Day 2: Glasgow!

After being greeted by Miss Schroeder in the airport, and then Sean McKeown, our Irish EF tour director (picture to come at some point!) soon after, we loaded suitcases, boarded our coach & went into the heart of Glasgow for a stop at the art museum and some much needed stretching of our jet-lagged legs along cobblestoned streets.  Students began to hit the overnight trans-Atlantic flight wall, so we kept them moving & engaged in discussion - which was part of our strategy for an early bedtime - one would be amazed at how quickly
                                                                                                        excitement can trump exhaustion in a
                                                                                                        teen if one does not intentionally
                                                                                                        plan otherwise!

There are a variety of chaps in Scotland (probably some lasses as well!) who are not too keen on statues of English kings in their city....apparently, this one, a King George (students could tell you which one!), is always sporting a cone head - and more recently, his horse has one as well!  Weekly they're removed, and weekly, someone figures out how to restore the statues to their cone-head state!  The city was beautiful - teeming with tiered flower beds on most corners.  After exploring the art museum, we strolled the River Clyde, & walked the city's pedestrian areas.  George Square also featured our evening restaurant - students were thrilled to be eating something besides airport related food - so was their leader!  Wagamama's is a fresh & very popular Japanese-ish restaurant; students loved it & left little on their plates or in their edamame bowls!  We headed to our hotel - the Ibis budget - it had everything you really needed & nothing you didn't.  Students likened it to sleeping in Ikea, which in fact, appeared to be where all their furniture & linens came from!  More than the appearance of the room however,
was the size - tiny!......just like European nations!

Few things are better than sitting on old steps, surrounded by even older buildings, and spending time enjoying very new friends!  New friendships are thrilling, as there remains so many untouched subjects to discuss, and there's no telling how such conversations will influence and shape our relationships, and our understanding of the wide world before us!

We stayed two nights in Glasgow & at three different points in the time we enjoyed being there, we walked & walked the streets & sights, & by the time we were to leave, students truly knew the city & her historic landmarks well enough to have a sense for comfortably knowing their way around, which is an exciting accomplishment when one is trying to get to know a city - a sense of ownership is established in the traveler & it makes the journey all the sweeter!

SCOTLAND!!!!

Miss Schroeder at last!!!!  After 10 weeks of waiting, & talking through chat boxes online,  they meet in person!!

Hugs Abound!!

Europe! At Last!!

 After our long & nearly missed flight (it was VERY
tight out of Minneapolis - we were the last on the plane & they closed the airport after our flight due to storms!) we landed in Amsterdam; though groggy after limited sleep, students rallied & were ecstatic to "finally" be in Europe!!  We found our gate, filled out customs forms & marveled at the idea of walking outside to our waiting jet on the tarmac & boarding by going up stairs: "just like in the old movies!"  Departing on time, we set off to find Miss Schroeder & the satisfaction of saying, "I'm in Europe!!!"

 

"FINALLY!!!"

It was a long afternoon of waiting until it was time to get to DIA, but we endured the last minute details and all made it!  "Finally!" seemed to be the best way for each of them to express themselves when asked their pre-boarding thoughts.  From this picture you can't see our send-off crowd of parents and envious siblings, but we thank them from the bottom of our hearts for their love, support and prayers!  We had giggles & sweet anticipation while making our way through security, onto the train and successfully to our gate and then to our seats on the plane.  In total it was one relatively small step in light of the many more steps before us as we navigate the in's and out's of touring and transportation through 3 countries, 2 which contain the world's most active & beloved cities, in 10 days! 

Conversations abound as there is so much to discuss & consider!!  As I post these pictures (a slow process!!) students are eating breakfast & preparing for a fantastic day 3!  Miss Schroeder has 2 special guests in store for us today!  I'll be thrilled to share all about their exchange!!

Ready, Set, Go!

After months of consideration, planning, calculating, reading, saving, pinching, discussing, adapting, researching, listening, and preparing, intermingled with bouts of ecstatic anticipation & thrilling fruition, the day arrived!!  The time finally came - we packed our books and our bags, our hearts and our hopes and we gathered together for the common purpose of adventure and discovery - to set our sights on knowing - to seek understanding and to do so through the lens of a rich and significant history spread across the compelling landscape of a United Kingdom.   Undoubtedly we will ultimately discover as much about ourselves and each other as we will about the world and the time of the authors, playwright & historians who have peaked our curiosity & perplexed our deepening thoughts.  

Carina, Ashley & Elena a few days before departure at the Boulder Shakespeare
Festival brushing up on their War of the Roses backstory as it is played out in Richard II.

It is such a delight to share this experience, and these dear students with you!  I had not had the pleasure of meeting several of them in person until we were in the airport, and the same is true for many of them - they hadn’t met each other in person until departure, but their relationships have hit the ground running (literally in our Minneapolis instance, but that’s another story!) & honestly, they seem as if they’ve long been together - granted, they’ve had 10 weeks together online with their beloved Miss Schroeder in the lead!  They can’t wait to be with her in person - neither can I !!  Students range in age from 13 to 16;  7 are from the Denver area, 1 from Florida & 2 from Santa Barbara.  We all converged at DIA, & that’s when the fun we’ve been waiting for, finally began!

Regan Cattoi,  Zadie Onishuk,  Ashley Wright, & Emilie Ludwig

Paris, & London Calling, & We're Headed Back! This time to Scotland too! Stay Tuned!