very excited to be able to perform for the Greens and Yellows, and show off their newly perfected language skills. After this, the campers were given the chance to meet Bear Gryll’s Australian cousin, Kangaroo Toaster, before adventuring into the woods to discover and sample edible plants. Lunch was followed by a chilled Art Jamming session, and a climbing session where all the campers tried hard and most were successful in making it to the top of the climbing wall.
The Greens went on one of the favourite excursions today, to Cailler Chocolate Factory and Gruyere town! The campers really enjoyed the museum, especially the tasting room where they got to try multitudes of different chocolates. Lots of the campers bought even more to take home as ‘presents’. After eating as much chocolate as they could manage, the Greens headed for Gruyeres, the city famous for the cheese of the same name, and where the Meringue were born. There, the campers treated themselves to even more food, relaxed around the beautiful town, before heading back to camp.
The Yellows were whisked away in the early hours of this morning, and gathered weary-eyed at the bottom of Glacier 3000. After two gondolas and countless chairlifts, the Yellows were walking to meet the husky dogs in the fresh snow. Taking it in turns to sled with the huskies, followed by some tobogganing down the powder, was the perfect activity in the cool mountain air. The peak walk finished off a busy day in the mountains, and the campers arrived home tired but happy.
21st July 2019
Another beautiful day in sunny Torgon! In the morning, the Reds and Blues came together to take part in an epic Tribal games day! The campers were split into tribes, and played different games in efforts to secure points for their teams. They also got creative with their tribal identity, pulling out the face paint and creating their own version of the Haka!
After lunch, the campers went in for their language lessons. In Margaux’s French class, the children learnt how to order food in a restaurant. All the classes have begun to prepare for the upcoming Camp Suisse talent show. The day ended with an egg drop competition, where the campers used all their physics knowledge to help their egg land safely when dropped from a height. The groups loved this activity and got really attached to their new egg-friends. Following some stiff competition, it was ultimately the Voosh team that took 1st place!
The Greens and Yellows, meanwhile, had a refreshing day in the sun! The day began with language lessons which saw most classes choosing their song or act for the language talent show on Wednesday. After languages, the campers headed down the valley to Le Bouveret Beach for a lovely afternoon on the shores of Lake Geneva. This is a beautiful spot on the lake, complete with a giant inflatable slide and ping pong tables. The Greens and Yellows returned for shower hour and then ended the day with a pizza dinner at a local Italian restaurant. The Greens are very excited to go to the Cailler Chocolate Factory tomorrow, while the Yellows are dreading the 6am Glacier start!
20th July 2019
All the campers started their day with their favourite activity of all- cleaning their rooms! After some fond farewells to departing campers, and some preparations to welcome new ones, the campers got ready for a full day of activities. The Greens and Yellows were given the choice earlier in the week to participate in either outdoor climbing, or the Olympics Day with the rest of camp. Choosing between such great activities was difficult, but all the campers were happy with their decision and had a really rewarding day. The outdoor climbers were pushed to their limits in the hot weather, but managed to scale to new heights on the crag.
The Olympians, meanwhile, spent the day representing their newly adopted countries in different events throughout the day. All the colour groups were represented on each team, and it was very special to see the campers working together to gain points and have a special day. In the end, Canada took home first prize, with Nigeria being awarded the Most Enthusiastic Team. Special mention was also given to the Republic of Ireland, the Olympic hosts.
