There ain't no rest for the wicked...
Having swung through Normandy and Paris last week, we were slowing the pace down for a few days in Annecy and Zermatt before the pace is supposed to pick up again in Italy. Annecy was amazing, and the days spent biking around the lake, whitewater rafting, swimming, and exploring were just as restful and relaxing as you could hope. The town and surrounding countryside is absolutely stunning, and I was already keeping my eye out for cheap hostels for whenever I get a chance to visit.
Unfortunately it was after we arrived in Zermatt that things began to derail. Opening my windows to cool off my hotel room in preparation for bed, I overheard some boys two balconies over from mine playing music and being fairly loud for the hour. Stepping out to get them to quieten down, I then saw several other kids quickly take off into the room to hide. Being out of their rooms after curfew is one of the few zero-tolerance policies with this company, and after a half day of communicating with the office three students are on their way home early.
This is the worst part of the job. Enforcing zero-tolerance policies is unpleasant for everyone, staff and students alike. Saying goodbye to good kids who made a bad judgement call is terrible, but the biggest safety expectation is that they will stay in their rooms after curfew. If we cannot trust them on that one thing, then these trips cannot happen, which is why (unfortunately) zero-tolerance makes sense on this issue. We trust them at the start of the trip, but once that trust is broken there is no time in a quick trip like this to rebuild that trust, nor the resources to add supervision for the one(s) who cannot be trusted.
We're in a bit of a holding pattern now, waiting to find out what the travel details are for the unfortunate three. This dragging out is not pleasant for anyone, leading to everyone being more upset and having more resentment directed towards staff. While I will hate to say goodbye to these three, I cannot wait for us to be able to move on and past this incident.
Unfortunately it was after we arrived in Zermatt that things began to derail. Opening my windows to cool off my hotel room in preparation for bed, I overheard some boys two balconies over from mine playing music and being fairly loud for the hour. Stepping out to get them to quieten down, I then saw several other kids quickly take off into the room to hide. Being out of their rooms after curfew is one of the few zero-tolerance policies with this company, and after a half day of communicating with the office three students are on their way home early.
This is the worst part of the job. Enforcing zero-tolerance policies is unpleasant for everyone, staff and students alike. Saying goodbye to good kids who made a bad judgement call is terrible, but the biggest safety expectation is that they will stay in their rooms after curfew. If we cannot trust them on that one thing, then these trips cannot happen, which is why (unfortunately) zero-tolerance makes sense on this issue. We trust them at the start of the trip, but once that trust is broken there is no time in a quick trip like this to rebuild that trust, nor the resources to add supervision for the one(s) who cannot be trusted.
We're in a bit of a holding pattern now, waiting to find out what the travel details are for the unfortunate three. This dragging out is not pleasant for anyone, leading to everyone being more upset and having more resentment directed towards staff. While I will hate to say goodbye to these three, I cannot wait for us to be able to move on and past this incident.
That really sucks. On a positive note, they have probably learned a life lesson!
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