Friday, July 22nd
Forensic Detective Workshop
We had the amazing opportunity to work with a retired London police detective, Stewart. He was an amazing teacher; engaging, personable, funny, and knowledgeable! Antonio got to dress as a detective and pick up evidence from the crime scene!
They were given files about the murder victim and possible suspects, biographies, bank records, phone records, itinerary at the London tower, and witness statements. We had to build a case and figure out what happened to cause this man to be pushed out of a window and fall to his death from the London Tower.
We learned how to identify and match fingerprints, and we even learned about our own fingerprints!
We also got to dust for fingerprints on a piece of glass and we learned how to identify the prints on the item by dusting, just like detectives do with a crime scene.
It was absolutely amazing watching the kids work together and with other travelers they just met a few days before. The communication and collaboration made me so happy and eager to get back into the classroom. This was an amazing team building activity!
Public Transportation
After the forensics workshop we were given some free time to explore London and find something to eat for dinner. This was quite the interesting experience due to the busy time of day and large crowds, but Ryan was ecstatic to be able to ride the tube (underground subway) again.
He literally wants to ride the tube to every single station in London and around. He will be able to navigate any subway system now!
WICKED
One of my favorite things about being here are the pastries! Chocolate croissants wherever you go, so we definitely grabbed a sweet treat before we went to see WICKED! The Victoria Palace Theater was breathtaking.
The show was incredible, even though a few of us (myself and Richelle) were dozing off during the first half of the show. We wanted to stay awake because the show was so good but we just couldn’t keep our eyes open.
We all agreed the show was much better than we expected it to be, and definitely recommend others go see Wicked as well!
Our Travel Group
I feel it’s important to mention that we have essentially adopted two more student travelers into our group! They are from one of the Kentucky groups on the tour with us and immediately fit in with our small group. Colin and Trey just added to the fire of humor and witty jokes that Antonio and Ryan have been masters of since Tuesday morning at the airport.
It has been an absolute joy spending time with these high school seniors (besides Antonio, class of 2022!) and seeing how unique each of them are. I have been beyond impressed with their level of maturity, responsibility, respect for others, and pure appreciation for having this experience.
ANTONIO
Navigating the victoria line and finding our way through oxford street with the constant threat of pickpocketing was a very realistic london experience second most to the greater fear of being robbed during the jack the ripper tour. 10/10. 👍
Stay tuned for more! :)
♡ Champlin