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The following report has been written by Jessica Richards, Jade Grimwood, Ellie Gibson, Emma Lally and Charlie Davies
The Plantation Dinner.
The Bajan ‘Roots ‘n’ Rhythms Show’ consisted of a Bajan buffet and lots of entertainment. Another great night out was had by everyone. To begin we listened to a steel band and enjoyed fruit cocktails; we then watched a spectacular dance show which included fire eaters and stilt dancing whilst enjoying dinner. There was a limbo competition and we managed to get Miss. Flatman up on stage doing the limbo, something Mrs. Davies said was a real treat.
The Tiami Catamaran Cruise.
We left the hotel at 9am on Sunday morning to head to the docks to board our catamaran for our five hour cruise! After about half an hour of relaxing on board the boat, we splashed into the sea to snorkel with the giant turtles. It was an amazing experience. We boarded the boat again and carried on with our cruise, this time heading towards a ship wreck for another superb snorkelling experience. We saw millions of fish and had the chance to dive down to the ship wreck. We then had a traditional Caribbean lunch prepared by some of Barbados’ top chefs! Finally we anchored near a gorgeous beach and had the chance to go swimming in the sea where we enjoyed an excellent time jumping off the boat. We had an excellent day out at sea, swimming, relaxing, snorkeling and sunbathing.
Snuba Diving.
Yes, you have read that correctly, snuba not scuba! It was an amazing diving experience down to the sea bed. We were able to walk on the sea bed, (some of us pretended to be asleep on the sand), saw a ship wreck and also saw many brightly coloured fish but unfortunately, no sharks. Oh well! When you are snuba diving you have a 20ft hose pipe attached to your mouth and an oxygen tank in a raft floating on the surface so you can breathe.
Jeep Safari.
We went on the Island Safari for a whole day where we had chance to explore the island in off-road jeeps. Davies’ Darlings took Dino and Flatty’s Flyers took Grover, (the drivers and jeeps)! They lead us through the towns, sugar cane fields and into thick forests. Dino had already supplied us for the surprise attack on Grover’s truck…..water bottles at the ready?! FIRE!! After a laugh about the water fight, Dino lead us onto fields where we made a surprise mud attack after Grover got stuck in a large muddy patch. We ended up having a huge mud fight but were able to wash off before lunch in the sea! During the journey home the rain came but it didn’t matter, we were already soaked and by this time asleep in the jeeps!
Atlantis Submarine.
The Atlantis submarine was a relaxing way to start the day. We all went down under the water, (which was a bit scary at first), and saw coral, fish, another ship wreck and a turtle. We went about 140ft deep. I think that we were all hoping to see the 40ft shark seen three months earlier. The crew were really nice and we also enjoyed the boat ride to and from the submarine. It was a great way to calm our nerves before the forthcoming hockey match.
We would just like to thank all of our parents for letting us go on this amazing
trip and Miss. Flatman and Leesa Davies for making the trip the best it was!
Abbey Gate College began their tour with a match against Springer Memorial School. They put up a valiant fight but lost the match 2-0. The opposition had the benefit of being acclimatised to the hot conditions and age on their side – our U.14’s against their U.16 team. These two factors considered, Abbey Gate took the game to them and Springer certainly had to play some very nice hockey to win.
Girl Of The Game: Ellie Gibson.
Our second match was against Grantly Adams Memorial School; we were raring to go and after losing the first game we only had a win in our sights! Sadly……no we didn’t lose…..they did not turn up! Too scared! Instead, we had a real taste of fast and furious hockey by playing with the Barbadian Boy’s squad; they were very good. We split our squad in half and they did the same so we ended up playing mixed hockey which was really good fun.
Match 3 proved to be very difficult as the opposition fiercely fought from the outset. We were 2-0 down by the end of the first half. The girls were a little intimidated initially by Alexandra School’s scare tactics, however, once riled they switched their hockey heads on and played some superb hockey in the second half. Emma Lally ran tirelessly up and down the wing sending many crosses into the ‘D’. The fantastic team work by the Abbey Gate girls proved to be the winning formula and a 3-2 win was well deserved. Well done to Emma Williams who literally stole two goals from under their noses in the second half, and to a well deserved goal from Emma Lally.
Girls Of The Game: Emma Williams and Emma Lally.
The last match against Combermere School was disappointing as again we had been pitched against a much older team. This immediately put us at a disadvantage due to their U.17’s being physically stronger both on and off the ball. However, undeterred by this hiccup Abbey Gate gave it their all but could not find a way of getting past their defence, until…..with seconds left on the clock we scored an amazing goal. Charlie Davies crossed the ball in for Nikki Roberts to poke home. Final score 5-1!
Girl Of The Game: Nikki Roberts
In the darkness and early hours of a drizzly Friday morning the team began to assemble at school. We were waiting to embark upon a week of hockey, laughter, fun and excitement. The tour did prove to be an unforgettable experience for the girls which, when remembered, will always evoke smiles and happy memories.
Our week comprised four games of hockey, snuba diving, a submarine trip, jeep safari, cultural Bajan Roots ‘n’ Rhythms show, catamaran cruise and a little time for beach games and shopping. On arrival we were welcomed into the Amaryllis Beach Resort with fruit punch and enjoyed relaxing by the pool whilst we waited for our rooms. After all the fund raising, planning, training and preparing we had finally arrived.
Barbados is the most easterly island in the Caribbean. It is surrounded by spectacular sandy beaches on the western side whilst the eastern side of the island enjoys a beautiful rocky coastline. The sea is clear blue and extremely warm and is home to tropical fish, turtles, sharks and ship wrecks.
The Bajan people are proud of their heritage and respectful of each other. They adopt a laid back and carefree approach to life and are welcoming to friends and visitors alike. (They are also fiercely competitive, a trait which we were soon to discover!). The wealth of foreign celebrity is evident, contrasted against the poor local incomes from a mainly foodstuffs export. The simple chattel houses sit next to the large estates and splendid hotels. Wherever you choose to eat, fresh fish is a speciality and served alongside spicy rice and vegetable dishes. The girls were able to appreciate the Bajan culture as well as the warming sunshine.
The girls throughout the tour were fantastic ambassadors for the school and displayed impeccable behaviour for which they were complemented from airline staff, other hotel residents and hotel staff. (As a treat from the airline crew we were allowed into the cockpit to have a look round). It was a pleasure taking the girls away and to see them enjoying the tour to the full.
I would like to thank each tour member for their attitude and approach towards
the whole trip, their cooperation made the week run smoothly. The girls were
a real pleasure to take on tour, both Leesa and myself were incredibly proud.
Thank you and well done.
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