Reach Cambridge July 2016: Day 7

No trip to England would be complete without visiting London. Today was the first of two trips to the capital, with a chance to experience a couple of the city’s museums, as well as one of its most famous department stores. Students visited either the Science Museum or the Victoria and Albert Museum, both housing very different, but fascinating, collections. We made up just a tiny fraction of the almost 3 and a half million visitors to the Science Museum each year, enjoying the over 300,000 items the museums holds. These included diverse objects such as the oldest surviving locomotive (affectionally nicknamed “Puffing Billy”) and a replica of the DNA model created by Watson and Crick – a nice connection with Cambridge, as Watson and Crick announced their discovery in the Eagle pub in the heart of Cambridge city centre. Students particularly enjoyed the interactive aspects of the exhibition, and the 3D experiences – such a flight stimulator – proved very popular. Over in the Victoria & Albert Museum (or V&A as it is commonly known) there are literally millions of objects, making it the  largest art and design museum in the world. Students were treated to artefacts that covered 5000 years of art from many diverse cultures across the globe. Whether you like ceramics, textiles, costumes, jewellery, paintings, sculpture, there is something for everyone. Our students (and staff!) especially liked the Theatre and Design gallery which included the puppet horse from War Horse and an interactive set design and lighting game, as well as the Renaissance gallery with its many beautiful statues. After our cultural morning, we spent the afternoon in Hyde Park, one of London’s largest parks, and frequented Harrods, an upmarket department store that first opened its doors in 1834. Whilst some of the items are rather pricey – we spotted a £46,000 wardrobe – some of the students enjoyed the substantial savings on offer in the perfume section. A busy day ended with the promise of a slight lie-in tomorrow, ready for another week of classes! Written by Flossie, Director of Operations