Shell Christmas Dinner

Shell Grace Flynn writes: The whole Shell year was very excited to feast on the much-awaited Shell Christmas Dinner on Monday. It’s a formal event though, like always, Teddies has a brilliant way of making it fun for everyone involved. As we walked over to the Dining Hall, all of us clamoured at the windows to take a look inside the festive and beautifully-decorated tables. One by one, each House arrived, all showing a glistening Christmas spirit, whether that was through delightful smiles, or by taking the slightly more unorthodox route of wearing light-up Christmas jumpers, featuring elves, Christmas trees, reindeer and snow underneath their blazers. All in all, spirits were indeed very high, and every single Shell was excited to share such a beautiful dinner with all their friends.

We were soon seated, and sat in large tables as Houses. Jubilee’s two tables were right next to the windows looking out onto the Quad, and it really was a sight of winter chill compared to the warm, cosy place where we all sat. We commenced the feast by breaking open our Christmas crackers, which held festive paper crowns and balloons, as well as other little gifts. We chatted amongst ourselves for a while, talking about our days, and enjoyed relaxing with our housemates as we nibbled on our first course, which was a delicious Caesar salad dish. We could all tell that we were  going to thoroughly enjoy ourselves that night. Happiness and festivities filled the room as we connected not only with our friends, but also with the members of staff we sat with.

Soon afterwards, our main course arrived: an absolutely delicious meal of succulent turkey, with traditional stuffing, Brussels sprouts, and pigs in blankets. My Jubilee table was hosted by Mr Damiani, who had the great idea of playing a game of charades. It was a huge hit, and we laughed and played with vigour and amusement. In the midst of the fun, we barely noticed the pudding put in front of us though it did not take long for our attention to be captured by the delicious chocolate log cake paired with vanilla ice cream.

What a meal it was!