In February half-term the History department embarked on its annual overseas adventure — this time with a party of 20 A level History and Politics students, to explore the sights of Washington and New York. For most of us, this was a first trip to the two cities and there was a palpable excitement as we gained our first glimpses of the White House and Capitol on arrival.
Our two days in Washington were spent seeing all the iconic sights that are so familiar from the TV and films. Highlights included a tour of the Capitol itself, circumnavigating the White House (we almost saw Obama — we were assured at least that it was his motorcade!) and viewing the Mall from the top of the Washington monument.
A coach journey brought us to New York, where we were awed by the impact of the night-time Manhattan skyline. If our spirits were briefly dampened by our somewhat basic accommodation, they were rapidly lifted by our proximity to Central Park, stunningly beautiful after a recent snowfall. The sights of Wall Street, the Ellis Island ferry and the Statue of Liberty continued to excite us and we enjoyed a full immersion in American culture in the form of an evening at Madison Square Garden and the New York Knicks basketball!
A more serious tour of the United Nations HQ followed, along with a sobering visit to Ground Zero and a touch of culture for some in visiting the Metropolitan or Guggenheim art museums. All this, with an exhilarating ‘sky ride’ to the top of the Rockefeller Centre, night-time walks down Broadway, evening meal in Planet Hollywood in Times Square and a good dose of Manhattan shopping completed a wonderful week of tourism, fun and, who knows, maybe even a little education!
— by Alastair Barnett, Head of History
View a slideshow of photos from the USA trip
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