We started our away weekend journey with a road trip to Northumberland. It was a long car
ride but worth it as the route was very scenic. As soon as we reached Chatton Park Farm,
I was intrigued how it reminded me of my younger days reading Enid Blyton. Once settling
down, the team had its’ first supper. We all sat around the table however it was weird at first
as there were awkward silences, which I expected at the start. Obviously, we overcame that
barrier once someone started talking. After dinner, we retired to bed knowing the next day
we will see Joy and have the workshops which I was nervous about.

The next morning, we all gathered for our first workshop ‘Education’. Then we headed to
Joy’s cottage. We were welcomed by Joy and her husband David as well as two trustees
of the project. It was really nice to see Joy wearing the Sri Lankan flag on her t-shirt. Lunch
was jubilee themed. Joy prepared us a lovely rice and chilli lunch. Whilst many of the
team ate in the conservatory; Hannah and I were eating in the living room, where I had an
engaging conversation with David about the Sri Lankan civil war. After lunch, Joy and David
carried on the discussions of living in Sri Lanka. Listening to what they had to say, it seemed
all familiar to me on what to expect there. Late evening, Laura and I prepared Jacket Potato
dinner. Once dinner finished, we sat around the table taking turns on telling things about
ourselves. To a few it seemed like they weren’t ready to say something personal and whilst
others didn’t mind. Yet again I felt a bit of awkwardness and peer pressure amongst the
team but others were quick to say ‘move on’.

The third day I didn’t know what to expect but definitely turned out to be my favourite day out
of the whole weekend. In the morning, we went to Joy’s for our group photo. I was looking
forward to this as we were wearing our stash for the first time as a team. The photo was
taken in the village green, having been already decorated for the jubilee celebrations. At the
farmhouse we continued our workshops, where we did various activities and gave feedback
and ideas for each position. This was fun because for each activity I ended up working with
most of the team, put into twos/threes rather than being with the same person all the time.
It was good to sit with different people to get to know them better. Once all the workshops
finished and dinner was done, half the team went to bed due to being tired and the rest of us
ended up socialising in the kitchen. I’m glad I stayed because I ended up getting to know the
team more, even considering playing a game.

On the last day, I was sad to leave the farm house. From Northumberland we went straight
to Durham where we had picnic lunch. After this we went to Hatfield College to meet up with
Chandana, one of the professors at Sabaragamuwa University. His talk was very interesting
and I’m pleased Joy arranged this meeting. Overall, the away weekend was not what I
anticipated but I had an enjoyable time towards the end of the trip.