Yesterday myself and some of the students enjoyed an early evening activity of Beer Tasting!
We started at 5.30pm so our morning and afternoon students could have a few drinks together!
We had 5 to try: Fat Nerd (Vanilla Porter), Sierra Nevada (Tropical IPA), White Rabbit (Dark Ale), Red Stripe (Lager), Colonial (Pale Ale).
The students had to write down the flavours they could taste, guess where they were from, alcohol percentage and price. There was quite a bit of cheating going on though so we didn’t have a winner!
The group was split, with half saying the Tropical IPA was their favourite, and the other half finding it too sweet, preferring the Red Stripe Lager.
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
We had 5 beers for the students to try: Fixation (Indian Pale Ale), Cascade (Pale Ale), Fore Fathers (English Pale Ale), Red Stripe (Lager Beer) 4 Pine (Cherry & Coconut).
The students each had a table to fill in, guessing the flavours they could taste, the country or Australian state they thought it was from, the alcohol percentage and price!
The favourites were Fixation IPA and Red Stripe! The Cherry and Coconut 4 Pines was not very popular!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Last Friday we had our Beer Tasting activity, which unsurprisingly is always a popular activity with the students!
We tasted 6 different beers; Temptress (Chocolate Porter), The Fix (Indian Pale Ale), Weihenstephaner (Pilsner), Little Creatures (Pale Ale), White Rabbit (Dark Ale) and Timothy Taylors (Premium Ale).
After each tasting the students had to write down what they could taste, the mark they’d give it out of 10 and guess the price. They scored a point for any words that matched the description (e.g. citrus, coffee, bitter) and a point if they guessed the price within 50 cents.
Aline was our winner and received a slice of the delicious birthday cake Naomi had made me!
After totaling up everyone’s marks out of 10, Little Creatures (Pale Ale) and The Fix (Indian Pale Ale) were the clear winners!
Great way to end the week and spend my birthday at work!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Tito is from Switzerland – the small village of Malvaglia. He arrived in Byron Bay 6 months ago and enrolled at Lexis, starting in the Upper Intermediate class. After several months studying General English, he went travelling round Australia in his van, with friends he had met at Lexis. He traveled down the East Coast, into the outback and finally to Sydney, before returning to Byron. He is now knuckling down to study for his Cambridge Advanced Qualification. Tito has become part of the furniture here at Lexis Byron Bay; you will often find him waxing his surfboard, skulking around reception looking for Tim Tams or involved in a heated table tennis match. Tito is a fantastic student and a pleasure to have at school, he is loved by fellow students and teachers alike.
I decided to interview Tito to find out a bit more about his experience here.
Why did you choose Byron Bay?
I chose Byron because I didn’t want to live in a big town with all the hustle and bustle – I wanted to live in a small town – here with the waves I can find peace, enjoying the sunny weather and the fresh sea air. I think I would to define Byron Bay as an open minded and multi-cultural place.
What were your weaknesses in English before you came to Australia?
I was a little bit rusty in everything concerning grammar – for this reason it was essential to go on a formal English course. Being here for 6 months, using the language has become natural – I think it is a process which takes time, but you can really see your improvements by being fully immersed in a situation where the use of this language is required.
Tell me about your teachers and your classes.
I have been enrolled in upper intermediate and then advanced, where I had the opportunity to meet the amazing teachers Claudia and Josie – Claudia is an extremely knowledgeable teacher and I liked her way of explaining a lot of grammar rules which before were difficult for me to understand. Whereas Josie is the most motivating teacher that I have ever had and it’s a great pleasure to learn such a challenging syllabus with a teacher who makes it seem so easy and enjoyable.
What is it like living in our onsite Accommodation?
It’s an extremely comfortable and familiar place to live – there is a very sociable environment, it is very easy to make friends and as soon as you arrive you become part of the onsite family. It is always possible to go out of your room and hang around in the common area, seeing all of your friends. Since my arrival I’ve met a lot of gregarious people with whom I have organised many dinners, for example the Easter Sunday dinner where almost all the residents (50 people) cooked delicious dishes to share in a friendly and pleasant environment. Many students from around the world made different dishes from their home countries. I made a pizza from scratch, inspired by my Swiss Italian heritage – so tasty.
What is your favourite activity that we run here?
The most attractive activity is undoubtedly the table tennis tournament, where only the student with the best skills can win the title and of course the beer. It is always full of cheering crowds, the competition gets very heated. Romain is better than me, so he usually wins, but I win second place, which is also an impressive accolade. Don’t worry if you think you are not going to win, we will still share the beer with you!
What are your favourite things to do in Byron?
Most days I enjoy spending my time at the beach, surfing, sunbathing and playing beach games such as Frisbee and Volleyball. It is wonderful to live and study right on the beach. I will never forget the time when a dolphin passed right under my surfboard, what a breathtaking moment! I often see dolphins when surfing, during the Summer it is as common as seeing bushturkeys. You also can’t leave Byron without experiencing the nightlife of this delightful town; Sticky Wicket, Lala land, The Rails and of course Cheeky Monkey’s are all lovely pubs/clubs where you can meet local people and share drinks and great discussions with your friends. A warning though: Do not abuse alcohol; otherwise you will pay the consequences the next day at school!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
February was another fun-filled month here at Lexis Byron Bay!!
As it was the month of love we had a special Valentine’s BBQ and Secret Valentines postbox for the students and teachers to send messages to each-other!
We held our monthly Table Tennis Tournament with Roman walking away as the February Champion!!
Can he be beaten in the March tournament?!
Aswell as weekly Yoga we also had regular Coffee Lounge, where we enjoyed coffee, Tim Tams, card games and Jenga!
Beer Tasting was a very popular Friday activity, for both the morning and afternoon students!
The boys and Marta enjoyed a game of competitive game of Soccer in the summer sun, with the winning team cooling down with their prize beers!
For cooking class we made delicious Koala Cupcakes!!
Volleyball was, as always, a great afternoon at the beach!!
We also had another beautiful afternoon at the beach for Cricket!
The students created some brilliant designs at Boomerang Painting!
They also displayed their drawing skills with a game of Pictionary!
(I’m positive they didn’t just come for the free pizza!)
We welcomed 43 New Starters!
And sadly said farewell to 47 Graduates!
Looking forward to another great month in March!!!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Unsurprisingly we had quite a lot of students turn up for this!
We tried 6 different beer, including a Pilsner (Weihenstephaner), Pale Ale (Little Creatures), English style bitter (My Wife’s Bitter), Malty dark ale (White Rabbit), Indian pale Ale (Hop Hog) and a Chocolate porter (Fullers).
Little Creatures, Hop Hog and White Rabbit were the favourites!
What a perfect way to end the week!!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
It was too hot for coffee today so we swapped this for beers! Although no-one minded that it was also too hot for Tim Tams as they still tucked into these as they melted!
We played cards games including Crazy Eight and President (although Marta thought this was a game Raphael was making up himself, especially after he won!).
Lear provided some excellent backing music on the guitar!
Jain popped by to say bye to everyone before she leaves tomorrow; you’ll be missed Jain, we wish you all the best for the future!
Roman then showed us some very impressive magic tricks, before everyone headed to the beach to enjoy the sun!
Thanks to all involved for a great afternoon 🙂
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing or Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Today we held the Table Tennis Tournament to find this month’s Lexis Champion!
We held two sessions, to allow both morning and afternoon students to be involved, so ended up with two champions for this month.
In the morning Roman held onto his title from last month…
…and in the afternoon Danny claimed the title!
The tournament could be renamed the Battle for the Beer, as that is the main motivating factor to win!
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Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Being such a hot day in Byron Bay today, a hot coffee wasn’t too appealing! Instead we had a nice cold beer and tried to eat the TimTams before they all melted!
While enjoying the beers we played a round of Lexis Jenga and learnt a little bit more about each other from the questions on each tile.
For example, we found out that Francesco’s dream holiday is to be on the island of Bora Bora, preferably enjoying the company of 17 women! We also discovered Pauline’s most embarrassing moment was when she arrived at school for what she thought was a normal day only to realise she (and her mum) had totally forgotten about her school camp leaving that very morning! There was also a fairly unanimous agreement that if any of us had a billion dollars, it would be spent on travelling the world.
Yesterday we held a Poker Tournament at Lexis Byron Bay!
There was a 6-pack of beer up for grabs for the winner of each session, so everyone did their best to claim the prize.
Well done to Alba who won the morning session and Gaetan who won the afternoon session 🙂
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Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Another beautiful day and a great afternoon for soccer on the beach, followed by a swim in the cool, clear ocean that Byron Bay is known for! Here’s a few photos from the soccer match… 🙂
And the winners were very happy with their beers!
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Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Today we played volleyball in the garden for both the morning and afternoon activities.
The students worked up a sweat while playing some friendly but competitive matches and enjoyed relaxing with a cold beer afterwards!
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Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
This afternoon we tasted a selection of beers from Australia, including a local Stone & Wood Pacific Ale, the famous Coopers Sparkling Ale and the “no hangover” low carb Pure Blonde.
Many of the students already had their favourites, having sampled a few beers already in their time in Byron Bay, but were more than happy to taste them again, along with a few new ones they hadn’t tried yet!
After tasting the seven different types of beers, everyone enjoyed finishing off the cold beers on such a hot, humid afternoon in Byron Bay.
The activity inevitably turned into a great socialising event. The students were quick to turn the US election updates into a drinking game while sharing many stories about their own governments, and Astrid also gave us her own rendition of ‘Happy Birthday‘ played by blowing over the beer bottle tops! 🙂
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Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Last Friday afternoon Josie’s Cambridge FCE class had an excursion to the local Stone & Wood Brewery in Byron Bay as a reward for all their hard work in class.
It was also a great opportunity to practice their English skills, particularly their listening skills as they were told about the different types of beers they were sampling on the tasting paddles. The class enjoyed the local brews and having a lesson at a brewery!
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Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Today we held two Table Tennis Tournaments – one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
The morning tournament was won by defending morning Champion, Othman! He had some good competition but came through to win the TimTams!!
The afternoon tournament had a lot of close matches with some excellent, long rallies. Special mention about the match between Lear and Charlotte, who have played against each other 27 times in the last couple of days and had some epic rallies!
There were a couple of players defending or trying to reclaim their titles from previous months. In the end, Roman was the winner, defending his title from the last tournament!
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Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
