31 Days and counting!

We got our hotels today, check them out online, they look awesome!  I am particularly looking forward to the one in Lucerne, it looks so quaint! 
So, a thought, lets take a song we like, and rewrite it with our own words about our trip! That could be fun!
We are definitely going to shoot a music video in London "Payphone", I have a great idea for it!  We are going to have a blast....let the countdown resume...if June flies by as fast as April and May did, we'll be writing our post trip blogging sooner than we think.

Here are some links to our hotels.
http://www.hoteltell.ch/
http://www.hotelm14.it/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=80&Itemid=147&lang=enhttp://www.piccadillyhotel.com/
http://www.busby-hotel.com/en/index.htm
http://www.simplyhotelsfrance.com/en/s06_catalogue/s06p04_fiche_hotel.php?hotel=30

Remember that hotels in Europe are very different from those that you are probably used to, but it looks like EF tours has made some fabulous selections for us!

See you girls on Sunday for our meeting, and Parents and Girls on Tuesday.

Itinerary

Itinerary for 1^st Europe 2012 Independent International Trip

Itinerary A (21Travelers)
	Date	Time	City(Airport)	Flight / Transportation

Depart
	7/1/2012 7/1/2012	5:15 PM 7:09 PM	Thunder Bay Toronto (Pearson), ON	Air Canada Flight # 8540
	7/1/2012 7/2/2012	9:05 PM 10:45 AM	Toronto (Pearson), ON Zurich	Air Canada Flight # 878

Return
	7/22/2012 7/22/2012	3:00 PM 5:55 PM	London (Heathrow) Toronto (Pearson), ON	Air Canada Flight # 849
	7/22/2012 7/22/2012	8:10 PM 10:15 PM	Toronto (Pearson), ON Thunder Bay	Air Canada Flight # 8545

Transfer via Motor Coach Zurich to Lucerne July 2, 2012 accompanied by EF tour director

Day	Place	Events
Mon. July 2	Lucerne	Discover Lucerne
Tues. July 3	Aldebolden	Our Chalet Day Excursion
Wed. July 4	Lucerne Region	Sightseeing, Mount Pilatus and Swiss Folklore Festival
Thurs. July 5	Lucerne to Venice	Travel through Verona, see Juliet’s statue and balcony as well as Roman Arena
Fri. July 6	Venice	GuidedeSightseeing, Doge’s Palace, St. Mark’s , Grand Canal
Sat. July 7	Venice to Rome	Travel via Motor coach to Rome
Sun. July 8	Rome	Vatican City, Guided Sightseeing in Rome Walking tour of Rome
Mon. July 9	Rome to Florence	Guided Sightseeing Tour of Florence
Tues. July 10	Florence to French Riviera	Transfer via Piza, see the Leaning Tower of Pisa arrive on French Riviera
Wed. July 11	French Riviera	Excursion to Monaco, Eze perfume factory, tour of Nice
Thurs. July 12	French Riviera to Paris	TGV to Paris- walking tour of Paris, Notre Dame Cahtedral
Fri. July 13	Paris	Guided Sightseeing of Paris
Sat. July 14	Paris to London (Pax Lodge)	Eurstar to London 11:43 a.m. Arrive London, transfer to Pax Lodge via tube, relax at Pax and discover the Hampstead area
Sun. July 15	London (Pax Lodge)	Cambden Market 3:00 pm welcome to Journey Through London program Bus tour around London, London Eye at Night
Mon. July 16	London (Pax Lodge)	Girl Effect Session Get to know London GGCUK, buckingham Palace, Green Park, Mall, Trafalgar Square, Olympic Sights Evening Programme
Tues. July 17	London (Pax Lodge)	Challenge across London London Eye, Dinner out Theatre
Wed. July 18	London (Pax Lodge)	Tower of London Walking Tour Convent Garden Market
Thurs. July 19	London (Pax Lodge)	Service Project Patrol Time Celebrations BBQ
Friday July 20	London (Pax Lodge)	Natural History Museum/British National Museum National Art Gallery Kensington Park Shopping
Sat. July 21	London (Pax Lodge)	Private motor Coach pick up 9:00 a.m. Windsor Castle., Stonehenge and Bath
Sun. July 22	Depart for home	London-Toronto Toronto-Thunder Bay

EF tour meeting on Wednesday

Time is flying and we are completing the final plans for the trip. The London itinerary is almost set, Stonehenge bus tour is booked, eurostar tickets bought, walking tour booked...now just a few more plans for the free time and days....there will be shopping, museums and art galleries! I am so excited!

Don't forget, this Wednesday we will be meeting at Chapters in the community room at 6:30 with a rep from EF tours, plan to come with questions! She will havetheanswers and lots of info!

See you then.

Switzerland and Italy...as seen through students eyes

Meetings, meetings and more meetings!

Hey everyone, we will be meeting on Monday March 26 th location to be announced. this is a meeting for parents and girls, we will be going over some details of what is coming up. I will have Michelle bring her schedule and we will make sure everyone gets some selling time.

I would like to have two more girl meetings between now and June and we have booked June 5th for the final parent/girl meeting. I will book Sherbrooke school for that night. I will email everyone the forms that need to be printed and filled out for Kevin to motorized for us. Come with your forms filled out and passports in hand.

Time is tickin....excitement building.

Final Paperwork

I am submitting my final package of paperwork to National today!  There are about 10 different forms that need to be filled out, our final itinerary, emergency response forms...this is it...its coming soon! 

I am going away during the March Break, so think we will have our girl meeting the week after. 

Cookies will be in sometime around the 26th, they will be delivered to my house.

the auction is 2 weeks away...hope you all have your baskets ready for Lynn.

have a great day.

Theatre choices

Kelsi's t-shirt design

Hey girls, so you all recieved an email stating our theatre choices.  here they are again, make your top two choices so I can get the results back to Pax. usually they have two groups going to two different productions, the choices will be between our top two and others staying there that same week as us. 
Check them out online if you want to know more before making your decisions.

BLOOD BROTHERS was recently voted MOST POPULAR BRITISH MUSICAL OF ALL TIME by readers of the New York Times and has scooped up four awards for Best Musical in London, seven Tony Award nominations on Broadway and is now booking into its 20th year. It tells the captivating and moving tale of twins who, separated at birth, grow up on opposite sides of the tracks. The incredible score includes Bright New Day and the emotionally charged Tell Me It’s Not True. (Musical)

SHREKFeaturing new songs as well as cult Shrek anthem 'I'm a Believer', SHREK THE MUSICAL brings the well loved characters to life, in a hilarious and spectacular new production based on the Oscar-winning DreamWorks Animation film. The world of fairytales is turned upside down in an all singing, all dancing, an irresistible mix of adventure, laughter and romance. (musical)

LES MISÉRABLES is indisputably the world's most popular musical. This international award-winning production sweeps its audience through an epic tale of passion and power set against the backdrop of a nation in the grip of revolution. (Musical)

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA has some of the most lavish sets, costumes and special effects ever to have been created for the stage. Set within the majestic Paris Opera House, this haunting musical follows the tragic love story of a beautiful opera singer and a disfigured young composer living below stage. (Musical)

MAMA MIA The musical Mamma Mia! continues to pull in the crowds 10 years after it first opened in London in 1999. The back catalogue of ABBA, one of the most successful bands of all time, accompanies Catherine Johnson's story in which a young woman and her mother find themselves involved in past events on the eve of the daughter's wedding day. Set in Greece, Mamma Mia! centres on Sophie, who is about to be married to Sky. While her mother Donna prepares for the wedding at the guest house she runs, Sophie is preoccupied by the need to know the identity of her father. Behind her mother's back she has invited three possible suspects from her mother's free-loving past to the wedding. To Sophie's shock - and to Donna's unfathomable surprise - they all turn up. But which one will take her down the aisle? (Musical)

WE WILL ROCK YOU features 32 of Queen's greatest hits including Killer Queen, We Will Rock You, Bohemian Rhapsody and Radio Ga Ga.  This rocking show is set in a futuristic world where everyone dresses the same and thinks the same thoughts and where all musical instruments have been banned. The people need a hero to help them break free...is Galileo the man for the job? (Musical)

WICKED transports audiences to a spectacular fantasy world of wizards and witches to tell the incredible untold story of an extraordinary friendship between two girls: the blond and popular Glinda and the misunderstood green girl, Elphaba, whose destiny is to become the infamous Wicked Witch of the West. Experience this unforgettable, award-winning musical and discover that you’ve not been told the whole story about the land of Oz... (Musical)

WIZARD OF OZ Developed from the ever popular 1939 MGM screenplay, The Wizard Of Oz is an enchanting adaptation of the all-time musical classic, totally reconceived for the stage by the award-winning creative team. (Musical)

BILLY ELLIOT One of Britain's most successful films ever, Billy Elliot, gets a stage makeover with music added by legendary tunester Sir Elton John. The musical tells the story of young Billy, who is born in a northern town where men box and work in the mines. They do not dance and they certainly do not harbour ambitions of attending the Royal Ballet School. But Billy is a bit different. Brought up by a single father, without a mother's touch, Billy does not want to fight, but is enthralled by the grace and wonder of ballet. With gritty determination he attempts to prove doubters wrong by going all the way. (musical)

LION KING The Lion King is the much loved musical stage adaptation of Disney's hugely successful animated film. When the young lion prince Simba is born, his evil uncle Scar is pushed back to second in line to the throne. Unimpressed with his future prospects, Scar plots to kill both Simba and his father, the lion King Mufasa, becoming king in the process. Young Simba survives the heinous plot but is led to believe that his father died because of him. Devastated, he flees the kingdom and soon finds a carefree life. But without a real king, the pride soon falls on hard times and a hero is needed to bring back prosperity. (Musical)

ROCK OF AGES Rock Of Ages is the Broadway musical which sets a simple love story to a soundtrack of classic 80s rock tunes. A celebration of rock culture in 1980s Los Angeles, Rock Of Ages is set in the city in 1987, when a small town girl meets a big city rocker in LA's most famous rock club. They fall in love to some of the greatest songs of the decade. Rock Of Ages features the classic tunes We Built This City, The Final Countdown, I Wanna Know What Love Is, Here I Go Again and Don't Stop Believin'. Created in London by the entire Broadway creative team, Rock Of Ages hopes to have audiences rocking out in the aisles. (Musical)

JERSEY BOYS A smash hit on Broadway, the musical Jersey Boys tells the story of how four blue-collar boys from the wrong side of the tracks - Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi - became one of the biggest American pop bands of the 1960s, selling 175 million records worldwide. (Musical)

LEAGALLY BLONDE Legally Blonde The Musical is the story of college sweetheart and homecoming queen Elle Woods, who doesn't take no for an answer. When her boyfriend dumps her for someone serious, Elle puts down the credit card, hits the books and heads for Harvard Law! Along the way, Elle proves that being true to yourself never goes out of style. Based on the Reese Witherspoon film. (Musical)

GHOST Based on the hit 1990 film, Ghost The Musical tells a timeless story about the power of love. After being killed, Sam is trapped as a ghost between this world and the next trying to communicate with his girlfriend Molly through a phoney psychic in the hope of saving her from his murderer. (Musical)

THE WOMAN IN BLACK combines the power and intensity of live theatre with a cinematic quality of film noir. It is a formula that provides audiences with an evening of unremitting drama as they are transported into a ghostly world. Now in its 18th year, over 3 million people have lived to tell the tale of one of the most exciting, gripping and successful theatre events ever staged. (Play)

THE MOUSETRAP centres on a group of people gathered together in a remote part of the countryside, who discover there is a murderer in their midst. The question, of course, is which one of them is the guilty party.You would think audiences would know whodunnit by now, but more than half a century on and they are still asking! Agatha Christie's classic thriller The Mousetrap continues on the world's longest run. The show opened at the Ambassadors in 1952, moved next door to its current home in 1974 and recently celebrated its 20,000th performance. (Play)

SHAKESPEAREAN PLAY at either the Globe Theatre or Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre (Play)