Although the students had to get up quite early for a Saturday morning yesterday, none of them were complaining! With their trip to Southampton finally happening, everyone was in high spirits as they grabbed breakfast. 

Once the last plate had been emptied, it was time to collect bags, cameras, and packed lunches and climb aboard the coach to Southampton! 

Traffic was light and the students arrived in plenty of time at their first port of call on the trip: the Seacity Museum. As one of the major ports in England, Southampton is the perfect setting for a maritime museum and many of the museum’s exhibits focus on how the sea has affected the city. However the students’ favourite part of the museum by far was the interactive Titanic exhibit. Containing a scale model of the ship and testimonies from survivors of the disaster, the exhibition really let the students step inside history.

After a quick break for lunch, the students moved on to the City Art Gallery. Our students were lucky enough to visit the gallery in the midst of its 80th birthday celebrations and see the Gallery 80 exhibition. Included were all the most beloved paintings from the gallery’s first exhibition in 1939 alongside a host of contemporary, turner-winning artworks. It was a great way to experience the huge changes in the art world over the past 80 years and our students were captivated by the stark differences they found between the modern and 20th century works.

They even got the chance to see a couple of Antony Gormley’s works – the famous creator of ‘The Angel of the North in Gateshead!

As the students headed back to St Peters on the coach, they all agreed that though it had been a long day, it had certainly been an enjoyable one!