City Kids

It's a glorious autumn day in Nottingham! The sun is shining brightly, birds are singing, and the day's high temperature is in the mid-70s. (The weather-caster on the BBC described today as "a scorcher." Anything much over 75 and the National Health Service starts issuing alerts for heat stroke.)

Our two weeks of frenetic activity have come to an end. Students are registering for classes now, and all of us will soon settle into a routine.

We returned late last night from two days in London -- something we wanted the students to experience early so that they will know how to go back on their own. Our focus was entirely on things that can be done free or on the cheap. We booked them on an inter-city bus for the ride down, and on the train for the ride home. And we booked them four to a room at an inexpensive hotel.

Arriving in London on a Sunday morning, we took them to Morning Prayer at St. Paul's Cathedral, which avoids the sight-seeing tour fee and is completely free. (Some of them caught on to this and went to a mid-day service at Westminster Abbey the next day.)

We bought (well, the program bought) them day passes on the London Underground ("The Tube" or subway), and gave them a brief lesson on how to get around, including a stop next to Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. Then we paired them up with a partner not of their choice and sent them off, two by two, to the best free stuff in London: British Library, Museum of London, National Gallery, Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Victoria and Albert Museum. They had to come back and report to the rest on what was there and whether or not it would be worth seeing. The first two on the list got the highest ratings.

The Yard at Shakespeare's Globe

In the evening, we had tickets to Shakespeare's Globe -- a re-creation of the theater in which the Bard himself worked some four centuries ago. Just as in the day of Queen Elizabeth I, the cheap seats in this theater aren't seats at all. Rather, the common folks stood in the "yard" around the stage, frequently interacting with the characters and becoming part of the action. Our students seemed to enjoy doing the same.

Monday morning we walked the group to the British Museum at opening time to see the Rosetta Stone and other ancient wonders which Britannia stole from its colonies in the days of empire. Some stayed there much of the day, while others set out to see the museums they'd missed the day before. We were pleased that they all seemed to manage to avoid the temptation go shopping or head for the clubs, but spent their energy in cultural pursuits.

Group at British Museum

Mary and I took a tour of the houses of Parliament at Westminster as our own cultural exploration. This was something we had not done before, but may try to weave into a spring trip for the students. The palace is interesting and the guide was superb. We also took a stroll down Fleet Street to see some of the historic sites along the way.

Our students enjoyed their first trip to the countryside of southwest England. But they were beside themselves with excitement over London. It seems that they are city kids, even more than they are country kids!