黃理幫

16歲 

北京

英國劍橋

少年組金獎

we had joy, we had fun, and we had seasons in the sun

  this summer vacation, i left for the united kingdom for the 2010 language travel with ef. and that was the second time for me to go abroad. with the experience in the united states last summer also with ef, i obtained more precious treasures on the base of last year this time.

  in this article, i want to share some interesting activities with you among enormous colourful events in this splendid trip.

  on the afternoon of july 26th, with gorgeous weather conditions and british temperate marine climate in cambridge---this distinguished scholastic city, we went for punting at that time.

  i belonged to the orange group. and the activity leader of my group on that date was kia, from iran.

  we were very exciting because we were taken out of the campus, and left for punting in the nearby river cam.

  at the beginning, kia asked us to form into groups with 6 students in each. in my group, there were 4 mexicans, 1 canadian, and me. the canadian student was mila, from québec, the french prefecture of canada.

  this was the first time for me to go punting. originally, i was asked to hold the pole of my group, and to row the boat of my group. it was really hard and exhausted for me to do so because the pole was too heavy. however, a tired body doesn't mean the mood is exhausted. i was always very delighted at that moment.

  on the halfway, i was too tired to row, and i gave the rod to one of the mexican students of my group, and let him make a punting for us, so he became the new punter.

  we enjoyed ourselves very much because we could enjoy the beautiful scenery around the river, and feel the tinge of this scholastic city. when i was having a rest on the boat, i took some nice pictures, and some good videos including some interesting interactions with the rest of the students on the boat.

  punting is the unique feature of cambridge university. therefore, it was a very precious and significant opportunity for us to experience this event.

  visiting places of interest was also a magnificent time. on the morning of july 24th, we left for the blenheim palace which was located in the oxford shire. without pollutions in industrial cities, without noise in metropolises, we went there with breathing the fresh air, enjoying the gorgeous environment, as well as knowing the background of the oldest british university--oxford.

  the palace was the place where the crucial british prime minister winston churchill (1874-1965) was born. he played a significant role during the world war ii (1939-1945).

  we could visit the magnificent palace by ourselves. however, in order to absorb more relevant knowledge, i witnessed the palace with a professional guide.

  that palace recorded hundreds of years’ history of churchill’s family. winston churchill should be born in january, 1866. however, one day, when churchill’s mother was still in pregnancy, she fell down in the palace. and that’s why churchill was born ahead of time--- on november 30^th, 1865.

  in the palace, you can see a lot of art works which are related to the war between england and france, as well as between england and germany.

  you can also see a room which is possessed of dining tables. on each christmas day, some crucial people will have a splendid dinner there. the carpenters spent 14 months decorating and putting ornament only in this room. and they concluded their task ahead of time because the relevant contract said that they were approved to decorate that room for at most one year and a half.

  the most interesting part came. we were led to an exhibition hall with plenty of porcelains, and some of them were made in china at the dominant time of emperor kangxi of chinese qing dynasty (1644~1911).

  art and appreciation was an unforgettable experience, too.

  on the day of going across the border between england and scotland, we went to a scottish restaurant on that night, not only for dinner, but also for feeling the unique culture of scotland.

  there were 2 typical things: one was the scottish dress, and the other one was the instrument---scottish bag pipe.

  in the spot, we could find that it was full of scottish styles, and all waiters and waitresses there wore scottish skirts. after supper, we appreciated the music, songs, as well as dancing there. and i even learned some dance there to the music.

  in the end, we formed a circle, hold the hands of the nearby student, and sang the famous song auld lang syne:

  “should all acquaintances be forgot, and never brought to mind? should all acquaintances be forgotten, for the auld lang syne…?”

  eventually, before we left, an old scottish waiter played the theme song of the typical british movie brave heart. the main character imish was the hero of scotland who protected the interest of scotland during the war between england and scotland a few centuries ago.

  what moving movie and fantastic music as well as elegant scottish dance!

  some british people usually worn sunglasses because the sun never sets in the british empire. of course, this is a joke. however, from the profile of it, we can feel the strong power of this nation from the significant industrial revolution to the world war ii.

  i could feel the tinge of the unique climate there, as well as the strength of this capitalism country with an old brand.

how time flies! we had joy, we had fun, and we had seasons in the sun during this trip!

i obtained a lot with ef. thanks for all staffs of ef who has given me assistances! and i hope that i can go abroad for the colourful language travel with ef again!