From Russia, with love

School breaks generally mean movies, long hours of sleep, family holidays and lazy afternoons. But 23 St Christopher's students went for something different this spring break heading to a drama festival in Russia.

The group of 11- to 15-year-olds with teachers Victoria Allen and David Williams, travelled to Perm in Russia to take part in the Alexander Pushkin School's drama festival, Prikamskoye Wonder.

This trip was a first in many respects. It was the first time a St Christopher's school group had gone to Russia and for many they were the first of their family to visit the country. Seeing and feeling snow and spending a few days in such cold (-25oC to -35oC) weather conditions was also the ultimate experience for most.

For the host school, it was a celebration of sorts as it was the first time that an international school with students from different nationalities with a background of different cultures, food habits and languages had come to visit and take part in the annual festival.

Miss Allen, 25, said: "We were very thrilled because it was the first time that our school was invited to Russia and it was the first time that everyone on the trip actually went there.

"Russia has its own charm as many people don't go there. We were told that Perm had been accepting visitors only for the last 30 years. There was this mystery about the country that everyone wanted to unravel and see."

In Perm, the students from Bahrain got an opportunity to perform in a proper theatre and present a composition which won them the best choreography award. They were also exposed to the work of different schools and witnessed a ballet and an opera rehearsal in one of the country's most distinguished theatres - The Perm Tchaikovsky Opera and Ballet Theatre.

Miss Allen, who directed and organised the students' work in groups, said: "The drama festival was based on students' work. So we had a piece in Russian, French and English. And it was quite exciting to see different interpretations, how schools work and how they take on different stories. We had two stories from the The Little Prince, but one was in English and one was in Russian.

"In school we do a lot of devising. I ordered and put the students' ideas. We had recorded Indian and Russian music and we used chimes, cymbals and xylophones to create the atmosphere of snow ... just within the ice caves itself like the dropping of the water.

"In our version, we included a lot of physical theatre so students became the icicles in the ice caves. We had some Russian and Indian dancing and recited an extract from Alexander Pushkin's poem in Russian that described the cold and the snow.

"At the last minute we were also encouraged to do a song in Russian but we had the script with the English pronunciations in front of us. It was tricky but great fun."

The students have come back with lots of interesting stories. Almost everyone was delighted by the caring attitudes of their host families, most of who could not speak English. Most hated the Russian pancake called bling - that is served with honey, sour cream or jam. They were also surprised at the amount of tea consumed by the average Russian.

Alex Farrell, 14, from South Africa, said: "We visited a whole new culture that was so different from ours. I have been to many parts around Europe but Russia was the most different. Here we go to school on the bus. There they go on a tram or walk to school. They all live in apartments and flats whereas most of us here live in houses. I really enjoyed it and if there was another trip I would definitely go."

Rebecca Holman, 13, said: "The train journey was really good fun. And going through the snow and looking at different villages with wooden houses. The train's toilet was very different. I had never seen a ballet before and it was amazing. My host family went out of their way to take care of us and ensure that my feet were warm."

Sreedevi Kesavan, 15, said: "I was impressed with the way they have preserved their culture and have yet developed in medicine, science and technology. They have well-kept museums with preserved paintings and their train stations were not covered in graffiti.

"People were really nice. In the school they prepared a special vegetarian cuisine just for us. They were very helpful and wouldn't stop feeding us.

"The most interesting visit was to the backstage of the old opera theatre and seeing how a ballet shoe is made. My friend Mishal even got her hair done by master class hair dresser as a ballet dancer. It was just amazing."

The best part of the trip for everyone was the 19th century ball for which they all learned the polka and the waltz. Celine Vaandrager, 11, said: "It was like a fairy tale because girls were dressed in proper gowns and looked beautiful and the boys looked really smart. The girls could not move without an escort and the boys had to stand all the time. We all learnt to sit very straight."