A Midsummer's CIEE Dream

What an exciting adventure we've had these past few days!  And while we could write volumes about all we've done, let's just hit the highlights:

Wednesday:  Our light day of the week.... we had an incredible morning tour of the Theater Royal at Drury Lane - the world's oldest theater still in continuous use!  The tour was impressive - the detailed history of the theater gave us insight and understanding into the inner workings of the industry....   After lunch, we had a variety of classes and a dinner out on the town.  

Thursday: All things Bard!  A tour of the Globe Theater in the morning was followed by lunch in the famed Borough Market and topped off only by an AMAZING performance of Richard III.  The play challenged and delighted - and participating as groundlings ramped the experience up to another level!   I've been a teacher for a long time and there's nothing better than seeing students wide-eyed and mesmerized by content..... We saw that today.  And then, to hear them chat later about the performance in such an animated way just proves that there's definite buy in.... something that hooks them in to the learning.  Yay!

Friday:  Laundry bags in tow, students made their way to the CIEE office to begin the day....we then hiked to the tube and our tour of the WEST END THEATER DISTRICT!  Our tour guide, Ms. Marilyn the theater agent, was a wealth of info on the history of theater in London and we lunched in Covent Gardens with the buskers as backdrop!  The afternoon offered a language/culture lesson in British pop music and afternoon tea before heading off to classes in theatrical styles.  Our oyster cards were topped off and ready for the weekend! 

Saturday:  Goodness.... where to begin?  Harry Potter, anyone?  Thomas Cranmer burned at the stake WHERE?! Yep, you guessed it... we toured OXFORD!  What a delightful day: history-rich walking tours and a labyrinth of local shopping at the Covered Market - and what better way to end our time than with a punting adventure down the River Cherwell, a tributary of the Thames!  We were all given a chance to try our hand at punting - which, by the way, is harder than it looks!  Thankfully no one went "in the drink" and we have lovely memories from our time!  

Til soon!