SEPTEMBER 24

This morning I woke up at 08:53 AM, so I didn't have enough time to prepare for the school like normally. So I was at school at 09:05. When I entered the room, the principal was there and asked me, if I was Nikola Saric, who was late. I got an oral warning. So the day began badly.
In the afternoon, the lessons were not special. We had grammar and other things, like normally.
In the evening, we all went bowling. It was very funny. I was quite good, so I had 120 points at the end.

Nikola Saric

SEPTEMBER 23

On 23 September we had school all day. We did some BEC and general English exercises. It was a very hard day for everybody.

We are in Paignton at school to prepare for the BEC Exam in November. It's a Certificate for Business English. We already have one in french.
The schoolday was - as I said - very hard. It's difficult to concentrate all day.
Lucky us! Our teachers Lydia and Sabrina played a lot of games with us to learn the expressions and the meaning of the difficult words. We also practiced some speaking. We talked about different things in our company and our work - like last week already.
I'm sure that these exercises help us a lot. From day to day we can understand everything better. Also our knowledge about business words. It's growing!

I am very happy to be here in Paignton, I've learned a lot until now. I hope that we'll pass the BEC exams and also our final exams.

Sara :-)

SEPTEMBER 24

I am writing about the evening when we went bowling to Torquay. We all met at around 8 o'clock where the bus stop is in Paignton. After a 15minutes drive to the gaming hall we all got off and went in. It was all a little messy, because there were two classes from each city. We met other friends from Switzerland. So we got our funky red, blue shoes from the man responsible for us. The game we had there was very emotional and was lots of fun. Unfortunately I didn't win, but I didn't care. Except from the bowling there were so many different games, for example pool, basketball and many kinds of races where you could sit on vehicles. All in all I enjoyed myself very much and had a relaxed night out with my buddies. Nikola Brankovic

SEPTEMBER 22

Now the first week in Paignton is over and we had a lot of fun. On Sunday 22nd September, I stayed at my hostfamily's house and spent the day with the family. We were talking a lot and we played some board games. Two students are staying in the hostfamily's house. One is from Saudi Arabia and the other one is from Spain. So we talked a lot about our countries and our experience. The hostmother told us about her children and the different countries that she had visited in her life. They are all very kind and I had a wonderful relaxed Sunday.

Alexander

SEPTEMBER 19

It wasn’t a very exciting day because we had school the whole day. We learn a lot there because we do the parts of the BEC-Exam which we hope to pass in November. We have school from 9.00 o´clock in the morning until 4.45 in the afternoon. In the breaks some of us play tabletennis or just talk to their friends. It’s a very good atmosphere because everyone is friendly to everyone. In the evening some people go outside for dinner. In Paignton there aren’t a lot of pubs or restaurants, but it’s nice for having a good night out.

 

Laura

Sunday, 22.09.2013

 

On Sunday, I could sleep longer than just until 8 o’clock for the first time (finally!). At lunchtime I went to Torquay with Dominic.

 

Torquay is a very nice city with a lot of nice shops. First we went to the «Garden Rock», that’s a lovely pizzeria. The pizzas there are fantastic and the atmosphere was very friendly.

After that, we started our shopping-tour. We began at Primark, TK Max, River Island, etc. The whole tour!  It was a lot of fun and I bought many things. Too many!

 

In the evening, we just chilled at the beach. 

 

good night :)

 

 

Robin

Saturday, 21 September 2013, Paignton

It was Saturday morning when we went to school to meet. I was tired and my motivation wasn’t very high. So in the bus we made music and other things. The weather wasn’t fine and that’s the reason why my motivation was down, too. I thought it would be very cold, but when we arrived and changed the clothes it was o.k. So we started to surf. First it was hard. After a time it wasn’t very difficult. We were good and so it was very cool. We had a talented group and all the people were good. At the night, we went to Torquay and it was cool, too!

 

Darko

Wednesday, 18 September 2013

The programm for this day was: visiting the zoo and having a BBQ. In the morning, we had to go to school. After having lunch, we went to our private bus and drove to the zoo in Paignton. That is the third largest zoo of England and the animals and the atmosphere were amazing. We saw zebras, an elephant, giraffs, camels and a lot of other animals. We also made a short trip with a little rail way through the zoo, that was nice. After coming back to Paignton, we had a BBQ at school. It wasn’t vert tasty and didn't have a big selection of things to eat, so we were a bit disappointed. After to the BBQ, we visited a pub in Paignton and had a nice evening.

Corinne

SEPTEMBER 21

The first week is over and it was a good week! We had a good time at school and our excursions were very interesting.
Saturday was the best day for me. There were two possibilities what to do on Saturday. We could go surfing or look at ponies and go shopping. I can look at ponies in Switzerland too, so I decided to go surfing. I was very excited because it was my first time. We had to get up very early because we had to leave from Paignton at 8 o'clock.We went by bus and we drove about 1 hour and 45 minutes. When we arrived in Newquay we put on funny wetsuits. They were very tight but in the water I didn't feel cold. The first time on the surfboard was very strange and difficult, I always fell down. After 30 min I managed to stand on the surfboard. It was an amazing feeling. After surfing we went to the town center of Newquay to have a cream tea. It was traditional and it tasted very good. After the cream tea everyone was very tired and then we went home by bus and everybody was sleeping on the way home.

Daniel

SEPTEMBER 23

It was Monday 23 September and I woke up at 8 o'clock. We were at school the whole day and learned very much. In the morning we learned the future and the graphs. I think it was very difficult. In the afternoon we had the speaking part and we played different games. After school I went back home and ate dinner with my lovely host family. At 7 o'clock I met Jasmin and we went jogging along the beach and did something for our fitness. When I came home I took a shower, wrote my blog and went to the bed.

Karin

SEPTEMBER 23

Well, let's write about the 23rd September. It was the second Monday we spent in Paignton, the beginning of the last week. It was not really an exciting day, because we had school the whole day long. We started at 9.00. At lunchtime I realized that the sandwich is getting boring after one week full of sandwiches  ;-) 

In the afternoon we played some games in class. 

After school I went to the beach with my 'host-dog'. She's called Luna and she's so lovely. 

In the evening my host-daddy brought some fish 'n' chips and I really liked it. That was surprising, because I normally hate fish. 

 

Jana

SEPTEMBER 21 - ponies at Dartmoor

Photos by Julia

SEPTEMBER 20

On Friday morning we had school as usual. At about 9 o'clock a policewoman came to tell us something about the law in England. After this, we had lessons again until lunchtime.

After lunchtime we went to Exeter by bus. We had a very short tour with our leaders to see where the shops were. Then we had freetime. I went in some of the shops to buy clothes with my friends. Afterwards we had a break at a small coffee shop. After that it was time to go back to the meeting point. We went back to Paignton together.

In the evening I stayed home with my host family.

Jasmin

SEPTEMBER 20

On Friday the 20 September, we had school in the morning and in the afternoon we went to Exeter.

The whole two classes drove to Exeter by coach. The way from Paignton to Exeter took about 40 minutes. As soon as we arrived in Exeter, we walked around in the city with Martin and he told us where the famous shops are. In Exeter we had time to go shopping or eating something. At first we shopped in different shops like Hollister, Superdry, River Island and in Primark. After that we ate something at Mc Donald's and drove back to Paignton by coach. 

Nico König

21 September

On Saturday we had the choice of two excursions. One group went to Plymouth and the other one went to Newquay. The group which went to Newquay went surfing. It was a great experience. When we arrived there we got wetsuits and had to change. It was a strange feeling in those wetsuits. After that we went to the beach where we were instructed by the surfing-teachers. It was difficult to stand on the board but most of us could stand at least 2 seconds on the board. In the afternoon we had a cream tea. It was delicious, but not everyone liked it.

 

Saskia 

SEPTEMBER 17

This was our second day in the Devon School in Paignton. It was a hard day, because we had school the whole day. It was difficult to be motivated and concentrated all the time. 

In the morning we had school with John. We practised the different tenses and learned some new vocabulary.
In the afternoon we had another teacher called Rachel. She explained to us how the BEC exam will be and what we have to learn for it. We made some exercises from the BEC exam to train a bit for our final exam. We also learned some new business words. In the end before school finished, we played a game called pictionary. It was very funny.

 

Fabia

Sunday, September 15th

Today was the day on which we would travel to England. I felt very nervous because I've never been to England before. My boyfriend slept at my place and in the morning he brought me to the station by car. I had to say him goodbye and met Miriam to travel to Zurich by train. As we arrived in Zurich we had to check in at the airport and go to the meeting point. Then we could hand over our baggage and afterwards we had nearly 1 hour free time. We went to drink and eat something. Then we waited to get on the airplane. The flight took nearly 3 hours and I listened to music during it. As we arrived, we had to get in a coach which drove us to Paignton to the meeting point where our hostfamilies waited for us. I had to get out of the coach as the second person and met my hostmother. She looked very friendly! She drove with me to her house where she showed me all, my room, the bathroom, the kitchen and everything. My first expression was: Oh my god, my room looks like a prison and also the house was strange! But afterwards it got very comfortable and I liked it. The first day I didn't go out in the evening. We just ate something, I spoke to my hostfamily, was in my room and installed all my things and later went to bed. It was a easy journey with a lot more things that I have to discover in the next few days...

 

Simona 

Sunday 15^th September 2013 - Paignton

Our trip to Paignton started on Sunday 15^th September 2013. We met at Zurich airport at 11.30 and arrived with a little delay at Bristol airport at 13.55. Afterwards we drove about 2 hours to Paignton where our host families expected us already. After staying a while with my host family and setting up my bedroom I went out with Askin, Darko and Sascha who all live very near from me. We just walked through Paignton and searched the sea. After this long and exciting day we all went home and slept very well.

 

Miriam Knupfer

Sunday 22

Today we had a free day. That means we had no program with the school and we could do whatever we wanted.
I slept long and had breakfast at about 11 o'clock. After that, I made myself ready for going to Exeter again with my friend. The trip cost only £ 6.30, so it's much cheaper than in Switzerland. After a one hour train ride, we were this lovely city. We found a Thai restaurant, where we ate our lunch. Then we went to the Hollister store in the middle of the city. We both bought one thing and went out of the store with a nice bag. Because we wanted to eat with our host family, we had to go back to Paignton very early. When we were at the Exeter train station, we saw four other friends from our class and so we went back together.

 

 

Sina

Sunday, September 15

It finally was the day: We started our journey to England - Paignton. We all have been waiting for this day. You could feel the nervoussness of some. I was nervous too. Thousands of thoughts went through your head. Is the family friendly or unfriendly? Or how is he or she looking? And is the house big or small or maybe not clean? So it wasn‘t boring. And then the big moment was coming. Mrs Kis was calling your name and your host family picked you up. I think all host families aren’t bad. My hostmother is truly like an angel. I liked her at the first moment. She’s really friendly and her daughter is a beautiful blond girl. At first I was a little bit shy, but with time I opened up. First I was thinking I will sleep very badly in my first night, but it was the opposite. My sleep was very good. And so I have survived the first, and probably hardest day in England. And I was ready for my first English language stay!

 

Jessica 

SEPTEMBER 16

It was our first school day in the Devon School of English on Monday. We were put in several groups for the English lesson. In the morning we always have Rachel as a teacher and in the afternoons we've got John. At 12.30 we had lunch. They make lunch for us every day. That's very kind of them. We didn't have English this afternoon, because we visited Paignton city. We had a tour guide from the school, who showed us the best places there. After the tour we were free and had time to enjoy ourselves. I thought, it was a good first day in England.

Fiona

SEPTEMBER 19

It was Thursday 8.30 o'clock in the morning. I went to school. We had lessons the whole day. Rachel taught us in the morning. Rachel is new in Paignton. She is very kind. We did some writing exercises and we played games. It was funny. At 12.30 o'clock we had lunch. Jenny made a salad for me because I'm vegetarian. After the lunch time, John taught us. John is really funny! He told us about the BEC-exam. The lessons finished at 16.45 o'clock. I ate dinner with my hostfamily. My hostmum cooked pasta with a vegetarian sauce. It was delicious! After dinner, we went to the beach with the class. The moon was shining and the sea glittered. It looked amazing! The day was ending and I slept well.

Stephanie H.

SEPTEMBER 18

On Wednesday 18 September we had school in the morning and in the afternoon we went to Paignton Zoo which is the 3rd biggest in England. The weather was really nice so we were happy to get out of the classroom. At 1 p.m we met at the meeting point to go by bus to the zoo. Very excited to see the giraffes and all the other animals, we started to walk around in the big zoo area. We were free to decide how long to stay there and due to the bbq in the evening we left the zoo at about 4.30 p.m.

Jasmin Steiner

SEPTEMBER 16

On Monday we went to the school for the first time. The teachers are all very friendly and funny. We had the whole morning English lessons. In the afternoon we had a tour through Paignton and visited all the shops and the beach. It was very beautiful on the beach. In the evening we went to a pub. It is called the Spinning Wheel. We had a lot of fun. We could drink there and ate snacks. A few of the students sang karaoke and it was great to listen to them. At half past ten we all had to go home. I have a long way home and I was really happy that I didn't go alone.

Siri Bilgeri

Paignton Zoo

On Wednesday afternoon, we went with the coach to the zoo. First we had a little introduction. Afterwards we had time to walk through the zoo. There were a lot of different animals. We visited the reptiles and then we saw a tiger. It was very fascinating. There were a lot of different kinds of turtles. We bought very good ice cream and then we drove with the "little train". It was funny. At 16:15 o'clock we walked to the shop of the zoo and spent one hour there. We drove back to the school with the double-decker bus. The view was awesome. We just had a fantastic day!

Imana Badertscher

SEPTEMBER 15


I was very excited about coming to Paignton. We met on 15 September at 11:30 in Zurich airport.
Our flight was a little bit late. About half an hour late we took off with Helvetic Airlines to Bristol. During the landing it was a little bit windy.
After the flight we had to take the bus to Paignton. It took us about two hours.

In Paignton we met our host families. My host family was very friendly. They showed me my room and after that we ate a very good dinner. There was also an other language student. After dinner he showed me Paignton.

Nicolas

SEPTEMBER 17

September 17 was our second school day. We went to school at 9 a.m.
In the first lesson we repeated the present simple with our teacher Rachel. We did different exercises to improve our English grammar.
After the first break we played a little game. It was very funny.
At 12.30 it was lunchtime. We got our lunchpackets and we had lunch together in the school grounds.
At 1.30 p.m. the afternoon lessons started. We had another teacher. His name was John. We spoke about the BEC exam. He told us about the different parts in the exam.
We did some exercises with John.
At 4.45 the lesson finished.
We went to our hostfamiliy to eat dinner.
At 8 o'clock, we met in front of the school. We played in the casino. After we went to a pub in Paignton together. It was great fun.

Michelle

SEPTEMBER 17

 

On 17 September we had the first normal day without a programme from our language stay school. The lessons were from 9 o'clock to 12:30 and from 13:30 to 16:45. In the morning we had Sabrina, who is also our schoolteacher at Devon School of English. So in the Afternoon we had Lydia, she speaks many languages including German. With her we practiced the speaking. After school we met and went shopping. We were tired so we went home early. 

Danijela

22. Sep. 2013

 

On Sunday morning, I went to Torquay with Robin. We took the bus at 11.30 o’clock. The weather was perfect. Torquay is a very nice city for shopping. There are many shops like Primark, River Island and many more. At 12.30 o’clock, we ate a pizza in a very good pizzeria. The price was not very expensive but the pizza was excellent. After the lunch, we visited a lot of shops and bought a lot of things. At 16.30 we went back to Paignton, because the shops closed very early. It was a very enjoyable day in Torquay.

 

 

 

Dominic

 

 

Friday, 20 September 2013

This day was our last day of school for this week. Also there was a police officer in the school in the morning, who talked to us about the laws in the UK and about her job. This was very interesting because it is different than in Switzerland.  

In the afternoon we all went to Exeter. It is a beautiful town with lots of shops. There they showed us shortly the most important things and then we had time for some shopping. Unfortunately it wasn’t this much time, so we weren’t able to go in all the shops we wanted. The main attraction for us was the Primark, where you can buy things very cheap.

In the evening most of us went to Torquay or went to a pub in Paignton.

Melanie

Monday, 16^th September

16th September was the second day of our stay, but the first at Devon School of English. Although Paignton isn’t as big as Exeter for example, the host families had to accompany all of us to the school.

The Devon School of English has got two buildings. We are in Glendale. There are many different classrooms. The leaders of the school told us in which classroom each person is grouped.

After this, there was a presentation of a teacher as part of the introduction. She explained how the lessons are featured, the rules of the school etc.

Everyone got a folder with some information in it and also a pencil.

In the afternoon we had a visit of Paignton. We were separated in three groups with one guide in each. A guide showed us some nice places in Paignton, for example the best fish and chips restaurant or some nice pubs and of course the station. It was a helpful tour to improve the orientation in this town.

In the evening we all went to the pub Spinning Wheels. Normally you have to be 18, if you’d like to go in, but our School had a special permission for all of us to enter it.

There was also a little dinner with sandwiches. Fortunately it was a Karaoke night there and some of our students sang a song in groups. There were some voices which are really good ;-). It was a nice evening there.

 

Julia

  

Thursday the 19th of September.

 

On this day, we were at school the whole day. In the morning the teacher who's name is John, taught us about the BEC exam and the grammar requirements. In the afternoon we had another teacher called Rachel. With her, we had to learn general English. She told us some tongue-twisters and we had to repeat them. It was very difficult, no one could do it fast except Rachel, but it was very funny. Another game that we played was: I pack in my luggage an apple, a banana etc. That was also very funny, good for concentration and of course to learn the words in English. After an exhausting day, some people went out to Torquay to drink a beer and speak with their friends. Some other people stayed at home to speak with their host families. I think it was just a normal school day, without any extra special things.

Sabrina Willi

SEPTEMBER 18


Today was our 3rd day here and we have all settled in. In the morning we had school and then they went to the zoo. In the evening there was a BBQ at school. Unfortunately, I could not be there because I was sick and had to go home in the afternoon. So I can only tell you something about the morning. I like the school here, the teachers are funny and nice. The lessons are varied and the time passes quickly.

Is not the best day to write a blog when I'm at home in bed. ;-) At least, they have great weather, when they go to the zoo and have a BBQ.

Anja

SEPTEMBER 16

The 16^th September was the second day of our stay in Paignton. We went to school in the morning at 08.30 a.m. That was our first day at the school and that was the reason why our host families took us to school.

As part of the introduction, the teachers explained the rules of The Devon School of English. After this little “presentation” we were separated into different groups until 12.30 a.m.

So that was the first morning at school. In the afternoon we had a tour of Paignton, which is a lovely town. We had three groups and there were three guides who showed us round, for example, where we can find the best restaurants or pubs. That was a very helpful trip.

After dinner, we all went to the Pub “Spinning Wheel”. It was also very funny there because it was a Karaoke night. Some of the students from our class sung a song. It was nice to hear that

 

Askin