Travelling across the UK, Europe and the North America, pupils gained new insights into the world around them. We hear from five of those expeditions.

Three crews of Westminster rowers and scullers travelled to Boston, Massachusetts, to take part in the world’s largest three-day regatta, The Head of the Charles, which attracts thousands of rowers fr

om around the globe. The boys’ Eight, coxed Four and coxed Quad all put in strong performances against large, competitive fields, with the Eight the pick of the Westminster boats, finishing 15^th of 90 crews.

Patrick (Remove, DD, Eights cox said: “Racing at the Head of the Charles provided an amazing experience to kickstart our season and good preparation for important domestic competitions down the line such as the Westminster school run, School’s Head of the River and Henley Royal Regatta.”

Eights oarsman Bryan (Sixth Form, DD) added: “Getting the chance to race our American counterparts was a rare and enjoyable experience and having the chance to explore the Cambridge area of Boston was great too.”

A Level pupils spent their October Exeat in New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, looking at university options including Brown, Columbia, Harvard, MIT and Yale.

Chloe (Sixth Form, PP) said: “As a someone who had been reluctant give up some of their GCSE subjects at A Level, I found the holistic liberal arts education that many US universities provided extremely appealing. However, I was unsure as to whether I would actually enjoy the campus life and culture. It was this breach in knowledge that led me to sign up for the Westminster University trip.

I have now returned from the US, feeling exhilarated but beyond glad that I went. Through touring the campuses and interacting with students on site (including previous Westminsters who took up US offers and are now studying at the Ivy League institutions), I was able to get a good grasp of not just the academic side of life as a student attending a US university, but also other important aspects of student life such as extracurriculars, Greek life and housing. As a current boarder in Purcell’s house, I was delighted by my visit to Columbia University, where I met two Purcell’s alumni, Clio and Audrey. They responded to my uncertainties with empathy and encouragement, and I was reassured, knowing that they had been in a similar position just a year ago. Overall, I recommend the US trip to any Westminster student who is looking to apply to the states but is unsure as to how they would find their “fit”; the trip provides insightful information that you may not be able to obtain from simply browsing a website or attending a virtual tour from your bedroom. There’s also a lot of fun activities lined up for you, such as watching a Broadway show and shopping in NYC!”

Remove Art Historians studied the works and techniques of the Old Masters, even recreating a few masterpieces themselves, in sunny Tuscany.

Lila (Remove, WW) said: “Our Art History class had an amazing time in Florence. It was incredible seeing all the buildings and art works that we have studied in detail over the last year up close, in situ, adding a whole new dimension to our studies! Not only this, but we were blessed with great weather so, all in all, it was a trip to remember!”

Thea (Remove, HH) added: “The Florence trip was amazing; it was incredible seeing almost all of the works we had studied in the classroom up close. Being able to truly gauge the size, the colours and each brushstroke was unforgettable. On the whole, the trip was super exciting and the best way to start exeat.”

Westminster’s Upper Shell Russianists immersed themselves in Soviet history whilst enjoying cultural pursuits in Riga, Latvia.

Dainton (Upper Shell, BB) said: “I found the trip to be very enjoyable, informative and exciting. I had never journeyed to any of the Baltic states before, but this trip and the activities within it taught me a lot more than I could have learnt in a classroom. There was never any room for boredom as we were constantly deep in a range of activities from a historical museum tour to an exhilarating Estonian football match. I feel that my understanding of the Russian language and its background has been greatly improved.”

Oskar (Upper Shell, PP) added: “The trip was really interesting and opened my eyes to some of the difficult ongoing effects of Soviet occupation on Eastern European countries such as Latvia and Estonia. By visiting museums, reading about Baltic independence and talking to ethnic Russians in a school in Riga, I got to learn much more about culture, hospitality and the effect Russian history has had on the world. Of course, the trip was also a language trip, and lessons in Russian in Riga, tour guides in Russian and talking in Russian with people my age have all really helped my listening and speaking.”

Lower School photographers headed to Iceland, to shoot the scenery and witness the stunning aurora borealis.

Kazumasa (Upper Shell, HH) said: “I think for me, this expedition was one of the best expeditions that were available this year, but I have had the same impression for every other expedition. The trip felt well planned out, even though we were given complete freedom over what we could do.

“The weather was so much better than we expected, which allowed us to see the aurora borealis twice, which was very lucky; but we were given the flexibility of being able to stop what we were doing and go out to take photographs in the dark. Another example of this is when one of the teachers took a group of us up a steep hill, whilst the other two stayed with the others to take photographs of a waterfall.

“On the photography element, we learnt a lot both in the field and at the house, in terms of the live photography but also about the editing of photos. I also had a personal project for Astronomy, which involved me taking long exposure photographs of specific stars/galaxies. The teachers were very helpful so I felt encouraged to work on it and they also gave me helpful advice over how I should work on it.

“The glacier hike that we did was also a complete surprise, and overall, the trip felt like it was so much more than advertised on the list.”