b'Stained Glass VisitWhen we went to visit the workshop of the glass designer, I went in not really knowing what to expect. We were briefed on how he designs the windows in the same way artisans did centuries ago and how the memorial window from 1922 would also have been made. The actions of cutting the glass and painting designs on the pieces were the most fascinating as they involved chemical reactions and time-consuming processes, which I would have never expected. Personally, I found that the most engaging part of the process was the painting as he could create watercolour splashes or different textures on the glass, which I would have never expected to be possible or to look as polished as they did.We also saw the unfinished window for the schools 160th anniversary up close, the smaller details incorporated to reflect the schools development and wider societal changes.The trip was eye-opening, and stained glass making is an art form I would love to try one day.Callum Khan 13 HFIView from the 2022 BridgeSarcasm! Scene, the door of the Hall during the erection of the stained glass window. Small boy enjoying surreptitious view, his eye applied to crack. Enter Master.Master, tapping said small boy on shoulderDo you like the window?Small boyYes, sir.MasterWell thats a load off my mind, anyway!BELGIUM BOUNDThe trip was very moving as it openedFritz Habers wife committed suicide as our eyes to the horrors of the Greatshe couldnt live with a man that was War. We visited several memorials andresponsible for the deaths of so many, and cemeteries where we placed wreaths forhis children were killed in gas chambers the Handsworth Grammar School Old Boysbecause they were Jewish. Later that who lost their lives in the Great War. Theevening we witnessed the moving Last sheer number of people that died, and thePost Ceremony at the Menin Gate; another number of bodies that havent even beenthought-provoking moment.identifieda fifthwas shocking, and weOn the last day, we visited the beautiful city were privileged to attend the rededicationof Bruges and enjoyed a canal tour which ceremony of the grave of a soldier who hadwas very therapeutic and we ate authentic recently been identified. Belgium waffles as well as chocolate, which At the Memorial Museum Passchendaeletasted amazing!we saw the kind of conditions soldiersHardev Manku (10W)fought and lived in. Many soldiers died as a result of being forced to go over the top; failing to comply with orders may have led to their own commanders shooting them for cowardice. Some were gassed, and many soldiers ran the wrong way, meaning the gas eventually caught up with them. We were told by our tour guide that development of these gases ultimately led to the destruction of the inventors family. 15'