On Sunday February 6 we (13 students accompanied by Mr.Gin and Mr. Nutting) returned from Quebec. We spent five days there, staying with our partners, attending their school (La Polyvalente de St. Georges), participating in various activities, visiting Quebec City for Winter Carnival, speaking French and learning about the culture.

We left SAHS after school on Wednesday February 2nd. We traveled in a very comfortable coach bus to St. Georges. The weather was warm and sunny and we arrived at the Polyvalente at 4:30 pm. We were greeted by our partners and their parents. We then went to out partners homes for the evening.

Thursday morning we came to school with our partners. The school schedule is very different at the Polyvalente. Their classes start at 9:00, so we got to sleep in a little on a school day. Hey that even beats a one hour delay. We were treated to a welcome breakfast in the teachers' lounge followed by a welcome from the principal.

We accompanied our partners to classes and had lunch followed by two more classes. Mr. Nutting and René Maheux one of the English teachers had a hands on experience in one of the history classes. By the way classes are 75 minutes long with a 20 minute break in between each class! Lunch is also 75 minutes long (this is also the time for clubs, sports, and other activities). After a leisurely lunch we toured the school with our partners.

The school day was over at 4:00 pm! (Yes that's late, but there's no waiting for the school bus in the dark in the morning!) Our day however was far from over. The fun was just beginning. We spent an hour playing floor hockey and soccer in the gym. Everyone participated and many goals were scored, not always in the right goal, but it was fun anyway. Sports were followed by a pizza dinner. We found out that in Quebec some people put butter on the pizza crust, just like some people put butter on bread.

This was followed by a karaoke extravaganza, an evening of singing in French and English, and dancing on the auditorium stage. There were so many amazing and incredible performances. To end the evening there was swimming in the school pool.

Friday another 9:00 am start. We spent about and hour and a half bowling at a local bowling ally surrounded by disco lights and music. We then went to a sugar shack for a traditional lunch of eggs, home fries, ham ,sausages, beans, soup, and to top it all off crêpes! With our stomachs full we went outside to play in the snow. The evening was free to spend with our partners and their families.

Saturday was another gorgeous day. Bright blue skies, dazzling sunshine and warm temperatures. We drove to Quebec City from St. George in about and hour and 15 minutes. The city was crowded with people celebrating Winter Carnival.

There were many activities going on in the city. We watched a soap box derby, saw many interesting snow sculptures and watched canoe races on land in a snow obstacle course. We went to the top of the tallest building in Quebec (over 30 stories) for spectacular views of the city. Many of us were so tired by then that we even needed a nap. But we weren't done yet. We then walked to the Chateau Frontenac where we had a guided tour. To top it all off, we had a wonderful evening of sliding at the Valcartier Village Vacances. There are over 60 slides and the tallest is a 110' slide appropriately called Everest. What a fun place!

It was a very long day and we didn't get back to St. Georges until 11:45 pm, but a great time was had by all. Sunday morning we said our good-buys and returned to Skowhegan.

Take a look at the photo album to see all of the pictures.

In April we welcomed our partners from Quebec. On Wednesday April 27, there was a pot luck dinner when they arrived. On Thursday the students from St. Geroges attended classes with us and after school we all participated in a ropes course at the University of Maine Health and Fitness Center. A high flying time was had by all.

Friday we went on a field trip to the Maine State Museum, ha d a tour of the State Capitol, and ended the afternoon off at Popham Beach. The weather was beautiful and some of us even put our feet in the water. Saturday we went to Boston. We visited Quincy Market, Faneuil Hall, the New England Aquarium and the Charles Navy Yard. On the way home we stopped in Freeport for dinner and a little shopping. On Sunday we said good-by to our partners.

Please take a look at the photo album for this portion of the exchange.

Look for information on next year's exchange next fall.

Thanks to all the participants.