Some Fretwork and the Interminable Christmas Play at the Chalet School

[EmilyAlice]

Now girls, line up and listen because this term is a busy one. Firstly we are combining our hobbies club and the Christmas play, so we will need our fretworkers to get busy on the scenery, some beautiful découpage for decorations, our nimble-fingered needlewomen on costume duty and some scrapbooks for - er...
Now one other thing girls. As you know the Chalet School has moved from the Tyrol, to Guernsey, to Armishire, to some island or other and thence to Switzerland.
This term we have moved again and the first thing I want you to do is to find out where the bloody hell we are....

Thank you for the welcome.

Mornington DD still likes me to read aloud to her - she's 10 so perfectly capable of reading to herself. We tried the School at the Chalet and she really enjoyed it. I wondered whether she would as they are so old fashioned and it is a bit slow to get going because there's quite a bit of scene setting but after the first couple of chapters she was hooked.

In the story the information about the KKK is all found in 'awful' Elsie books - I had no idea what these were when I was young but thanks to the wonders of the internet they turn out to be books about a young girl growing up in the South after the Civil War whose family opposes the KKK. Which makes their glib use in this story even more surprising.

I've never read 'Three Go' and have to admit I'd always assumed it referred to the triplets starting school.

It should be about the triplets, but they haven yet developed any individual personality or character at all really. And I think their first school days take place in the 44-47 three year gap in the original series.

My mum has written a "Drabble" that she is very proud of, set in the CS...
is anyone here not on the FOCS site and would mind if I shared it here? I feel bad that I clearly don't appreciate all the nuances that true CS fans would get...

Isadora I suggest you sign up to Archive Of Our Own (AO3) for free and post it there and link here.

If its an actual 100 words one you could put it here too.

Please may I join?

I'll take the train - Calais - Paris, Paris - Prague, Prague - Moscow, Moscow - Ulan Bator... that last leg from Moscow only took 5 days which is nothing for a Chalet girl like me. I'm an efficient traveller. I've rolled up my travelling rug and remembered my umbrella.

A bit lost now I'm in Ulan Bator though. Having travelled through all those countries I've picked up lots of languages which I'm sure will be of benefit when I join you.

Stuck on Ulan Bator station - late arrival ... been told to look for a lady with a blue beret and a few daisies in her buttonhole... no one matching that description just yet... feeling rather nervous. Did learn Mongolian from nice lad on train but only "bayarla" (thank you) and nadad arcc ognu (pass the vodka please) and not sure that's going to get me far....

help

Oh no, listsandbudgets, did your people not show you the prospectus? We've moved from Mongolia something about mass murder on the plains at the Nativity play, it's never dull around here and now we're living it up off the Italian coast somewhere south of Belsornia. I'm afraid it's back on the train for you, my lamb. It's just as well you're a seasoned traveller and you've brought plenty of books and knitting with you to keep yourself occupied. We'll ask the King of Belsornia to let us know when you cross the border, and I'm sure he'll arrange an escort down here for old times' sake.

Fingers crossed you'll make it in time for Madame's birthday. It's not long now, so we'd better start collecting. I'm sure she'd love another dainty coffee set - Jo will keep smashing them, bless the girl.

Ahh that explains why the lady with the daisies never appeared.

I've exercised my Mongolian to fullest extent and consumed a lot of vodka - can't believe I've now got to spend 5 more days and nights just getting back to Moscow. The Trans- siberian is so boring in places - just lots of pine trees (did you know Stalin put them there so travellers wouldn't be able to see the gulags?)

Ah well Moscow and thence Italy here I come. I've bought lots of cashmere for the knitting and thought I may buy some unpainted Russian dolls in Moscow - they might be good for hobby club.

Shame you left Mongolia, the vodka is good and I haven't got round to visiting the Gobi desert yet either.

Now please don't move again before I've arrived, this is all very tiring

Well perhaps someone will be writing to explain to parents how they managed to leave the entire upper school without any adult supervision so that a child (Joey Bettany of course, who else?) has to risk her life to save a child from a neighbouring school (also unsupervised) from drowning in the icy waters of the lake as there aren't any adults to tell when they need help.

It is a wonderful school but they do seem surprisingly careless and none of the parents seem to mind whereas for St Scholastika's having a child in the lake is seen as potentially being the beginning of the end.

DD and I are now on to Eustacia which follows straight on from Rivals but I've noticed that whereas in Rivals the new term is going to start on 3rd Jan because they missed 3 weeks of school at the end of the previous term in Eustacia the same term is starting later because everyone is going to Bernhilda's wedding.

DD has taken the book to school - I think she's been reading it without me which means I shall miss some key plot points!

How are things going for our wine themed sale? Is it time for a grand show of all our work?

How are things going for our wine themed sale? Is it time for a grand show of all our work?

I'm just putting the finishing touches to my model wine bar. Put your brains in steep, folks, because we need a comp for it.

I peeked into Inter V's form room the other day, and glory be, they seem to have got the distillery going again, just in time for the Sale. I don't know quite what they're planning - they weren't speaking very clearly, but they kept mentioning chapels and then falling about in gales of laughter.

Anyone know if we're on for a record number of lime green twinsets this year?

Met a chap called Mr. Humphries. He got on at Irstuk. Lovely bloke and we've drunk lots of vodka together but amazing he says he knows all about the chalet school and he's got a daughter there bizarrely called "The Robin". Do you know her? Apparently she's very sweet and something to do with this Joey of whom you all keep on speaking.

He's on his way to visit her and has promised to escort me so we will both see you soon.

I managed to speak to my parents - they've just received the letter about the school moving to Italy - they're a bit annoyed I'm missing so much of term wandering about various continents but they suppose its good for my languages.

Mr. Humphries says he knows a Russian Doll maker who will be able to let me have lots of unpainted ones

A beintot j'espere

I got complimented on my Italian this week at work. I was accidently copied into an email in Italian, so I put it into Google, then put the answer back through Google translate.
I think this is the only time I have ever been complimented on my language skills.

I Have made some very superior scrapbooks full.of pictures of different wines. I hope they sell well.

It's been a long time since I've been back for a Chalet School thread and I know it's a long shot, but does anyone know if the transcripts are still floating around?

At long last I've arrived after a very long journey. All at sea now though. Sitting in Miss Annersley's study (which appears to double as a wine cellar?) awaiting a sheep dog. Why do I need a sheep dog - are pets compusory at this school?

I have been crocheting crinoline lady wine bottle covers in the school colours. All the bottles are empty though.

Well that is lovely. I have invented a new drink, limeoncello. There is a range of matching knitware.

EmilyAlice.....that has made my day!!!

But girls, an event more important than the sale is looming...our dear Madame s birthday. How are we celebrating??

Oh goodness - is it today? A quick round of "nymphs and sheperherds come away"? Anyone got a china tea set going spare?

I think we should give her a picture of the chalet school for her birthday.
That makes all presents for anyone connected with the chalet for years to come. They'll cry with joy to find that they have the same picture as our dear Madame.

I think on Tuesday so We have time to plan.

My, EmilyAlice, you gave me a fright there. I thought we'd missed our beloved Madame's birthday until I checked my diary.

Did anyone find it a little strange that Lower V's bric-a-brac stall collection seems to be full of dainty coffee sets just like the ones we gave Madame last year and the year before and the year before that? Such a coincidence. I vote we go for something a bit more original this year. I wonder whether Tom's carpentry skills extend to sculpting these days, because if they do, I'm sure Madame would simply adore to have a life-sized sculpture of dear Joey in bronze on the lawn. Tom would be able to get it done by Tuesday if she starts now, we just have to keep Madame out of the way. I'll volunteer to have a life-threatening accident to keep her mind on other things.

Splendid idea. Do we need Dear Joey to model for it?
Bronze or lime green papier mâché?

Just started re-reading School At and looked up what £240 a year is in today's money. Its about £13800 in 1924, which if you own a house and furniture wouldnt be too bad, though no NHS and they don't even consider a non-private school for Jo. Though again the potty little schools for girls that often had 20-60 teens weren't very expensive.

The interesting thing was clicking on other years and conversion rates. Turns out that 1922 to 1930 was a period of deflation, so a yield in sterling of £240 would actually become worth more over the next five years, with 14% deflation in one year!

Which might help explain why the Bettanys, paid in £ but living abroad, go from poor to wealthy so quickly, even without the inheritance from Great-Uncle William and marrying Jem.

Do we ever hear about the two married aunts with hordes of kids again?