A Week in Review—August 31-September 6
For the Bank Holiday weekend on Monday August 31, the students took a day trip to see Stonehenge and the city of Bath. Our first stop was to see the prehistoric monument located about 1 hour outside the city of London. With audio guide in hand, the students had the opportunity to learn about how Stonehenge was created and what their major purpose was.
We then boarded our bus and rode for about another hour through the English countryside to the city of Bath, located about 100 miles west of London. This ancient town dates back to the time of the Roman occupation of Britain in 43 AD. The Romans sought the city’s medicinal uses of the natural hot springs that can reach almost 95°F. The Romans and the Celts both believed this was a scared spring and used the area as a shrine to various gods. The city of Bath was the center of fashionable life in the 18th century and was the home of famous author Jane Austen. The students were given a walking tour of the city and then toured the Roman Pump Room and saw the ancient hot springs.
For their British Life and Culture class, the students were given a guided tour of Parliament. We were guided through the Queen’s Robbing Room, where Queen Elizabeth II is dressed for the State Opening of Parliament. This speech, which is given in the House of Lords Chamber, marks the opening of Parliament and occurs in the beginning of November each year. Our tour guide then brought us into the House of Lords and then the House of Commons. Afterwards, some students took the Tube to Platform 9 and ¾ to celebrate the first day of school at Hogwarts, the famous school that Harry Potter attends!
Some other highlights from this week:
• The first Hard Rock Café opened in London in 1971. Our weekly Family Meal led us to dine at this famous Hard Rock Café this week where everyone enjoyed good music and good food!
• For their Transnational Studies class, the students took a trip the Patidar house, Gujarati Hindu Patel community organization where they dinned on wonderful Indian cuisine!
• On Thursday August 3, the students went to the National Theater to hear a discussion led by David Edgar, contemporary British playwright.
Please tune in next week for more updates on NUin England happenings!
