Penfriends, Exchanges & School Trips Artwork

Ginger Gerald - you lucky barstard!

"Ginger Gerald - you Lucky Barstard!" is a podcast about the reality of moving and living overseas. Why would you decide to live abroad in the first place? How does the weather and local language impact you? Do you really need a swimming pool? And what is all of the bureaucracy and admin like just to live there? Is it all worth it? Do you think Ginger Gerald really is a lucky Barstard? Well, you will need to listen in to make your mind up on that one! This podcast is a combination of experiences and hilarious anecdotes to entertain and to provide real and detailed insights about life outside of your own country. Enjoy!

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Ginger Gerald - you lucky barstard!

Penfriends, Exchanges & School Trips

February 12, 2023 • Ged • Season 3 • Episode 5

Ginger Gerald delves deep into the past and looks at the fun and games of having penfriends, doing exchange visits and going on school trips overseas. For many of us these were our very first ever overseas experiences. And, in the dim & dark past, GG even took a school group overseas himself (sounds like a disaster to me) - have a listen to find out for yourself.

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• Discover the latest episode of Ginger Gerald’s podcast, Bon Appetit, for some food, fun, and banter.
• Ginger Gerald is broadcasting from his hometown of Newcastle under Lyme, Staffordshire.
• Penfriends were a popular strategy used by language teachers to help students engage with foreign languages before the internet.
• Penfriends involved writing letters to a random person in a foreign country assigned by the language teacher.
• The idea was to write in the language you were learning and receive a response in that language.
• Today, it is simpler to communicate with someone in another country through a phone and translation services.
• Sometimes penfriends became real friends over time, like Ginger Gerald’s mom who has had the same penfriend for over 75 years.
• This friendship has led to a range of exchange visits over the years.
• Penfriends were a great way for kids to experience exchange trips to other countries, with opportunities to stay with local families and try new foods and activities.
• School trips were another exciting way to break out of the classroom and explore new places, with camping and refuge trips being some of the best for making memories and having fun with friends.
• When the author became a teacher, they got the chance to organize an annual school trip to France, which was a fun and unforgettable experience for everyone involved.
• Despite some mishaps and challenges, the trip was a success, with one memorable moment involving a student ending up neck-deep in a ditch.
• These early experiences with travel and cultural exchange can inspire a lifelong love of exploring new places and meeting people from different backgrounds.