Inspiring summer - Воодушевляющее лето. Эссе

Ирина Витальевна Козырева

Irina Kozyreva

“Travel and change of place

 impart new vigor to the mind.” – Seneca

My inspiring summer

It had been my dream for a long time - to go around Great Britain someday.  I was sure  that it was necessary to visit not only London, where I had been before, but to look at different places in Great Britain, including small towns and villages, to talk to people there and to feel the atmosphere of the country, language of which I learn and teach. Last summer, having saved some money, I could realize that dream.

Certainly, I had been reading a lot about United Kingdom before the travel. Nevertheless some things were pretty unexpected. First of all, I was surprised to see how many different architectural styles we could see in this not too big area. It was also amazing to notice the influence of different languages in different regions of country.  We can say that long and dramatic history of Great Britain is reflected in its geographical names.

We all are aware of the famous “British sense of humour”.  However I could not imagine that we would meet its evidence everywhere - from Cornwall to Northern Scotland, on the tops of mountains and even in the public toilets. Perhaps, the most impressive thing during this travel was fantastic friendliness the British demonstrated. They were always ready to do their best to help us, and I was sincerely enjoying communication with them.

Now, when relationships between our countries are not at their best, it seems very important to me to tell students about the impressions, obtained during this very inspiring summer.  It is well known that only an inspired teacher can inspire his or her students. I hope that experience, gained last summer, will help me a lot.