Today, almost every student took a day trip to the West Midlands. Breakfast was served in respective colleges and afterwards we were all able to enjoy lovely air-conditioned coaches on our way to our first stop, Stratford-Upon-Avon.
The town is where genius English playwright, the most famous name in the world and history, William Shakespeare, lived for part of his life. Supervisors conducted a guided tour of the town’s landmarks, including one of Shakespeare’s family homes and where he went to school. The rest of the students decided to explore Stratford together.
The spoils were an English classic: fish and chips. Students chilled in the shade with their lunches by the river before the coaches took us to Warwick castle down the road.
The castle was first built as a wooden fort by William the Conqueror in the eleventh century. The visit began with attempting to navigate a hedge maze off to the side of the castle, even the supervisors got a bit lost! Then some ice creams and iced drinks were grabbed as students were allowed to find their own favourite parts of the castle. Some tried out archery, and others climbed the many stairs up to the various towers.
Undeniably, the best part of today was the jousting demonstration in the mid-afternoon. Actors (and evidently, talented gymnasts) on horseback acted out how the reign of the Tudors began. It started with the battles between the houses of York and Lancaster in the Wars of the Roses. The horses stole the show, circling around the arena as the riders acted out jousting and sword-fighting. The demonstration ended with the riders doing tricks like contortion and acrobatics on horseback, and ceremonious blue and red smoke, and streamers, filled the arena. The students would agree this was the coolest part!
The coach took us all back to Cambridge for a much deserved dinner, free time, and early night.
