The wind blew all night bringing some refreshing air to the Hazelhutters and allowing them to enjoy a cool day of horse riding. As usual the excellent staff at La Martingala brought out the best in the children as they learned some important equestrian skills. After lunch there was time for the children to play some games in the undergrowth! Then we all returned to the Hazelhut where the children enjoyed some free time. Later James helped them to cut special bamboo sticks which we will be decorating tomorrow. For dinner we all enjoyed home made burgers by the camp fire and these Hazelhutters reminded us of little monkeys as the munched in the tree!
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A rainy day was just what we needed for our sports day today as all the others have been super hot! The children did a range of indoor sports and games. Today was also a big day for Mr. Jones and Nerino who had to have a little operation. They had a bit of an unhappy day, but are doing well this evening. The other animals enjoyed a lot of attention today too between the rain clouds.... For lunch the children made their own sandwiches. And we found a dry place to eat them! In the afternoon it was dry enough to do some outdoor games in order to continue our sports day theme. At tea time we helped on of our day children to celebrate his 5th birthday with a delicious cake!
It's time for more Hazelhutters to join in the fun - 5 boys and 4 girls came to spend the week today. We also have two great new teen helpers all the way from England. The boys are happy there are so many of them because they can get stuck into so many good games of football and the girls are all getting on well with each other. Here we all are enjoying the view and
None of the Hazelhutters could believe that the end of the week had come around so soon! At half past nine we had to say an early goodbye to two children from the group, which was especially sad as this was their third week with us! This week we decided to take our group to Sutri for a day of sightseeing and shopping. Thankfully it was not as hot as usual, but we still made sure to drink a lot before we started. Then we visited some shops as well as the beautiful town square and we made a dive into the spooky old crypt in the cathedral. ...Before visiting yet more shops! Many children said that the lunch at 'Vescovado' was the best yet - thank you Tonino and Manuela! On the way back to the cars, we stopped at the old washing area and imagined how people used to clean their clothes. Then, just before leaving, the children squeezed in a homemade ice cream too! Back at the Hazelhut the leaving ceremony came and went and sadly we had a technological hitch and so there are no pictures - sorry. What we would love to say is that it was great having you and you are all welcome back any time!
We all had a lovely night's rest due to the cooler weather and so, instead of the usual lake trip, we decided to go to Monte Venere and do a hike. These pictures are of us getting some energy before we headed up the hill. The beech forest was beautiful all around us, but soon after we headed off, we had a stop for a stretching/tai chi session. After that we hardly stopped before reaching the top! When the children finally saw the 'Pozzo del Diavolo' at the top of the extinct volcano, they were filled with a sense of achievement. As usual the children found the way down much easier than the way up and the hunger for lunch helped them reach the bottom much quicker too! Back at the Hazelhut everyone wanted a swim to cool off after all that hot and sweaty walking. Then in the evening we had our first talent show of the year, but only 2 groups were brave enough to face the 'stage'. Despite this fact, the audience loved it and it was the perfect prelude to the PIZZA PARTY! A perfect day, what a shame it's our last together....
We had 7 other children join us for the day today and they were all very creative. The younger group started the day by drawing to music, while the older children got to grips with the Japanese art of origami. 2 of our teen helpers also helped the older children to make rice-stuffed chickens - which they loved!! Then, before lunch, we got a visit from Matheus Pezzotta - our favourite Brazilian musician - who lit up the day with some very special songs. No sooner had Matheus left than the sky clouded over and thunder roared while lightning flashed across the sky.... oh well... an indoor picnic! After lunch there was time for more musical fun with a bamboo stick workshop. Eventually the rain stopped and the children were able to enjoy some fresh air. Before Karaoke time came once again, with a banging opener by our teen helper and James! Followed by some awesome songs by the children! We ended the day with a delicious home made burger in the cool of a fresh evening - finally!
Our Tuesday tradition of going to 'La Martingala' continued today with half of the group attending the horse riding lessons. As usual the children were happy to help clean the ponies. But they were happiest on horse back! Hungry work for Hazelhutters! Nest stop, LUNCH... The group which hung back at the Hazelhut helped in the vegetable garden.... ...and then preparing the vegetables for cooking. 2 particularly thoughtful girls came to give Belen a pedicure with Ottavia, ensuring that the donkey's hooves will not split in the hot summer weather. Then we made some little stuffed hens to take home. And 2 of the Hazelhutters had fun tormenting our teen helper! In the afternoon the group was happy to be reunited and to jump in the pool together again! What a great day!
Sports Day was smooth this week with 2 helpful teens to keep an eye on activities! But once again it was a hot day, so refreshing snack was crucial! For lunch we enjoyed our usual picnic under the trees and spent our time trying to keep Mr. Jones at bay! Some of the children took the time to go and see Belen and Fidel today too. In the afternoon there were swimming events. Then some children got involved in gardening, helping us to plant some new lettuce plants. Another group made delicious apricot ice cream using our perfect apricots! We ate the ice cream after dinner and toasted our hens for their part in a very good carbonara and ice cream!
Once again we have another lovely group of Hazelhutters to spend the week with. We can already tell that they are active.... ...fun loving... ....creative... ...and cool! We also have three lovely teen helpers this week as well as our much loved Workaways. We think it's going to be a good week!
The hydrangeas have coped with the heat and so did these super Hazelhutters... Here they all are with our student helper (plus Mr. Jones) on the last day! We made our usual walk to the village and visited the usual shops.... ...but this time we ate at the 'Antica Osteria' - our last lunch together was delicious! Back at the Hazelhut, the children waited excitedly for their parents to arrive and for the Leaving Ceremony to begin. There were many certificates to be given out and so many nice words to be said about these super Hazelhutters.... James and Ottavia both felt quite emotional! Then there were prizes to be handed out... And of course a rowdy rendition (without the words in front!!!) of the Hazelhut song before the words : "Hazelhutters dismissed!" rang out. We hope to see you all again soon!
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