School trip to London 2015

Our school trip to London and Oxford from 19 March to 22 March 2015 was fantastic. Everything went ahead as planned and we enjoyed every single day. Just look at the faces of the students who went.

I'd like to share the best moments of the trip and also some anecdotes. The photos on this page were taken by me and by some of you, the students.

Day 1

We all met at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas airport on Thursday 19 March at 12.30. We all were very happy and eager to check in. But something unexpected happened. One of the students didn't have her passport with her or her money, or her wallet. Panic! Fortunately her husband managed to bring all the documentation in time. She just had 15 minutes before boarding the plane. That was lucky!

We landed at the scheduled time and there was somebody who came to Gatwick airport to greet us and make sure we caught the coach that would take us to our hotel, the Royal National Hotel.

We didn't do much that evening except go to Chinatown and have a Chinese meal. It wasn't too bad, was it? After that we walked around Piccadilly Circus. Back to the hotel.

Day 2

This was a big day for us. We got up early, had breakfast and hit the road! We walked from the hotel to Trafalgar Square where some of us admired portraits in the National Gallery. Some people preferred a piece of carrot cake and a coffee, like me, in a big bookshop.


©2015 Lola la Torre

After Trafalgar Square we headed towards Buckingham Palace and we saw interesting monuments.

Buckingham Palace was busy but not too busy. Unfortunately we couldn't visit the Queen and we didn't see the changing of the guard.

We walked around St James's Park and met a friendly squirrel. Look at her posing for a photo.

We managed to see The horse guard parade and stopped to take some photos.

10 Downing Street was our next stop. We couldn't see the Prime Minister. Too busy, I suppose.

We kept walking down Birdcage Walk until we reached Westminster. We stopped by Westminster Abbey.

By that time the weather was getting a lot better. It was a sunny day at long last!

Big Ben was impressive and so were the Houses of Parliament.


©2015 Lola la Torre

Time for a break. We crossed Westminster Bridge and walked towards the Riverside Walk. We had lunch at the Southbank Centre. It was a beautiful day. We bought some sandwiches and ate outside.

After lunch we crossed Waterloo Bridge and queued to buy tickets for a Thames river cruise.

The cruise lasted about 1 hour and 30 minutes, from Waterloo down to Greenwich and back. We saw St Paul's Cathedral, London Bridge and the Tower of London.

Once the cruise was over, people dispersed. Some people went to Piccadilly Circus. They couldn't wait to go to the shops. Some other people went to Covent Garden to see the hustle and bustle and enjoy walking around or having a hot drink in Patisserie Valerie.

We met at the hotel at about 20.00. Time for dinner. People were free to choose where to go. Some of us went on an adventure. I took some students to what I thought was an Indian restaurant. Well, it wasn't exactly a restaurant as such. It was a YMCA which means it was a kind of residence for Indian students newly arrived in the UK. I really trusted Time Out, the equivalent to Guía del Ocio. Believe me, it had a very good review. Check this page if you don't believe me!!!!

Day 3

We got up really early that day. We were going to Oxford. We had to buy a Bus ticket from the tube station first, and then show this ticket to the bus driver. The bus stop was very close to the hotel. The bus trip to Marble Arch was short and great.

Finding the X90 coach from London to Oxford was very easy. I spoke to the driver and explained that there was a big party of us. Persuading him to give us student ticket prices for all of us was easier than I thought. Rather than paying 18 pounds for each adult person, we paid 13 pounds. That was fantastic news!

We were expected at Wadham College by Cláudia Pazos Alonso, Associate Professor in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies.

We were taken to a teaching room where Dr Pazos Alonso gave us a lecture on Oxford University and the educational system. I think that all of us found the lecture very interesting.

We had the chance to visit the college, the chapel and the dining hall. I'm afraid we were not invited for lunch.

We also visited Magdalene College. Famous alumni were Oscar Wilde and C.S. Lewis. Click here if you would like to know how to pronounce Magdalene.


©2015 Lola la Torre

Apart from the colleges we also visited some landmarks in Oxford, for example, the Bridge of Sighs, the Radcliffe Camera and the Bodleian Library.

There was also a free exhibition at the Weston Library where we could see very old books, for example Shakespeare's first folio or The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien.

We were totally exhausted by 18.00 so we decided to go back to London. Some people got distracted and nearly missed the coach back!

Day 4

Our last day in London. People could choose what to do. Some people went on the London Eye, some people visited Camden Town Market and some people visited the British Museum.

The British Museum is an impressive archeological museum. The entire history of the world is there. I found it fascinating. Who wouldn't?

Our holiday finished at about 13.20 when a minibus came to pick us up. Time to catch our flight from Gatwick airport again. The minibus was perhaps a bit small for us. The driver, a Spanish national, was so friendly that we decided to say good-bye 'haciéndole una ola'

Well, I hope you enjoyed the photos. Please write to me and post your comments.

Thank you all the students who made this trip memorable.

Search This Blog

Lola's Blog