Eurotrip 2011, 40 students to Paris/Florence/Rome/Athens/5 days on Aegean

Re: Aegean cruise. Since you are going in March, you might consider spending time on the Peloponessean Peninsula instead
of the islands. You could see so many of the famous archeological sites, Nemea, Tyrns, Mycenae there.

Bookmarking in anticipation.

nukesafe, you beat me to it!

Looking forward to another epic journey, tC.

AA

Wow - fast replies.
HappyTrvlr - A really good point you make about the last 5 days in our excursion. I've been told that the Aegean cruise is not the warmest in March. Our student travellers know that. It will, however, be warmer than where we are from, I'm sure. To be totally honest with you, good as they are, I would imagine too many days of famous archeological sites on the peninsula might wear a bit thin on this group. The excitement of travelling on a 5 day cruise appears to be getting a good response. Our "cruise loop" includes stops at Kusadasi (Turkey), Rhodes, Crete and Santorini. I think we will choose the sound track to "Mama Mia" as our theme for the trip.

nukesafe and AnselmAdorne - great to see your voices again. We have already started the countdown. 488 days until we depart.

tC

I can't wait to hear the story of tis one! You write so well of all your adventures with kids and so observantly of the places and things you see. You are a class act and your students and adult chaperones are so lucky to have you planning this wonderful trip for them.

Sounds like a great plan. By the end the kids will be reay to relax.Good luck with your planning.Love the theme song!

Sounds like fun. Keep us updated...

Rome to Bari will make for a very long day. When I took the overnight ferry (Superfast II), they only went to Patras, not Athens. You might find it cheaper and much faster to take a cheap flight from Rome (Aegean Air?). You would use a full two days getting from Rome to Athens by bus/train/ferry.

>>When I took the overnight ferry (Superfast II), they only went to Patras, not Athens.<<

There's no such thing as a ferry from Bari to Athens. They will go to Patras or Igoumenitsa, then overland to Athens from there.

I agree with kybourbon , it is a long & not very interesting bus journey from Patras to Athens

It seems to me you won't be getting much out of your time in Greece. One night in Athens before the cruise and another night night beore your flight home will give you very little time for seeing the many wonderful sights of the city. You will spend a lot of that time checking in and out of hotels, and with transfers to/from the cruise ship and airport.

On the face of it a cruise sounds wonderful, but I wonder? After the long ferry ride from Bari, will you really want to get back on a ship again so soon? Check into how much time you will spend at each port on your 5-day cruise. Typically port calls are 6-12 hours, the rest of the time spent at sea. During March you won't be able to spend much time on deck soaking up sunshine. What entertainment does the cruise ship offer that will appeal to teenagers?

Personally I feel your time in Greece would be better spent if you based yourself in Athens with a trip to the Peloponnese. Perhaps the teens would be interested in a visit to Olympia, where the Olympic Games began, and where the flame was lit for your 2010 Winter Olympics in Canada.

I did the four or five day Agean Cruise a few years ago. I think it will be a good fit for a teen group. I agree (having lead a tour) that they won't be overjoyed with 8 hours a day of "ruins"

Also, my cruise had more on shore time then you might realize. It was what I referred to as a working cruise. They docked EARLY and excursions left EARLY!

irishface - You make me blush. Thanks for you kind comments. I certainly wouldn't be involved in these sort of expeditions if they weren't educational - but also a heck of a lot of fun.

HappyTrvlr and travelgirl2 - We will do our best to inform contributors on this board of our progress. The next 18 months or so are the "work" part. The fun starts when we board the bus heading towards the airport.

kybourbon - You are so right. Sometimes when I read your responses I think you can read my mind. We had considered a quick flight from Rome to Athens, but we've been told it is cheaper to take the coach and overnight ferry. You are right again about the ferry stop being Patras, not Athens. I tried to simplify things. I should know better than to do that on this board. One thing I didn't mention yet is that our early morning coach drive from Rome to Bari will include a stop at Pompeii. As a geographer and environmental educator I have always wanted to see Mt. Vesuvius. Ever since I was a little kid and saw the pictures of the "frozen humans" in the National Geographic I have wanted to visit Pompeii. I hope this aspect of our transfer works. This is the other reason we haven't really pushed for the flight from Rome to Athens.

jean253 - Yes, you are right. We have been warned this drive can be dull. We have planned a few stops along the way. We also know that our travellers will use this bus ride as a "nap session" since they may not have had much sleep on the ferry.

Heimdall - Thank you for your two posts. You are right about the ferry. You are also right about the amount of quality time we will have on land in Athens. It was a trade-off for me. We could have taken a three night cruise (instead of a four nights), but I wanted to visit the extra stops from the ship. I hope we will be able to visit a few of the most memorable spots in Athens, but we will have to see as the time gets closer what is actually "do-able". I am sure I will be asking advice from our Greek specialists. I have the actual itinerary for the Louis Cruise Lines (which we will use for the Aegean cruise) and the shore time varies depending on the stop. I know that the itin can change in the next 18 months, but it gives us a good idea what we will work with (hows that for alliteration?) As far as entertainment - that is not high on my list of worries. Based on the students who have provided a deposit - this group will entertain themselves. They are a super bunch. Your suggestion to focus on the Peloponnesse is duly noted and will be an excellent second choice if the cruise does not pan out. Interest in the Olympic games is growing in our area (the Olympic Torch Run goes through our town) However, the games may have become a distant memory in March 2011.

CarolA - Thanks for your input. It is nice to hear from a traveller who has done this type of excursion as a chaperone with a teen group. It is always hard to know the "right" choice to make when setting up a tour. I do appreciate your comment about the "working cruise". The first line in our promotional material sent home to parents/guardians includes the message that this educational excursion is not to be confused with a holiday or vacation.

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I am very pleased to tell everyone that we have received 43 non-refundable deposit cheques ($450 each) from students who are interested in attending. This exceeds the 40 we are able to take. And this is 18 months prior to departure. What a vote of confidence for the planners. Sadly, we will have to disappoint a number who would like to go - but they will be the first on the list for the next trip.

tC

I think I would have to squeeze in the extra three (perhaps dump some parents).

That's a very long day from Rome. It's about three hours from Rome to Pompeii and you will want to spend several hours in Pompeii. It's another three hours to Bari. Most of the ferries state their check-in is mandatory two hours before departure. I hope you plan to book quads for the students and not airseats. You should be able to get a group or youth discount.
http://www.superfast.com/site/content.asp?sel=291&loc=2

It looks like one of the new ships has dorms now. It appears to sleep 6.
http://www.superfast.com/site/content.asp?sel=343&loc=2&query=

Hi teacherCanada,

Best wishes for your student trip - it's obvious you have devoted a lot of time in planning, and your responses, while rejecting our suggestions, were charming.

If you are set on the cruise, recommend you reconsider kybourbon's suggestion to take the flight. You will avoid a lot of tedious travel, and gain an extra day at Athens in the bargain. Gaining a full day of sightseeing may well be worth the extra expense. True, you will miss Pompeii, but with a little luck the ruins of Akrotiri (another buried city) on Santorini will be reopened by then.

teacherCanada,
You have some very fortunate students!
I cannot even imagine the logistics of your trip! Kudos.
Our school has launched a Chinese exchange program but it is such a small school that it can only function every 2-3 years. On the other years trips are shorter- ie carribbean, central america, U.S.A. A trip to Greece was offered this year but with the US economy as bad as it is there were not enough takers- & you have 43 takers-Wow!

Just an update from my previous post. The "last day" to hand in deposit cheques was yesterday. We have received 60 deposit cheques from students who want to participate. Wow. We've never had such a great response. We are overjoyed that so many students want to travel with us ... and so many parents are willing to trust us.

What to do now? Well, we had predetermined we were going to stick very close to our maximum of 40 student travellers. Why? Logistics gets much more challenging once that number is surpassed. Getting everyone out of bed, eating meals at restaurants, dealing with tardiness etc. all seem to grow exponentially once numbers get over 35 or 40. It might also mean getting two coaches and difficulty getting appropriate accommodations.

There are two schools (both grades 9 - 12) involved in this trip and an attempt has been made to split involvement evenly. One school had 37 interested and the other school had 23 interested. We have decided to take mostly students presently in grades 11 and 12 with a smattering of grade 10's. (They will all be one year older next year.) How and what do we tell those who will not be eligible? There is another 4 day trip to Quebec City that we will encourage everyone to partake in. We will also create a waiting list in the event someone drops out of Eurotrip 2011. We will invite those who did not make the Eurotrip 2011 list to start submitting ideas and suggestions for the next trip (2012). We hope this will keep them enthusiastic and optimistic. It also gives them another year for fundraising and to save money.

kybourbon and Heimdall - Thanks for the links to Superfast. I'm glad they have 6 to a room now. That might cut our cost a little bit. I really sense your angst when you caution about the long day prior to the overnight ferry. I agree. It would be difficult. Heimdall, you provide additional sage advice to fly from Rome to Athens and skip the ferry. I will pursue that promptly and let our agents know that would be our preference. I know we would use the time more wisely in either Rome or Athens. We might still be able to visit Pompeii and Capri. Also, flying over the Adriatic would be a real treat. Thank you for your thoughts.

eyemom84 - Thank you for your comments. As trip planners, we were surprised (pleasantly) by the response from families and students. Realistically, this trip represents a commitment of over $5000 when spending money, passports, luggage etc. is piled on top of the cost to participate. In these weakened economic times we are pleased to have families see the value of international travel.

Please encourage the trip planners in your school to keep active. Lower cost (and shorter) trips still have great educational value. China is on my wish list (which also includes India and Peru).

Just want to supply an update on the situation. We had well over 70 students interested in this trip. It is hard to tell them "not this time" when we know would be such great travellers. I hope the "waiting year" will give them a chance for more maturity and also to save money for their trip.

We have created our application to travel for our Board of Trustees and hope to get approval for this trip by mid-December. Our school board is one of few that still encourages international educational trips like ours and we are very grateful for their support.

We have looked into the cost of a charter flight from Rome to Athens, but it is prohibitive ($40 000 US). We will focus on the more realistic options of (our already arranged) Superfast ferry and possibly a cheap flight from Rome to Athens. I would hate to miss Pompeii, but a wise wizard once told me "You can't always get what you waaaaaant."

We'll keep you updated as these pages turn.

tC

I believe the correct phrase is "Yew cain't alwayze git whut yew waont!"

brotherleelove2004 - The twang makes all the difference. I defer to your obvious wisdom and experience. Do you and Mick go back a long way?

tC

Have you considered contacting Aegean (or perhaps another budget airline) and booking a group? Most airlines have a group link on their website and are used to blocking out a big group of seats for tour groups.

kybourbon - Ooooh, Ooooooh. Great idea. I just checked Aegean Airlines for similar dates to our travel (but in 2010) and the per person fare for the flight is 33 Euro. This compares well to the 110 Euro (per 4 bedded room) on the Superfast ferry. This is an avenue we will pursue further. Thanks so much for the great lead. Fodor's rocks.

tC

All the way back to the beginning! Obviously you were there too!

Hi teacherCanada,

I'm glad to see you are making progress on finding a flight. Rome to Athens in three hours for €33 as opposed to 17 hours in a ferry for €110 is a no-brainer! And that doesn't even include the time and cost of getting by road from Rome to Bari and Patras to Athens.

I would like to correct kybourbon on one point, though - Aegean isn't a budget airline. It is a full service airline, with meals, drinks, etc all included in the ticket price. Aegean even has leather seats in coach class! You are now discovering what some of us already know - flying is sometimes cheaper than the ferries, and a whole lot quicker. That is true of domestic routes within Greece as well as the international ones.

Well, after a gap of about seven weeks there are a few updates I would like to share. We have expanded our student numbers to 42. We think this is about the maximum we can safely handle on a trip of this nature.

Our next challenge is to find willing and appropriate adult chaperones to travel with us. We are required (school board rules) to take at least 3 more adults. We will try to take four. In order to keep the costs for students at as low a level as possible, adult chaperones pay the same rate as students. We use whatever financial benefit we get from this to reduce overall costs for the group. The two lead chaperones (of which I am one) have our travel costs covered. We justify this because we ultimately have all the responsibility for the safety of our group. The other adult chaperones provide logistical and emotional support to our travellers. Traditionally we have hesitated to take parents of students for a few reasons. They can unknowingly interfere with lead chaperone decisions and they can unknowingly impact how their child behaves. We look for adults in the community who are willing to pay to travel with a group like this.

There tend to be more females than males willing to chaperone. At this stage we have confirmed two (one man and one woman) who have accepted the task.

Our itinerary is starting to flesh out quite nicely. We have a few surprises for the group in Paris. I am trying to arrange a patisserie tour or cooking school (these ideas were from Fodor's), a sewer tour and the Fat Tire Bike Tour. While we are travelling between Florence and Rome (by coach) I hope we can spend an afternoon at a spa. I love the idea of a mud bath.

Heimdall and kybourbon - We are actively pursuing the flight from Rome to Athens (as opposed to the ferry) and I think our agent is accepting your logic. In the end, the decision will be a balance of the cost of the flight vs. the time spent for the ferry transfer. It all boils down to $$ and time. Two of the things that are critical when planning travel.

I may have to miss Pompeii this time - but that just provides impetus for another trip.

Everyone planning to be a part of Eurotrip 2011 is excited. Our fundraising machine has started. The countdown is on!

tC

Keep in mind luggage restrictions/fees if you use a budget airline.

If you do ferry, ask for a tour of the bridge for your group.

I'm sure our school boards wouldn't allow random adults from the community to go as chaperones - too much legal liability. All our school volunteers are fingerprinted/background checked and have been for over 20 years.

kybourbon - Once more, thanks for the great advice. Our adult chaperones, if they are not school board employees (such as educational assistants or office professionals) need to complete and pass a criminal record check done by the Ontario Provincial Police and run through the national police data base to participate as a chaperone. As organizers, we are also very careful about who we approach to be a chaperone.

Your thoughts about baggage restrictions are very important. We tell all participants they are only allowed 1 bag and 1 carry on when we depart. By this stage of the trip, I am sure some will have done enough shopping to warrant a second suitcase. I'll have to keep my eyes on this aspect.

Well, it's getting closer to one year prior to departure (actually 367 days, but who is counting). Our scheduled departure date is March 10, 2011. We are looking forward to hearing from our agent soon when he starts making initial inquiries about our flights.

Further to kybourbon's and Heimdall's suggestions we have now shifted our thoughts towards the flight from Rome to Athens rather than the overnight ferry. It is all a function of cost, but things look good at the present time.

Our students (and their parents) have started the fundraising process. We will have about 12- 14 different activities over the next 11 months to allow students to subsidize their costs. Parents have taken a lead role in organizing these activities, but lead chaperones are always involved.

Things are well in hand for Eurotrip 2011. This leaves me with a bit of spare time and 30 students who want to travel in May 2012. I have asked a number of them where they would like to go. Many have suggested Paris, then somewhere warm. I am thinking that after 4 days in Paris we could travel to the south of Spain with a flip across to Morocco for a day or two. The trip in total would be about 12 - 13 days (maybe less). Any thoughts?

I'll provide updates for everyone as relevant events occur.

tC

I just wanted to say "hello" from Northern California, teacherCanada, and that I am so looking forward to your next trip report even if it is a year away!

Some thoughts that I have if I was a parent: my choice for chaperones would definitely be other teachers. They have the experience of dealing with students. After that, I would prefer parents of students rather than "someone from the community". The times that my boys traveled on student trips there were other teachers and some parents. The teacher in charge was quite clear up front about the responsibilities and there were never any problems with taking parents.
My other thought is that if I were a parent paying for this trip there is much more that I would rather my child do/see than spending time at a spa. Trips are expensive and it is a once in a lifetime for many to see the treasures of Europe. They can go to a spa (if they want) at home.

Lynnaustin - what great comments - and ones that certainly deserve a response. It is interesting for me to hear others comments and in retrospect review what I have said and how it can be interpreted.

The question about chaperones is a good example. Our school board uses on-call teachers to cover teaching assignments for teachers who are absent due to field trips. It is difficult in a smaller school to take more than one teacher out of class for an extended period of time (in this case 7 teaching days). Hence, our approach is to ask non-teachers. This doesn't mean it never happens, just infrequently.

Parents can sometimes be wonderful chaperones. They are, after all, the parents of teenagers and can relate to many of the concerns and issues a teenaged traveller might face. One of the reasons we offer international educational excursions is to provide a measure of independence to students and to have them develop decision-making skills. Sometimes, having parents along doesn't promote those ideas (something like taking your parents to summer camp). Parents can also serve as a second level of authority and we have had situations where a student has asked a lead chaperone for permission, been refused, then gone to a parent with the same question and been given approval. We have resolved a great deal of those issues by asking parents to direct any questions to lead chaperones. It seems this is what has happened in your case too.

One further predicament we find ourselves in with parents is the number who want to participate. It is a great compliment to us, but we have over 20 parents who have asked to chaperone our group. How can we fairly choose?

The phrase "someone from the community" is a bit misleading and this is my fault. We are a small community and no one has ever chaperoned on one of our trips without a direct connection to the school or one of the lead chaperones. Chaperones have been local business people or cafeteria staff or school board employees (but not teachers). We don't advertise for chaperones in the local paper. Each non-school board employee must complete a police check and meet school staff. Chaperones on our trips pay the full rate - the same as student participants. They must also either take their holidays during the trip time (or take time off without pay).

I also take responsibility for the misinterpretation of the spa visit. Our educational excursions do not resemble a holiday or vacation. Students have academic responsibilities. They learn massive amounts by using their five senses in all our locations. The spa visit is tied to the physical geography curriculum with the geothermal heating aspect on the tectonic plates found in the earthquake zones within Italy. Now, please don't think that school is all work and no play. I have found that if students are engaged in real life while exploring situations and have fun while doing it, they learn twice as much as in the classroom. The spa visit is also a bit of a reward for the gruelling days we will have experienced in Florence and will experience in Rome.

Thanks for your comments. I look forward to hearing from you again.

tC

Hi TC. So glad to hear your getting a trip together for the kids. And it sounds like an AWESOME one!

I'm actually coming off major depression from missing a trip with our students to Europe 2010. They just got home from doing the Barcelona, Nice, Monaco, Florence, Pisa, Montacantini and Rome. I was devastated when they left. I just couldn't come up with the 3000.00 for the trip this time around. They actually had about 17 people drop out of the trip because of finances. Detroit/Michigan has been very hard hit. I was hoping till the very end they would need a last minute Chaperone. No such luck.

I did do that same trip with them about 4 years ago, but I so wanted to go. I had every intention of going but as the date got closer, business just got worse. Oh, well. I just used whatever monies I had been saving towards a trip to Paris this coming Oct.

I'm looking forward to watching this post.

Mamaw

According to my Thomas Cook Euro Train/Ferry Timetable, Rome to Bari train takes 4 hrs., ferry Bari/Brindisi to Patra is another 14-16 hr trip (and if you take the overnight ferry you see nothing)....then it is another 4 hrs bus/train overland Patra-Athens...you do the math...a solid 24 hrs on the road for your caravan? I would suggest 3 base camps for your assault on Europe...1) Paris, 2)Rome or Florence (they are only 1.5 hrs apart on the Eurostar express, so you could commute to/from either one), and 3) Athens.....this will minimise travel and maximise sightseeing. I would also recommend that for 40 people you hire a bus in Italy to provide door-to-door service Rome-Florence-Rome, the Italians do that very well.
And heed the advice of your good friends above about flying Rome- Athens. For April 2010 Olympic Airways will fly you o/w from FCO to ATH for $122....and with 40 kids you will get a great group discount (and with the bus you are going to hire in Rome you will get transportation from hotel to airport!)
dolce far niente!
(and why don't you ask Olympic to quote you a group rate via NYC that would include Athens-Paris-Rome-Athens?)

Mamaw - Great to see your voice again. I know how much you enjoy travelling with the youth in your area. Your passion is obvious in the records you have put on Fodor's. From the itinerary listed it sounds like their most recent trip would have been wonderful. Detroit has really been hit with a series of thumps in the past while. I know you have been drawing on your inner strength to get you through what must be very tough times. I am pleased you are looking forward to Paris in the fall. I bet you'll have a wonderful time.

scotty09 - You have done a great job of summarizing the real life choices our group faces in the Rome to Athens leg. The per person cost to fly at $122 is a bit rich, but as you say, I am sure our travel agent can work on that number. We now number 48 travellers (42 students and 6 grown-ups), so should be eligible for some excellent discounts. I will most certainly pass on your suggestion to fly with Olympic. Our top wish is to fly from (and return to) Toronto. Any flights with a connection through the U.S.A. raise the potential for delays and extra security stations that we might avoid if we can sidestep the U.S. We would, however, entertain the idea of flying out of Buffalo or Detroit if it was to our advantage financially. We trust (yes, we really do) our travel agent to look at all scenarios and choose the one that best balances time and cost.

Thank you both for your encouragement. In one year today we will be floating down the Seine on our Bateaux Mouche cruise.

tC

Dear teach, I am intrigued enough by the challenge of moving 48 Canadians over long distances economically/efficiently (there's a joke in there somewhere!), that I have done some more research. My Olympic suggestion has a snag in that they do fly from YYZ to ATH but everything goes via JFK. Using a dummy date of late April 2010 I got some horrendous quotes of +/- $2000 to get you from YYZ to ATH. Best quote so far is Air Canada from YYZ to CDG (your first stop, right?)of $871 per individual (much lower for a group)
You should also know that there are religious organizations in Italy (convents, abbeys, etc.) that often offer inexpensive dormitory accomms. for groups like yours.In Florence, for example, Suore Francescane Missionarie Di Maria, Piazza del Carmine, 21, Firenze, is one such place and Google will find you many more.
On a pedagogical note, I don't know what courses you teach at your school, but student involvement in a planning project like this would teach wonderful lessons in logistics, math, software programming, macroeconomics, geography, etc. Since you just had the Olympics in Vancouver, you ought to consider inviting one the organizers to speak at your school.

scotty09 - There are more than a few jokes attached to the concept of moving a herd of Canadians through Europe. Thanks for taking the time to check out potential air connections for our group. I do hesitate to fly through the U.S. due to security and delay concerns that we may well avoid if we stay within Canada for our departure/return. As far as accommodations in our various cities go, the chaperone team likes to offer a variety to our student travellers. In at least once city (probably Paris) we will stay in a youth hostel or similar. Why? Well in the coming years when these wonderful students return to Europe on their own, they need to have a least one hostel stay under their belts. They won't be staying in three star hotels (they couldn't afford it). Kybourbon and brotherleelove have been supportive in finding convents for us in Florence and Rome. We are certainly considering these for cost reasons, but also for experiential purposes.

The students are involved minimally in the planning process, but are certainly kept abreast of the logistical issues, cost issues and other items we can relate to the curriculum. It would be challenging indeed to get an Olympics organizer to come to the school. I think they are still basking in the wonderful successes in Vancouver. I hope you enjoyed the Olympics.

tC

Bookmarking

Well, it's time for an update for those who are still interested in seeing how this saga proceeds. We are about 129 days prior to departure and nearly everything about this educational excursion is coming up roses. There are 41 students and 7 adults (including me) participating. Our travel agency has really done an excellent job for us to date. There have been a few miscommunications between us and them, but without exception they have "taken the high road" and met our needs.

We were originally scheduled to depart on a Thursday, but somehow the flights were booked for Wednesday. Sadly, (tongue in cheek here) this required us to stay an extra day in Paris. We gladly took advantage of this miscommunication. Now we would have 4 days/ 3 nights in Paris instead of 3/2. This gives us much more flexibility for our planning. Our time in Paris will be energizing. We are staying in a youth hostel in the Latin Quarter. This is our choice and we are very excited about the location. Once we leave Paris each of the following destinations is new to me.

On the Sunday evening we board the overnight train (we get couchettes) heading towards Florence. We have been told our two days in Florence will be wonderful and I am really looking forward to what we will see there.

On Wednesday morning we board our charter coach for a day long drive to Rome. We will be stopping at a few places on the way for some excitement and culture.

Rome promises to be a highlight. On the Thursday we take a day-long flip to Pompeii, one destination I really want to absorb. The other two days we tour Rome. We stay in a well-located monastery while in Rome.

Thanks to the sage advice of kybourbon, Heimdall, scotty09 and others we convinced the travel agents that the flight from Rome to Athens was integral to the "flow" of the trip. We are booked on Aegean Air on late Saturday afternoon. This 2 hour flight saves us about 28 hours of travel (coach/ferry/coach) and this allowed us to gain our "Pompeii day". Once in Athens we have 2 nights in a hotel before boarding our 4 night cruise around the Aegean Sea visiting Kusadasi, Rhodes, Crete, Santorini and two other ports.

Upon our return to Athens (early Friday) we have that last day for sightseeing, souvenir purchases and a farewell, culture based dinner. We depart Saturday for a connecting flight in Frankfurt and home to Canada.

In total we are away 18 days - certainly the longest student expedition I have been a part of.

Our group consists of 15 guys and 26 girls. There are two male chaperones and 5 female chaperones. For the first time on our Eurotrips, 2 of the chaperones are parents of participants. Both are Registered Nurses working in Emergency rooms at local hospitals. I hope their presence will not be needed for their medical backgrounds, but they may allow other parents to worry less.

Every participant (including chaperones) has submitted over $3000 toward the $4200 cost to participate. Every participant (including chaperones) has demonstrated they have a valid passport and copies of pages 2 and 3 have been sent away to the travel agency for ticketing and insurance purposes.

We do have a few fundraising activities left. A big community "Turkey Dinner" is coming in a few weeks. We feed about 350 people a sumptuous dinner in one evening. This event can generate up to $3000 which is split between participants based on the hours of work they contribute.

All in all, this overseas excursion is looking to be the best one ever. Many thanks to so many Fodorites for their thoughts, suggestions and trip reports that I have used to prepare our itinerary.

tC

Hi teacherCanada,

Thanks for the update.

What a lot of work you have done! It sounds like the makings of a wonderful trip, and I'm happy for you that the day saved with the Aegean flight will enable you to visit Pompeii. Keep the updates coming, and I look forward to reading your trip report next year.

What monastery/convent are you using in Rome?

Make sure everyone knows the luggage restrictions for Aegean, especially the hand luggage.

>>>Economy class

Baggage

Each passenger may carry baggage weighing up to 20 kilos on all domestic and international flights, to be handed over at check-in. Infants (0 – 2 years old) have a baggage allowance of up to 10 kilos and one fold-up, collapsible stroller.

Hand luggage

Each passenger may carry on board the plane 1 item of hand luggage, weighing no more than 8 kilos and measuring no more than 55cm in length x 40cm in height x 20cm in width.

Excess baggage charges

On domestic flights, passengers will be charged €2 for each kilo over the appropriate limit. On international flights the charge for each excess kilo will be equivalent to 1.5% of the official IATA fare. For more information, please contact our reservations department.

Thanks for the update. It sounds like a wonderful trip. As always, I will be looking forward to your trip report.

What lucky students!! It's amazing that you have been able to put a trip together for this long for so little $$. Kudos. Are you flying open jaw from Toronto to Paris and then Athens to Toronto??

I'm in Buffalo and may look at Toronto for our flight if less $$. What airline are you using if you don't mind my asking?? Our route will be different. We need to get to Cairo and then returning from Athens.

chris45ny - thanks, for the encouragement. We fly from Toronto to Paris with a 1.5 hour stop in Montreal. This glitch is due to the travel agency missing earlier flights that would have met our needs better. This is the best we could do instead of a direct, non-stop Toronto to Paris. .... but, it is certainly something we can live with. This flight is with Air Canada.

Our second flight is Rome to Athens via Aegean Air.

Our return flight is from Athens to Frankfurt on Lufthansa. Our final leg home from Frankfurt to Toronto is with Air Canada. I believe Air Canada and Lufthansa codeshare which makes all this easier for them.

When we travelled to Cairo in 2005 and 2009 we flew to Cairo via Frankfurt, but I am sure it is possible to make the connection you would like to see happen. Are you travelling with a school group?

Actually, the price per student is less than $4200, but we add on an additional amount that everyone contributes to for our "group fund" which pays for bussing to and from our home town to Toronto airport, some group lunches, special surprises (that I can't tell anyone about yet) and some tipping for guides. I don't like going back to students with additional costs for these things, so we just add on an amount at the beginning, expecting extra costs to hit us later.

tC

kybourbon - thanks for your message and caution about luggage on Aegean Airlines. We try so hard to have our participants learn the lessons about packing light. Maybe with the financial penalties from Aegean Air they will listen more closely.

Our itinerary has us scheduled for the Monastery Casa Ferie San Giuseppe in Rome. I found it on Googlemaps and it is right beside the river and what looks like a pedestrian bridge. I am pleased with the central location. I think staying in a monastery will add another level of excitement and intrigue to participants. I haven't looked to see if there are any restrictions on access to the rooms or a curfew, but we will certainly try to adapt to their protocols.

tC

Yes, a good location, just a short walk across the river from Campo di Fiori and Piazza Navona. I think it was a former convent (still listed on the Italian Tourist Board under housing/religious institute, but no order listed so I'm not sure you will see any nuns. They don't list a curfew on the tourist board site (convents with curfews usually list them on there). I hope you got a good group rate as they have increased their rates quite a bit in the last year.
http://www.060608.it/en/accoglienza/dormire/case-per-ferie-istituti-religiosi/casa-san-giuseppe.html

You should be able to walk some places or if your group has bus passes there are trams, electric buses and other buses from there to the main sites. These transport maps are slow to load, but the tram map (linee tranviarie) and the electric bus map (linee elettriche) might be useful if you plan to use public transportation. The Roma Centro map is also good for regular bus lines, but it's really slow to load and you have to zoom multiple times.
http://www.atac.roma.it/index.asp?p=18

kybourbon - you are a gem. Thanks so much. I'm not sure about the rate since we don't see that information - but we are pleased with our rate per student that the travel company is charging. They did mention that it was no cheaper than staying at a hotel - but I think that may be posturing on their part.

tC

teacherCanada-Thanks for sharing your flight info. Alas, I'm a retired teacher-first grade so never any interesting field trips for me!!! My daughter teaches high school history in Portland, Oregon. I'm going to tell her about your amazing trip. Don't know if her school system would allow the kind of trip you're doing. You're lucky your district does. Hope these students will appreciate how lucky they are. Smart thinking about just adding in extra for any extras that may pop up. You must be super organized. I'm getting some weird looks from friends about my researching/planning as our trip doesn't take place until mid May 2011. I like to plan ahead!! Have a wonderful and safe journey!!

Chris, - Don't feel odd about planning now. We booked our apartment in Paris for our May trip almost a year ahead. Some of the good ones go really early.

chris45ny - sometimes planning the trip is nearly as exciting as travelling. I have already planned our trip for March 2012 to Morocco and Spain. It has been sent to 7 travel professionals and I am waiting to see how they respond and how much they will charge us to organize the trip. We start planning our trips 2 years prior to departure.

Planning ahead is an excellent use of your time.

tC

nukesafe and teacherCanada-Thanks-I feel better now!! You're right about the apts. The one we were interested in for Rome was already booked for a year!! The good ones go fast. The planning is exciting. I enjoy reading about the places I'm thinking about visiting-the history, culture, etc.-even the food!!!

tC-Guess when you're taking a large group, you have to plan well ahead-the logistics from getting from place to place must be mind-boggling! Morocco and Spain-how exciting!! You must be the most popular teacher in your school!

Well, we are 63 days prior to departure. We've had one female student withdraw from the trip due to medical reasons. She is pursuing the cancelation insurance to have her payments returned. We are actively seeking an appropriate female replacment for her, but it is not easy. Asking someone to fork over $4000 in such a short time puts a strain on the finances of most families. We are sorry to lose that student, but hopeful we will get another wonderful student traveller to replace her.

Our chaperone team (7 adults) meets this week for dinner to get to know each other better, to review some of the protocols for the trip and provide an opportunity to ask questions. Three chaperones are teachers (including me), the other four are community members, two of whom are parents of student travellers. Only the two lead chaperones are active in the trip planning, so there is a real need to keep the other adults informed and up to date.

In the next day or so we will be ordering our trip sweatshirts. Everyone in our group receives a black, full-zippered hoodie with Canada embroidered on the front and Eurotrip 2011 embroidered at bum level on the back. On one sleeve you find our names embroidered, on the other, the 12 stars symbolic of the European Union. If you see us anywhere - please introduce yourself! We are also supplying two t shirts to each traveller. One is black in colour and has a map of our travels on the front with our itinerary on the back. The other t shirt is white with bright blue screening (symbolic of the colours of the Greek flag). On the front is the route we will follow in Greece and on the back are the words GREEK WEEK and a brief itinerary of our 7 days in that wonderful country.

I need to acknowledge the fine support I have received from Fodorites as we have worked through the planning of this trip over the past 16 months. Thank you to each and every one of you. This educational excursion has become much better because of you and your suggestions.

I will provide a few more updates as we get closer to our departure date.

tC

Forget the update -- send me one of those hoodies!!

Ah, travelerjan, these hoodies are the mark of a truly adventurous traveller. They must be earned. Are you up for it? Can you spend 18 days travelling with 40 wonderful (but occasionally rowdy and fun-loving) teenagers? By the way, they cost $62 Canadian (which is about $64 US at the latest exchange rates!). If you ever see a sweatshirt like that, ask the wearer to intoduce you to Mr. C.

tC

wow - I can't believe its here already! I remembered reading (with pleasure) the Egypt trip report.

I was so impressed with the coordination and tactics you have honed and used over the years. What a great experience and I bet your travelers use this experience as one to springboard themselves into further international travel.

A few things:
- do the kids still chose a topic and do an in-depth study of it before the trip for presenting on the trip ?

I can't wait to hear about the "surprises". I'm a big fan of Paris - I think they will love the Fat Tire Bike Tour. Have you done that before ? If you haven't, they will stop for about an hour in the middle of the tour at one of the cafes in the Tuileries. It is a break for a snack, a beer, or an ice cream... but be prepared for both the cost aspect as well as the logistics of that. The kids don't 'have' to sit down, they could walk in the Tuileries instead, but obviously, knowing in advance how to handle it is critical for you.

We did 2 private tours in Paris - with paris muse. They were great! "How Buildings Can Talk" - walking tour from the Place des Vosges to Notre Dame and a Louvre scavenger tour. It probably isn't in your budget or time schedule, but I would recommend either.

Do you have Berthillon or Amorino built into the budget in Paris ? It would be fun to have both and have a running taste test going !

can't wait!

Hi Surfmom. It is nice to connect with you again. I have always been impressed with our student travellers, how well they adapt and behave. This group of 40 is absolutely incredible. They are positive, encouraging and responsible. All I need to do now is ensure the chaperones behave the same way!

Yes, each student will be completing an "Ask the Expert" topic wherein they become the resident expert on one aspect of our time away. They prepare a 5 - 7 minute presentation which is given to the group while we wait for flights, have breakfast, ride on a coach or at our evening group sessions. This is rewarding because the student researches a topic then gets to actually visit and introduce it to our group. In my mind this is what travel education is built on.

You might be remembering our 2008 Eurotrip when the group did the Fat Tire Bike trip in the afternoon. We had so much fun. We do have a few surprises up our sleeves - but I can't divulge them just yet ... but one involves water.

We are staying at the BVJ youth hostel in Paris, located only about 300 m from Notre Dame on the left bank. Do you think we will have time for a walk to Ile St. Louis to visit Berthillon and/or Amorino? I certainly think we can squeeze it in ... maybe daily, maybe morning and evening, maybe every hour on the hour. I sure hope we get some.

I have heard of the paris muse tours and the one about "How Buildings Talk" sounds incredibly interesting. I will do some research. Our itinerary is already established, but because this is a custom tour and we don't have to answer to any travel company for our decisions, we do have some flexibility.

We are hosting the chaperone team for dinner tonight - so I had better clean up the house and get things in order.

tC

25 days until we depart. I must say that nearly every aspect of this educational excursion is coming together very nicely. There have been a few headaches and upsets, but the two co-lead chaperones are really comfortable with where we sit 25 days prior to departure.

Our black hoodie sweatshirts and two t shirts have arrived and they look great! They will be distributed next Wednesday (3 weeks prior to departure) at the parent/guardian/participant meeting. This meeting is used to provide last minute information to travellers and their parents. It is also when parents sign a form (subsequently notarized) that provides lead chaperones with the legal authority to take minor children (our students) across an international border. Besides that document, the paperwork for group travel is staggering, The travel agency, school and school board each have their own requirements.

The chaperone team has met twice for several hours each time to discuss all aspects of this trip. We are blessed with a wonderful group of positive adults who truly want to provide the youth with a great experience.

Our itinerary is wonderful. Our travel agency has done a 'fantasmic' job knitting together nearly all of our unusual requests. It's hard to believe they have met so many of our wishes.

This is a simple version of our itinerary: Depart Wednesday, March 9. Paris for 4 days, 3 nights (youth hostel). Night train (TGV) from Paris to Florence. 2 nights in Florence (hotel). Coach from Florence to Rome. 3 Nights in Rome (monastery) which includes a day trip by coach to Pompeii. Quick afternoon flight from Rome to Athens. 2 night in Athens (hotel) then board our cruise ship for a 4 night/5 day loop around the Aegean Sea. We stop at Mykonos, Kusadasi, Patmos, Rhodes, Crete and Santorini. One last night in Athens, then a long, tiring flight home via Frankfurt to Canada.

The next few weeks are bound to be busy - but this trip owes much of its planning success to the support and suggestions of the Fodorite community. I'll try to answer any questions you might have.

tC

I do not understand why this thread is also tagged "Turkey"???? when it includes one cruise ship stop in a small insignificant Turkish resort town.

tC, thanks for the update. I'm looking forward to reading your report about the trip and especially the students' reactions to all the wonderful places on the itinerary. Trains, busses, planes, and cruise ship--this will be an experience. Thanks for the details--it brings the trip to life.

<< I do not understand why this thread is also tagged "Turkey"???? when it includes one cruise ship stop in a small insignificant Turkish resort town. >>

It could be because Kusadasi is the port for Ephesus.

Adrienne, OK, so, as you put it, members, interested in information about traveling to and in Turkey, should make the inference that a cruise ship stop in a small town could involve a visit to a historic site and that inference will help anyone else planning to visit Turkey.

Having followed this thread from the beginning, i believe that it would have been better to include it in Fodors Lounge.

RThe preparation and the organization that went into the tour is astonishing. It was exciting reading it. There is also some useful information for future student groups with tight budgets. However. tagging it with the countries, especially Greece and Turkey has no purpose, because there is absolutely no information on what they expect to do in these countries.

Still, i am looking forward to the Trip Report and i am hoping that it will be posted on the lounge, where more people could possibly enjoy the narrative.

Otherchelebi,

Sorry to disagree, but I think this post is properly placed. I, for one, almost never look into the lounge. I think few real travelers would see, much less read this thread on the lounge. I find the Lounge mostly full of discussions about anything but travel, and inhabited by opinionated and argumentative nit pickers. From your post above, I see you fit this characterization.

Otherchelabi,
Click on Teacher Canada's name and you'll see that she will follow up with a trip report offering useful infomation on the places they visit.. She has taken several student groups abroad in the past. I give her a lot fo credit for taking this on, something these students will remember for the rest of their lives.

otherchelebi - an interesting point you raise. When I started this thread about 15 months ago our destinations were set. I had no difficulty including France, Italy and Greece in the header, but wondered whether Turkey would be appropriate since we were spending such a short time there. I decided to include it because that was where I would look if I was searching for information about Ephesus (since Kusadasi and Ephesus are inextricably linked). I still believe it was the right choice. There are many thousands of travellers who, like us, will see only a small slice of Turkey. For those who spends weeks exploring all corners of Turkey, there would certainly be more information on other threads.

Part of the purpose of including information about the planning of the trip is to give Fodorites a taste of what is involved with international educational group travel. Unfortunately, I cannot write about our escapades at our destinations until we have been there. All things going well, I will get the chance to entertain (or bore) any readers here with some of the more interesting aspects of our 18 days away.

I am pleased to read that you have followed this thread from the beginning. I hope you will keep coming back. I look forward to your future contributions.

tC

nukesafe and HappyTrvlr - thanks for taking the time to read this thread and contribute your thoughts. I appreciate your feedback. HappyTrvlr, I gratefully accept your wonderful compliment wherein you have assumed I am female. You must be picking up on my "gentler" side. I would like to state for the record that I am male and have been for my entire life. I mention this now in case later in this thread I make reference to standing in front of a urinal or something like that.

tC

TC, thanks for clearing up the latest issue. I thought I had remembered an earlier TR mentioning a wife so I had been assuming all along that you were a fellow, so Happytrav's comments threw me for a loop.

And I am glad that you are posting this in the Europe forum. I enjoy your planning details, and just love, love your trip reports. Your students and fellow chaperones are so lucky to be traveling with someone of your expertise, planning ability, positive outlook, and caring demeanor. Thanks for sharing!

otherchelebi, I'm another one who rarely visits the Lounge, so I would completely miss this sort of adventure. I suppose it can be posted in multi-places, anyhow.

"i am hoping that it will be posted on the lounge, where more people could possibly enjoy the narrative." - totally disagree. I visit the lounge perhaps twice a year and would never have found TC's fascinating reports there. He writes about travel and his posts belong in the travel sections - and the planning is certainly an important part of travel. If lounge lizards want to read about travel they should visit the travel boards.

I have never visited the Lounge, and would have totally missed this wonderful thread had it been posted there. I have just now checked recent activity in the Fodorite Lounge, and found such riveting topics as: "How to clean old white grout in shower?" No thank you!

O.K. I have been chastized enough.

I withdraw my comments and will direct travelers wishing to visit Turkey and Greece to read this thread to assist them in their planning.

By the way TC, Kusadasi and Ephesus are not inextricably linked, unless you arrive by boat. The town closest to Ephesus is Selcuk, which is closer to Izmir airport and also very close to the Izmir-Aydin motorway.

And i have maybe over a thousand contributions on mostly Turkey forums but a few on other countries.

I would have contributed to your thread also, but i did not see a connection and a question related to my experience or knowledge.

Please do read the following two trip reports, if you can spare the time:

1.http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/western-black-sea-region-of-turkey.cfm

received only 7 posts on the Europe-Turkey forums

2. http://www.fodors.com/community/fodorite-lounge/a-trip-in-place-time-and-mind-annals-of-philosophy-and-travel.cfm

received 30 or so comments on the Fodor's lounge

I do not remember any of the posters writing above as having been on any of my previous threads on the Europe forums, except Heimdall who probably should learn how to clean old white grout in the bath basin before it is too late.

I think the lounge is a great learning experience for a non US resident. I found out a great deal about local and national US politics and why and how intelligent people think in quaint ways. And also how Americans and Canadians hate criticism about themselves and theirs and leash back with a vengeance, many times using bulverism to extend their arguments or become insulting.

lol! My white grout doesn't need cleaning, yet, but if it does I will be going back to the Fodorite Lounge. Good one, otherchelebi!

thank you otherchelebi! for gifting me with a new word, I've read a lot of C.S. Lewis but somehow didn't encounter Bulverism -- such a useful coinage for a practice that I've probably been guilty of. (And I also just googled your screen name, and discovered how apt it is).

"I do not remember any of the posters writing above as having been on any of my previous threads on the Europe forums" - so what? I don't remember seeing you on any of my threads either, but I hardly think it's relevant to the current discussion.

"I think the lounge is a great learning experience for a non US resident." - I'm glad to hear it's serving a useful purpose for someone. For those of us who have the (mis)fortune to live in the US, and/or read the US press, it would be superfluous. (Although I rather doubt you're getting a well-rounded picture from the Lounge.)

oooh, you're there right now... let's see, if the itinerary is correct, you are in - ....


ROME!


Can't wait for you to come home so we can hear the joy, the sorrows, the surprises that you couldn't post about!

Ditto what surfmom said.

Good Evening, everyone
I am a parent of the group that teacherCanada took on this trip to Europe.... I believe that they have had an amazing time and what a wonderful opportunity that teacherCanada has given them... I would like to say thank you to him for this gift to the students... Does anyone have any suggestions that would help me out? They are due to return tomorrow at midnight.
teacherCanada had an abundance of conflicts to overcome before leaving on this trip and it is my wish to give him something to say thanks... Thanks for taking my daughter and for believing in this group of students enough to fight through the conflicts that were raised and still want to go...
Any suggestions would be welcome...
THANK YOU, teacherCanada.......

What a wonderful thought - to return the hard work and kindness of TC with something he will treasure.

I'm sure TC will do a trip report here after they return. I would get a bunch of photos from your daughter and other students (and possibly from TC) and put them all together in a photo book - the photos and blurbs from TC's trip report.

Various internet sites offer these books (I use Shutterfly and while I've never ordered a photo book they are always offering discounts on them). The books are either hard bound or spiral bound and look professional. Mac users can do this from their computers (don't have a Mac but I saw someone photo book who did it from her Mac). You upload the photos and place them on the book pages and there is room to write something about the photos. If I had taken a group of students abroad I would love this type of souvenir to remember all the great times and places the group experienced.

What a great idea, adrienne! This site - http://www.blurb.com/ - works fine with PCs, but you do need to be careful about the size of the pictures.

Hi cbecker! I know you know it... but he sounds like a great teacher. I can't wait to hear about it!

Rather than anything materialistic that you hand him tomorrow, I would ask each child or parents (or together) to sit down and write a letter... and each put in their favorite two memories of the trip, what they learned and the funniest thing. Tie them all up with a big ribbon so he can enjoy them at his leisure. Maybe give them to him on the last day of school so he can enjoy them over the summer ?

The other thing I always try to do when I come across a great teacher is write a letter to his/her principal stating why they are so great and that it is unsolicited parent feedback. I figure it never hurts at review time.

hope your kid had a great trip!

What a great idea, adrienne! This site - http://www.blurb.com/ - works fine with PCs, but you do need to be careful about the size of the pictures.

bookmarking anticipating the full details!

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. Maybe I can get the students and parents together and do both. I love both ideas - the photo book and the letters. Maybe when they arrive back tonight I will just hand him and the other teacher chaperone a bottle of wine and some flowers and then work on these ideas for later....This site is just a wonderful way to get information about travelling.. I never knew it existed until I happened to google eurotrip 2011 just for kicks one day. It was quite something to go back though and read all the thoughts, ideas and planning that everyone here provided. I will just say for all of the parents and students who went on this trip a special THANK YOU for all the assistance everyone here provided... Just so everyone knows - they just boarded the first return flight of the day. I for one am certainly looking forward to seeing everyone tonight....Thanks again

Take up a collection from all the parents and students and send him on an all-expenses-paid weekend somewhere to relax in peace and quiet! It doesn't have to be far, maybe a nice B&B close to home in a natural setting.

Lots of great ideas, but surfmom's idea of everyone contributing photos and letter about a favorite memory or two would be at the top of my list. The personal letters and letters to his administrator would be gratefully accepted from this dedicated professional and generous person, I would think. (As a retired teacher, I find the letters that I received are still treasured.)

These are all wonderful suggestions, but I fear that teacherCanada will miss out on a very thoughtful surprise once he logs onto this thread! At least he will know how much he and his work are appreciated.

Jo

Good point, ParisJoe. cbecker - maybe you'd like to ask the administrators to delete these posts? Click on the yellow triangle if so.

Well, we're all back safe and sound. Our adventures in Europe are certainly for the record books this year. Our group followed the itinerary stated in the initial post fairly closely. As time permits, over the next few weeks, I will try to relate some of the fun, educational and exciting adventures we experienced.

Thanks cbecker for your kind thoughts for our return. It was a treat to travel with each and every one of the students. Thank you to adrienne, thursdaysd, surfmom, Annie_V, brotherleelove, irishface and ParisJo for your thoughtful and kind suggestions to recognize the organizers of the trip. This trip was a team effort. The rewards for exposing students to the wonders of travel are intrinsic and we are confident we have opened their eyes. Unfortunately, I must discourage posters about posting links to photo storage sites to protect the privacy of our student and adult travellers. I am confident you will respect this request.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the success of this trip.

tC

Welcome home--looking forward to your report.

Welcome back tC ! I
It sounds like another one of your fantastic trips has been accomplished. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate what you are doing for the kids in exposing them to the world at large. They are very lucky to have such a thoughtful educator as you.
Eagerly awaiting your trip report.

Best wishes,

Mathieu.

The trip report begins shortly. Please don't feel obliged to read any or all of it. I welcome any questions or comments you may have about any aspect of this educational adventure.

On March 9, 2011 our adventurous group of 40 students (aged 16 – 19) and 9 adults (various ages) boarded our coach bus on a chilly morning to start an 18 day escapade of fun and learning. As cbecker mentioned a few posts earlier, the two co-lead chaperones had experienced a great number of challenges and roadblocks in the three months prior to this day. These upsets came precipitously close to causing the whole trip to be cancelled. The culprits were overwhelmingly petty, short-sighted and showed little regard to the experience of lead chaperones who had collectively organized nearly a dozen international trips and many more extended student trips within Canada.
We tried to put their silliness and ignorance behind us, but it was a most difficult challenge for the lead chaperones.

Many parents and family members were at the school to bid goodbye to their teen. All travellers were wearing their black “hoodie” sweatshirt. The luggage (one bag per person) was stowed in the compartments below and after a series of “group shot” pictures we boarded the coach for the trip to Toronto International Airport. Everyone on board was very excited. Our timing was excellent. We allowed ourselves 2 extra hours to get to the airport because sometimes winter weather affects driving conditions in our area. The weather and roads were perfect. This meant we had time to stop at a shopping mall en route to the airport. The mall provided all travellers to get a lunch at the mall food court, plus purchase any items they may have just realized they had forgotten. Our herd of 49 “black hoodied” persons looked a bit like a gang when we disembarked from the coach and entered the mall. They soon broke up into smaller groups and managed to fill the 90 minutes allotted to lunch.

I need to explain that we have a few “golden rules” that apply to all students when we travel. The number one rule is to never, ever be alone. Girls are used to making washroom visits with friends. Guys had to learn this new washroom protocol. We told them the trip rules were in place now. Most of the travellers divided into groups of 5 or 6 and after lunch wandered the mall. Chaperones kept a close eye for any solo travellers. We saw none. This was going to be a great group.

After lunch and on the road to Toronto, one of the girls came up to the front and said she had mistakenly left most of her money for Europe at home. She was anxious. Thanks to cell phones her Mom arranged to deposit her money into a fellow traveller’s bank account. This would allow her to make withdrawals in that manner. What a relief to our student.

At the airport we quickly unloaded the bus and transferred our bags inside the terminal. We were met by our travel agent. He assisted us as we deposited our check-in luggage and saw us to the secure section. He wished us bon voyage and waved as we disappeared behind frosted glass.

Once we were safely inside we had over two hours to wait prior to boarding. In case you’ve forgotten, teenagers are generally good at wasting time, but never very good at waiting! They sprawled over chairs and occupied large areas of the floor with card games. They generally stayed close by.

On previous student trips such as this, organizers have created specialized trip t shirts that have trip specific information on the front and back. In the past, they have given a greater sense of identity to our group and been worn with pride. This year we were informed they presented a safety concern due to the information on the cresting and no travellers were to bring or wear them during the trip. Many were very disappointed, but we had to follow the directive. In a wonderful show of support, one of the parents of a student traveller (with 2 days notice prior to departure) had taken it upon himself to purchase 49 red t shirts with CANADA on the front from a local department store. A new shirt for purchased for everyone. Fantastic! Despite having the correct sizing for each student and adult traveller, most of the larger sizes were picked up by students. This left the 9 adults with t shirt sizes that might have strained the fabric. Adults used these two hours to purchase similar shirts at a souvenir shop in the secure waiting area. Now everyone had a bold red (or white) CANADA shirt to wear on our travels.

Next: Delays at the airport.

tC

tC - looking forward to this! So sorry to hear that you had problems getting the trip off the ground - so sad and unnecessary.

This is like reading the much anticipated annual instalment of a favourite book series.
Looking forward to it TC ! I can see that its going to be a long thread if at 91 posts already.

M

I expect we'll have to wait for the weekend to get more -- tC no doubt has to get back in the swing of teaching!! Looking forward to reading more

Teacher Canada --
Since this original post has got SOOO lengthy, and since you are only "poised for take-off" in your Narrative -- might you consider starting a NEW Thread Calling it" Eurotrip 2011 for 40 Canadian STudents- Part II" and at the start, say, for the background and the gathering at the Airport see (and paste link). It might make it more manageable. Just a thought!

t in case the thread stays here...

Still waiting eagerly... Or did I miss a new thread?

I'm still waiting, too. I hope you'll be back to tell us more! Please.

I'm waiting too--when does school get out for the summer in Canada? We can be patient.

Did I miss a new thread or did we not get a report?

Hope you are ok, teacher Canada!

I haven't seen any posts by TC since last Spring. In fact his last one on here may be the most recent

...... and disappointing as I have been following those travels for a few years now from when he first started posting. I went back and noticed a statement he made in January, 2009 about retiring in a couple of years.

He can`t leave us hanging ...........

Whenever this thread comes to the top, I hope tC is writing another installment. I hope all is well with him.

T

ttt

Rats! Saw this on the top list of posts and I was hoping TC was back! I haven't seen him comment on anything lately. Hope it's just because he's busy. I have really been anticipating his report.

.......... and still no word on teacherCanada yet !

What's happened? I don't get to check Fodor's that much anymore but I've been waiting for this trip report.

Trish: TeacherCanada hasn't posted in months. I think his post on this thread back on April 4 is his last appearance. Hope something hasn't happened to him. But unless a friend or loved one knows about his membership here we may never find out.

I've written him an email and have heard nothing. I get so worried when a member drops off like this!

Perhaps posting on the Canada Forum might possibly get you in touch with a Canadian Fodorite who know him, lincasanova. I have missed him too and sure hope all is well in his life.

I already have. let's hope he's just very busy.

lincasanova, thanks for trying to reach tC. I hope everything is O.K.

will send another one today.. this does have me worried. I know he went to at least one GTG, and hopefully another Canadian will have his cell phone number.

just sent another email and i did have TWO addresses I think were his. we shall see if this second one brings results. Cross your fingers!

He was at 2 GTGs, but this year's did not happen.

My dear Fodorites
I thank you all for your expressions of concern for my well being. I offer a special thank you to Lincasanova, who has made contact with me through my personal email. I apologize for not responding to you earlier. I had completely withdrawn from the Fodor’s community. As you may have been able to determine from my posting of April 5 and from cbecker’s posting of March 25 there were a large number of roadblocks placed in our way as organizers of this wonderful international excursion. While it was my intention to complete the trip report, I could not draw up the energy to do so.
Within our School Board there were some personalities in positions of authority who appear to have made it their mission to disable the trip organizers’ credibility in public forums. The trip organizers were most deeply offended by their personal and hurtful attacks on their decades of experience and professionalism. Trip organizers seriously entertained the idea of cancelling the trip due to the unprecedented and unwarranted interference from the persons in positions of authority. Subsequent to receiving legal advice, the trip continued as planned, but under protest from organizers. No other adult was prepared to assume the responsibility of escorting the students and if the two co-lead chaperones did not participate the trip would be cancelled and the students would not have had experienced the excitement and adventures of Paris, Florence, Rome, Pompeii, Athens and their 5 day cruise.
From a student participants’ point of view the trip was overwhelmingly successful. Trip organizers (of which I am one) have vowed to never again suffer the public humiliation and upset we experienced prior to departure. At this time we have withdrawn our services from organizing any student field trips and excursions for our school board.
Unfortunately, following legal advice and pending a lawsuit against the school board, I cannot comment further on any aspect of Eurotrip 2011.
Thanks to all of you who have provided support and suggestions and have made this and previous trips so successful. Please continue to show support to educators who are willing to offer international travel opportunities to students in your area.
tC

Sorry to hear you had problems before departure. Hope all your hotels/connections/tours worked out.

tC - so very sorry to read this, but thanks for letting us know. Unbelievable that anyone would try to upset such a valuable activity. My sympathy and thoughts are with you.

well.. although unsettling and disappointing, this is a better alternative than the one we were fearing!

Good to see you here, even if only for this explanation!

tc, thank you for the explanation.

I am so saddened to hear of the developments. As a much smaller level, I volunteer in the school system. I always get frustrated when events/parties/field trips have onerous rules because one parent complained. The greatest frustration is that those are the parents who are not willing to step up and lead, they just want to sit back and be critical of everything that is done. I fear we are heading in the direction of lowest common denominator and all these special opportunities will be gone.

As a parent and travel planner, I have stolen a few of your ideas from the past. I find a topic that interests each kid and ask them to do a powerpoint presentation to the family on that topic. It makes it so much more meaningful! (and as bonus, their teachers were very interested). We just returned from Italy and our presentations were on: The Last Supper (me), San Gimignano and The Leaning Tower of Pisa, Venice, and Leonardo da Vinci. It very much added to our trip! thank you for a great idea.

Good luck with any outcomes -

If you ever get to a point that you could share a few paragraphs about highlights, post an update on this one and I'll find it.

thank you for what you do.

Thank you so much for taking the time to explain your silence. We were very concerned that it was health related. While I am glad it not illness, I can see that the petty jabs by evil people can hurt one more deeply than bodily pain.

I hope this works out for you in the long run so you can continue to do the wonderful work you so enjoy with these kids.

We are on your side. Sue their asses off!

Thanks so much for coming back to explain your absence. I am relieved that you are alive and well, but I'm disheartened to hear that there were those in power who caused problems for the trip organizers. I'm happy to hear that the trip was a great success for the students.

And nukesafe couldn't have said it better: "We are on your side."

Take care, tC, and thanks for all your previous reports.

this is such a shame, not just for us fodorites who are denied the opportunity to share vicariously in tC's joys and trials of guiding this group, but much more for the students who are going to be deprived of the fantastic experiences that tC and his colleagues have been giving students lucky enough to go on these trips.

i have a friend who with her husband has guided many groups from the school at which her husband works, and i know a little of the effort that goes into the planning. it's a tremendous responsibility. i bet the school board wouldn't do it.

Best wishes to tC and her colleagues.

Wow this was an interesting thread,, but surprised to hear about 9 chaperones for 40 older teens (16-19). Our school sent 30 kids( aged 14-16) to Cuba with only three, the teacher and two parent chaperones. Seems like 9 is a large number of adults .. perhaps too many cooks spoil the soup?

I am glad to hear that TC is well physically, but is otherwise under such stress. I hope that right will win out in the end and that the naysayers will get their just desserts (and more!)

Maybe when the dust settles, we can at least hear the highlights. You have shown such care and thoroughness on all of your trips that I cannot believe that anyone could find fault. (However, having been a teacher for over 40 years, I have seen some of the most dedicated professionals go up against some pretty awful stuff due to a misunderstanding.)

Please know, TC, that you are in my thoughts and prayers!

so sorry, very frustrating but very glad that you are ok