Londen

Werkweek Londen 20-09-’04 / 24-08-‘04

Contents statement

INTRODUCTION
P&O-FERRY
CANTERBURY
BUCKINGHAM PALACE
BIG BEN
HORSE GUARDS
WESTMINSTER ABBEY- HARRODS
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM
ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL
TOWER BRIDGE AND THE TOWER OF LONDON
HARROW
LONDON UNDERGROUND
TRAFALGAR SQUARE
BRITISH MUSEUM
PICCADILLY CIRCUS
COVENT GARDEN- ALDWYCH THEATRE (FAME) HOST FAMILY
OWN OPINION

Introduction

We went with school to London. It was a nice week. We visited a lot of buildings and other places! We had to walk long times. Our feet were very tired. But it was worth it. The family we stayed at was a bit poor because they were living in a small house with old stuff in it. But they were very friendly and hospitable to us.

London is a beautiful city! Here is a list of buildings and places we visited.

 The P&O Ferry  Canterbury Cathedral  Buckingham Palace  Big Ben  House of parliament  Changing of the Horse Guards  Westminster Abbey  Harrods  Natural History museum  St. Paul’s Cathedral  Tower of London  Tower bridge  Harrow  London Underground  Trafalgar square  British museum  Piccadilly Circus  Covent garden  Aldwych Theatre (Fame)

P&O-ferry

The P&O boat travels from Calais to Dover. It can bring you to Dover together with your car or bus. The time to travel from Calais to Dover is 1 hour and 15 minutes.

On the boat I interviewed a man

1. What’s your name? John Franklyn
2. Where are you from? Norwich, UK. 3. Where have you been? I’ve been to Paris, on a business trip. 4. What do you do for a living? I’m a security guard in the Norwich castle museum. 5. Have you ever been in London? Yes very often. 6. Have you ever been in the Netherlands? Yes, in Amsterdam to a coffee-shop. for once of course. 7. Do you travel a lot from the UK to the main land? Three times a year. 8. What do you like the most in England
Our family and the boat to France.

Canterbury

In Canterbury we must interview someone. I interviewed a man.

1. What do you think of the place here? It’s okay, good and bad things. 2. What do you think of the tourists? They are okay, if they are calm. 3. What can you do in Canterbury? There are some pups, cinema, nightclubs and a Cathedral! 4. Have the people here very weird customs? No, but some of the people are a bit weird. 5. Are the people here friendly? In the north are the people friendlier than in the south! 6. How is the weather here? The weather here changes a lot.

Buckingham Palace

This solid, graceful building is the official residence of the Queen. The palace had been built original as a country house for the \\\\\\\"Duke of Buckingham\\\\\\\". In 1762 King George III bought the palace, for himself and his 15 children.

It didn’t immediately become the official royal residence. That happened when Queen Victoria became a Queen. She chose Buckingham Palace above St. James’s Palace.

When the Queen is in residence the Royal Standard flies from the roof of the palace. For the safety of the queen there are Foot Guards, usually they provide the sentries and you can see them in Bearskins and red tunics or grey greatcoats standing in front of the sentry boxes, or marching up and down. Although, the palace is in the heart of London, it has a very large and lovely garden where the Royal Garden Parties are in the summer.

Big Ben

The Big Ben is designed by Charles Barry. The tower is three hundred and twenty feet long. The Big Ben properly is the fourteen ton bell, which is made by Lewis Vulliamy. The Big Ben is the tower of the house of parliament.

During the Second World War in 1941, a bomb destroyed the Commons chamber of the Houses of Parliament, but the clock tower remained intact and Big Ben continued to keep time and strike away the hours, its unique sound was broadcast to the nation and around the world, a welcome reassurance of hope to all who heard it. There are even cells within the clock tower where Members of Parliament can be imprisoned for a breach of parliamentary privilege, though this is rare; the last recorded case was in 1880. The tower is not open to the general public, but those with a \\\\\\\"special interest\\\\\\\" may arrange a visit to the top of the Clock Tower through their local (UK) MP.

The Houses of Parliament

The proper name of the Houses of Parliament is the Palace of West-minster. It was the King’s palace for five hundred years, until King Henry VIII move to the neighbouring Whitehall Palace.

The Palace of Westminster was burned out in 1834 and the Houses of Parliament were build in his place. One part of the ancient palace was saved however, this part was Westminster Hall.

When Parliament is sitting, a Union Jack flies from the top of one of the towers. In the House of Lords we can see the throne from the Queen opens Parliament. In the House of Commons, which was rebuilt after bring destroyed by bombing in the last war, we can see where the laws are made.

Horse Guards Horse Guards are named after the troops who have mounted the Queen’s Life Guard on this spot since the Restoration of King Charles II in 1660. Horse Guards remain the official entrance to St James’s and Buckingham Palace and this is why The Queen’s Life Guard is still mounted here. Apart from members of the Royal Family or cavalrymen on duty, everyone needs the Sovereign’s permission in the form of an Ivory Pass to either drive or ride through Horse Guards. When The Queen is in London, the Guard consists of 1 Officer, 1 Corporal Major, 2 Non-Commissioned Officers, 1 Trumpeter and 10 Troopers. This is known as a Long Guard. When The Queen isn’t resident in London, the Guard is reduced to 2 Non-Commissioned Officers and 10 Troopers. This is known as a Short Guard. In early times the Guard was as much as 100 strong and provided Escorts to accompany the Sovereign if he or she travelled by road.

Westminster Abbey

The Abbey was founded by King Edward the confessor, about nine hundred years ago. Most of it was built by King Henry III two centuries later. The long chapel behind the altar was built by King Henry VII five hundred years ago. The two tall towers at the west-end are more recent they were built in 1740. In Westminster Abbey stays also the coronation Chair. The Kings and Queens of England sit on this chair when they had been crowned. Underneath the seat is the ancient stone of scone, which was once used for the coronation of the kings of Scotland.

Harrods

Harrods is a very large and an expensive shop. You can buy everything there. The most of the things are for rich people, because the most people aren’t as rich as them. A chic nightdress is very expensive, it’s about ₤800. And a shawl is about ₤70. In the Netherlands you can buy it for €20, - or €15,-.

Natural History Museum

The Natural History Museum is a very large building with a lot of things (animals, meteorites, etc). I loved being there! It made me feel right at home. The thing I appreciated the most were the minerals and meteorites, because I collect them myself as well.

St. Paul’s Cathedral

The St. Paul’s Cathedral is after the St. Pieter’s Cathedral the biggest church off the whole world. Old St. Paul’s which was destroyed in the fire of London. The present Cathedral was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and was finished in 1710. The most notable feature is the enormous dome. From the floor tot the top of the cross on the dome is three hundred and sixty-five feet, the same as the number of days in a year.

There are stairs up to the Whispering Gallery, inside the dome, where words whispered into the stone walls can be heard right round the other side. This didn’t work when we were there, because people were working there. From the outside of the stone gallery you have a magnificent view of London. You can climb higher, to the Golden gallery, round the top of the dome and if you can even climb higher, a total of seven hundred and twenty-seven steps from the bottom to the Golden ball under the great cross.

Tower Bridge and the Tower of London

From the two towers, you have a beautiful view over the city. Now to the Tower or London. The Tower is an impressive building with high, thick walls around it. This is one of the oldest castles of England. For over Hundred years long was the Tower a royal palace and a prison. There are still many ravens. A raven is a guard dressed in a traditional Tudor-Uniform. The legend tells that if the ravens leave the Tower, the Tower will be vanishing.

The oldest part is in the middle the white tower, which was built nine hundred years ago by William the Conqueror: later kings made it bigger and stronger. They made at the time a mighty fortress, a palace and a prison. There also is a Bloody Tower, where (what men believe) the little princess were murdered, and in the prisons and dungeons where kings and queens imprisoned. Many of them went to Tower Green to be executed. In the Waterloo Block were the Crown Jewels. It was wonderful to see it.

Harrow

Harrow is an expensive boarding school. Where different important men bring a part of theirs’s live through. Harrow is not only a school; you can also do a lot of sport as: footballs, swim, rugby, etc. Harrow has considered also his own sport it a kind of football. There is also a museum that you visit. Further there is theatre, a wave job, a library and a lot of other things.

London Underground

The London Underground started out as several separate train lines transporting passengers in central London. The original idea of putting the trains underground came about because of the need to transport passengers from the main lines further into central London. Because of constraints and overcrowding, the grand train lines could only penetrate the outskirts of London. In the beginning, any railway tunnelling underground had to buy the buildings that it passed under. This was done because many felt that the underground digging undermined the foundations of buildings. This explains why many of the earliest Underground lines followed major streets. There were no buildings above; therefore, the railway saved money.

In 1912 Frank Pick was appointed the head of the office of commercial manager for expanding Underground. During his time in this position, several new acquisitions were made including bus and rail lines. Pick’s job was to integrate these acquisitions into one coherent system. In order to increase ridership, Pick advertised the Underground with posters he commissioned by artists. Posters advertised destinations that could be reached by using the Underground. He went further to create a logo which would be easily recognized by the public. Even though every station was different architecturally and aesthetically, Pick created uniformity through signage and easily recognizable symbols of the Underground.

The Underground became an essential part of London culture. Phrases such as \\\\\\\"Mind the Gap\\\\\\\" became synonymous with the Underground. As a visitor, the Underground is many times the first thing one experience in London. It carries to and from the airports and is one of the easiest way to get about, especially if one doesn’t have a car. The Underground is like the veins of a living being. It carries life throughout the arteries of London. Without this valuable link, Londoners would have to resort to the above ground transportation.

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square was laid out in memory of Lord Nelson’s great naval-victory of 1805 and his statue stands on top of the one hundred and eighty-five foot column. You will like the four bronze lions designed by the Victorian artist Land see. When you have gazed up at Lord Nelson and have seen the lions and the fountains, stand looking the same way as Lord Nelson.

The pigeons which walked about in the tamest manner will be very great full any crumbs. They had seen to consider themselves to be one of the sight of London. You can buy special pigeon food from vendors, on the Square and if you are very lucky or clever, the pigeons will perch on your hand to feed, or on your shoulder, or even on your head.

British museum

The British Museum was quite interesting. The only down point was there weren’t any minerals or meteorites. We’ve spend a lot of time in the Egyptian section. There were al lot of mummies there. They were both interesting but also scary (movie III :P).

Piccadilly Circus

For many years, Piccadilly Circus - at the junction of five busy streets - has been a famous London Landmark. At its heart and backlit by colourful electric displays is a bronze fountain topped by a figure of a winged archer. The statue is popularly called EROS, the pagan god of love, but it was in fact designed in the 19th century as a symbol of Christian charity - a monument to Lord Shaftesbury, a philanthropist.

The famous statue of Eros in Piccadilly Circus is one of the symbols of London. It was originally called the Shaftesbury monument, having been erected as a memorial to the philanthropist Lord Shaftesbury. The actual figure rises above a fountain, which is made in bronze, but Eros is made out of aluminium, at that time a rare and novel material.

Covent Garden

1. What’s your name? Janie Lowland
2. Where are you from? A small village in Colorado (USA) 3. Is this your first time in London? No, my family lives here
4. Do you like London? Yes it’s a very pleasant town; there are a lot of little pubs and cool shops! 5. Which thinks can you do about Canterbury? The pubs and the shops of course! But also the cinemas, theatres, nightclubs, etc. 6. What’s your favourite part of London? London Zoo, not only the animals are lovely. But also the gardens!

Aldwych Theatre (Fame)

The Aldwych is the twin of the Strand Theatre on the opposite corner of the same block, not far from Drury Lane and the Royal Opera House. They were opened within seven months of each other in 1905, and designed by W. G. R. Sprague with identical facades and almost the same seating capacity of over 1000. The interior decoration of the Aldwych is a mixture of Georgian and French baroque, the dominant colour being a greyish blue with gilt ornamentation. A dual stairway ascends past three huge mirrors, and meets in the handsome plush Circle Bar under chandeliers from where one can look down into the vestibule from a circular ramp.

Fame: we were going to the musical Fame. There was a lot of dancing, singing and play drama. So it was very beautiful.

Host Family

We most write something about the family and the house. This part of the text is written in Dutch!

We waren inmiddels aangekomen op de parkeerplaats. We werden als laatst uit de bus gehaald omdat ons gastgezin geen auto had, dus werden we met de taxi gebracht. Toen we kennis gemaakt hadden en even hadden rond gekeken hadden zei de mevrouw dat we rond 21:00 uur eten zouden krijgen. Maar dat was niet het geval we waren tot 23:00 uur alleen thuis en kregen toen pas te eten. Kortom niet echt een goede indruk van dit gezin. Het huis (een flatje) zag er van de buiten kant wel netjes uit. Maar van binnen was dat wel anders, de wc deur viel uit zijn schanieren en elke stonden de zelfde “smerige”pannen weer op het gasstel. Verder was het eten wel goed en werden goed verzorgt.

In the host family we must interview someone. I interviewed Sean. 1. What’s your name? Sean
2. How old are you? I’m 14 years old. 3. What do you like about London? Nothing really, but around Christmas time it’s very lovely. 4. What’s your favourite building in London? The Big Ben
5. What do you do for a living? I’m going to school
6. Have you ever been in the Netherlands? No, I haven’t. 7. Have you ever been in Canterbury? Yes, I went to the Cathedral and shopping in the centre. 8. What do you think about us, do you like us? Yes, sort of…. 9. Was our English good? Yes
10. What do you think of the Netherlands? Mills, tulips, and clogs and pod! 11. How do you think about Dutch people? They are the best students
12. Where are you born? In Ireland
13. What’s your favourite building in London
The Big Ben

Own Opinion

Dag 1: We moesten om kwart voor zes op school zijn om te kijken of iedereen er was en zijn spullen mee had. Om zes uur vertrokken tot we om ongeveer twee uur, we waren inmiddels ingekomen in Calais. Daar gingen met de boot naar Londen, op de boot waren veel mensen zeeziek (overgeven en misselijkheid). Om kwart over drie (local time) kwamen we aan in Canteburry. daar kregen we tijd voor ons zelf en om iemand te interviewen. Om 8 uur kwamen we aan bij ons gastgezin. Onze eerste indruk was niet heel positief, we waren lang alleen thuis en kregen pas om elf uur ’s avonds te eten. Verder was het wel een aardige vrouw.

Dag 2 : We moesten om acht uur ’s ochtends verzamelen bij een parkeerplaats in Londen. Een kwartiertje later vertrokken we met de bus richting de binnenstad. We gingen eerst naar de Big Ben. Een heel groot en mooi gebouw waar we verder niet zo veel over kregen te horen. Verder zijn we nog naar Westminster Abbey, Houses of Perliament, Horse Guards, Buckingham Palace en het Natural History Museum geweest. In het Natural History museum waren van allerlei dingen te zien zoals: Skeletten van Dinosaurussen, Meteorieten, Opgezette dieren, etc. Verder moesten we daar nog wat opdrachten maken.

Dag 3: We moesten weer om acht uur ’s ochtends aanwezig zijn en een kwartier later vertrokken we naar de Sint Paul’s Cathedral. Daar hadden we een schitterend uitzicht over Londen we moesten wel eerst een heel stuk traplopen maar dat was het wel waard! Later gingen we naar de Tower Bridge waar we ook de kroonjuwelen konden bekijken en waar we weer wat opdrachten moesten maken. Een paar uurtjes later gingen we naar de kostschool Harrow. Een school waar veel bekende en belangrijke mensen les hebben gehad zoals Winston Churchill. Een Leuke dag, wederom!

Dag 4: We moesten die dag om kwart over acht aanwezig zijn met onze bagage, omdat we die avond al weer naar huis zouden vertrekken. Maar eerst nog een leuke dag voor de boeg. Eerst gingen we met de metro naar The Britisch Museum, om daar nog wat opdrachten te maken en wat rond te kijken later gingen we naar Leicester Square. De rest van dag hadden we voor ons zelf. We zijn wat gaan winkelen en ook nog met de metro geweest. Toen deze dag voorbij was gingen we nog naar de musical Fame. Een prachtige musical en vooral een groot spektakel. Die avond/nacht gingen we al weer naar huis weer op de boot en rond half elf arriveerden we op school.