Οur IB budding scientists and their teachers have now returned a great trip to  CERN in Geneva where they visited the Large Hadron Collider, the ALICE Collider, the CERN Centre of Operations, CERN’s Globe Museum, the Geneva University Observatory, the UN building, the Red Cross Museum, the Christmas Market at Lake Geneva and more besides. Students were very enthusiastic on their return!   A not to be missed experience!

Our Students and teachers started their trip by visiting CERN. After rubbing shoulders with researchers and employees in CERN's excellent cafeteria, they listened to the guides who took them on a journey through the history and ideology of this international institute followed by an actual journey to two stations along the LHC; the ALICE collider and the heart of operations, the Cern Control Centre, where they learnt more about the fundamenal nature of matter and the logisitics of running CERN!

Day two began with the stars! At the observatory of the University of Geneva, two PhD students were their guides for a fascinating few hours. They immersed themselves into a 3-D tour of the universe and travelled through time to the Big Bang.  Later on the guides shared their research journeys into exoplanets and chemical analysis of galaxies with the team. The students got up close and personal with Teleso - the on site telescope- and their telescope in Chile which is controlled remotely since COVID!

 Don't take our word for it......

Globe at Cern by Yannis: "Perhaps the most surreal experience was stepping into the dark depths of the Globe, surrounded by a variety of balls, each with different exhibits stored inside, while eerie music accompanied a French documentary projected onto the walls. I particularly enjoyed the balls that contained parts from the instruments used to detect particles. It is one thing to learn about particles in a classroom, and another to truly understand the equipment and process involved in some of the greatest discoveries in modern physics."

MUN by Myrto and Ellie: "Such an amazing opportunity to apply our MUN experience to the real UN procedures! We were very lucky to observe a committee on landmines in session. The whole tour was so fascinating!"

Red Cross by Alexandra: "Going to the Red Cross gave us the chance to hear and understand what is happening around the world. We had the opportunity to hear from witnesses about their experiences regarding a variety of issues such as immigrating and natural disasters. Overall, it was a really touching experience."

Annecy by Stefanos:"Given the chance to walk around and explore the Christmas market in Annecy was a highlight of my trip. Travelling from stall to stall, sheltered from the cold by the warm smells of fondue and spices and a distinct sense of Christmas spirit which emanated from the lakeside town, we ordered a round of hot drinks. As the rain intensified we went indoors, after coming across a small creperie - the owner of which happened to be Greek!"

UN by Christopher:"The exertion to the UN was incredibly interesting and inciteful as I have never had the opportunity to really learn and understand the setup of the united nations and how it all works together in harmony. We were lucky enough to also observe a committee on landmines which gives hope to a landmine free future."

Globe by Konstantinos:"Our return to CERN on the last day allowed us to enter their large globe shaped museum. This experience left us with a more complete understanding of how the experiments are carried out, since we did not have the opportunity to view the collider from up close. The interactive nature of the museum through various holograms and models was instrumental in developing our knowledge of physics, and gave us an insight into how the universe was created."

UN and dinner with fondue in the old city of Geneva by William:"The UN gives me first impression how a international conference works. We have listened a meaningful discussion from Cambodia about the ways to solve problems after war. Old city of Geneva is a perfect place for hanging out in the evening and having a dinner in a traditional restaurant. I have had a nice experience to have a traditional fondue in the old city."

The trip finished with students studying on the plane using OneNote and exercise books to catch up with what they missed had during the trip!

Welcome back to Earth guys!