Head's Newsletter -7 July 2023

MANDARIN TRIP TO BRITISH MUSEUM

On June 21, a group of thirty Mandarin learning students enjoyed a day trip to the British Museum to see a spectacular exhibition—China's Hidden Century, the result of more than 100 scholars for about 5

years. The show brilliantly revises conventional views of the country ’ s 19 th century not as a period of humiliation and conflict but as a progressive and richly creative era. The students had a fantastic time and learned a lot about Chinese history and language. Excerpts from feedback about the trip: Sean : After taking the train at Kingston station to Waterloo, we walked quickly to the British Museum.

It was really big and beautiful. The exhibit had lots of fascinating history on fashion, daily life, emperors and many other things. I enjoyed looking at the clothes that the people in the Qing dynasty would wear. The best thing in the exhibit were the original clothes and massive hats and weapons that were richly decorated. Manish : I found the trip thrilling and exciting. Learning about China's hidden century was amazing and how China influenced many places, such as Tunisia, Mongolia and more. Nafis : I greatly enjoyed the trip because it was interesting, and I learnt a lot about the Qing Dynasty, for example I found out there were six emperors in the 19 th century and there was an Empress who lived during the reign of four emperors. I also saw some most interesting pieces, such as a pair of gigantic royal vases which were presented to King George V and Queen Mary for their coronation by the last Chinese emperor.