[vc_row height=”small”][vc_column][vc_column_text]Trips are an important part of the schools educational programme. Not only are they excellent learning opportunities, we make sure they are jolly good fun too. The students are engaged from start to finish, and over their time in the Middle school, they learn to squeeze the most out of every moment, which is excellent preparation for their final year trip to America.
Below is a description of the Ravenna Trip
We took a bus to Ravenna leaving at 6 am and arriving at 11 am. After a snack we immediately went to visit the famous Byzantine artworks. Our first visit was the St. Apollinare Church where we admired the incredible mosaics that depicted male and female saints on the clerestory of the church. The female saints were made in such a way as to follow you with their gaze as you walk along the nave.
San Vitale depicted the mosaics of Emperor Justinian and his wife Theodora, some of the most appreciated mosaics in the world (400 AD)! The central dome within the church was stabilized with hollow tubes inserted into each other rather than using bricks which would be too heavy to hold up the dome.
The Neonian Baptistery had magnificent mosaics laid out in concentric circles built out of bricks in an octagonal shape and topped with a dome also made out of hollow tubes. It was begun in 400 AD and completed by bishop Neone in 450 AD. The Arian baptistery was built later under Theodoric’s rule who was an Arian which was a religious sect of Christianity where GOD is considered above Jesus Christ whereas the orthodox view was that God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are all part of one Trinity. This is why Jesus in the scene of Baptism in the Arian Baptistery is depicted as a young boy whereas in the Neonian Baptistery he is depicted as mature man (with a beard). Both structures are octagonal because the number 8 was a symbol of regeneration, GOD created the world in 8 days and Christ was resurrected on the 8th day. Our first day ended with the Mausoleum of Theodorico which was the only structure built as a decagon.
The second day we had a lovely boat trip through the Regional Po Delta park, where we admired the flora and fauna of the surrounding wetlands and the very primitive living conditions of the local fishermen who caught the famous eels that is a speciality of the region. The third day we visited the salt mine museum where we saw how salt was collected and processed.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row height=”small”][vc_column][us_gallery ids=”1216,1217,1218,1219,1220,1221,1222,1223,1224,1225″ columns=”5″ indents=”1″][/vc_column][/vc_row]