Study Trip to Rome 2011

Turning up at Solefields to a mass of ‘Rome 11’ t-shirts, I held high hopes for the Sixth Form Classics trip to Rome. Despite Mr Carr’s somewhat tasteless choice of t-shirt colour (burgundy), I was sure that he had the know-how to lead a successful, cultural and of course highly educational trip.

Upon arriving at our accommodation, we quickly unpacked before heading out to see Rome for the first time. Mr Carr chose to lead us to the furthest point in Rome; a trek which gave us an impression of the beauty and friendliness of the Roman people, and left us keen to continue exploring in the forthcoming days.

Our first day in Rome had clearly been set aside to see all the famous sites, as we visited (among other places) the Colosseum, Trajan’s Column, the Victor Emmanuel Monument, and the Pantheon. It was clear why the sites were so hyped up; they were truly a sight to behold. We returned to the hotel for the first of many sumptuous home cooked meals, of which, unsurprisingly, the main constituent was pasta. The second day soon came around, and this had been set aside for a visit to the Catacombs, a system of underground tombs. The ancient structures at San Sebastiano were sensational. The following days included visits to the forum, baths, Tarquinia Necropolis and the Ara Pacis, but the highlight of the trip, for me at least, came on day five, when we went to the Vatican City. Not only could I now say I had been to two countries on the trip, but the detail and intricacy of the art and architecture were truly stunning.

This was a brilliant trip, as we got to experience everything good about Rome; the culture, the food, the transport… ‘Rome 11’ was skilfully organised and managed by Mr Carr, Mr Mott and Dr Williams (who expertly directed us using expansive gestures with her umbrella), and enjoyed greatly by the whole group.

Jules Lom

Professor David Sedley lecture: Philosophy in Ancient Rome

On Wednesday 20 April 2011, a group of enthusiastic classicists and philosophers welcomed Professor David Sedley to Sevenoaks, for a lecture on Philosophy in Ancient Rome. Professor Sedley is the Laurence Professor of Classical Philosophy at Cambridge University, and a fellow of Christ’s College. The lecture was one in a series of Classics talks.

Following Mr Carr’s opening remark that there was little to be said about ancient Roman philosophy, Professor Sedley not only shattered this taboo, but many others, as he traced Roman philosophy from its roots in Greece to its flowering in Latin literature. He began with the first visit of the leaders of three major Greek philosophical schools to Rome, and how the Roman people stood aghast, as they reasoned both sides of an argument with equal persuasiveness. We learned of the efforts of Roman writers to create a Latin philosophical vocabulary – attempting to distil the concept of the atom into their own language. Professor Sedley dispelled our misconceptions of Epicureanism: the true epicurean life is far from the gluttonous, sybaritic existence many of us attributed to the word. He also assured us that Brutus could not possibly have been a Stoic, or he would never have engineered the assassination of Julius Caesar. In short, an hour’s lecture allowed us only a glimpse of Professor Sedley’s encyclopaedic knowledge. Nevertheless, we left with a considerable gap in our own knowledge of the ancient world filled, and our curiosity piqued.

Charlotte Day

The Bay of Naples Classics Trip 2010

This trip started really rather well. Everyone got to Solefields on time, we left on time, our flight arrived on time. Then one of our number (who shall remain nameless) lost his passport. Somehow we all arrived at our hotel in the lovely town of Vico Equense in time for an hour and a half’s sunbathing on the boys’ balcony and the evening was spent in the town, eating about a lifetime’s supply of ice-cream and having our fair “Veneres” chatted up by scary Italians! Mr. Carr had the pleasure of sharing a balcony with us and listening to the laddish banter: “What did I ever do to deserve this?”

Our first full day was spent in and around Pompeii. We saw the amphitheatre before a spin around the town under the guidance of none other than Mr. Carr, managing to lose our way a few times in the process! As we were in southern Italy, things didn’t quite go according to plan with meeting our guide, but we all managed to take a bike around Pompeii in the afternoon, resulting in two rather spectacular injuries!

Now, Pompeii wasn’t even the Knightsbridge of the Bay of Naples, more like the Peckham (hence the 25 known brothels!). The next morning involved a trip to the more upmarket town of Herculaneum, the skies of which are seriously dominated by Vesuvius. The main purpose here was to see the baths, which were, even 2000 years later, beautifully decorated, but so dim!

Our climb up Vesuvius was certainly interesting, with our resident cross-country runner (Jake) reaching the very top from base-camp in 10:31 - not bad for about 25 degrees of heat and thinner air. As well as this, our attempts at making echoes at the top actually worked! The afternoon couldn’t have been rounded off in much better fashion than it was. It so happened that a bus pulled out of a cafe on the road up/down Vesuvius when it developed a motor-oil leak. As a result, we were stuck there for an hour. But what did we do? We lay on the hillside in the sun! After a brief sojourn in the Archaeological Museum of Naples, we had another evening at the hotel and in Vico Equense, thoroughly enjoying the good weather on our balcony.

A major trip highlight came on the next day, when we visited Solfatara. Walking in the crater of an active volcano is a somewhat unusual experience! The ground reaches 90 degrees centigrade 20 centimetres below the surface, and the air in the caves reaches roughly the same. The steam at the main fumerole is a truly awesome sight, especially when forced to condense: it’s no wonder that the Romans thought that it was an entrance to Hades. We also saw the Sybil’s cave and acropolis at Cumae, the amphitheatre at Pozzuoli and the cistern supplying the Western army with drinking water (which is now, unfortunately, empty).

It was a scenic drive on Tuesday, as we travelled to Paestum (aka Posodonia) via Amalfi. It was quite possibly one of the most beautiful drives I’ve ever taken. The sky was clear and you could see for miles. If you ignored the fact that we had a barrier about a metre and a half tall protecting us from a 50 metre dive into Poseidon’s maw, it was great!

Paestum, a Greek colony, was also well worth it - the temple of Poseidon there was truly awe-inspiring. All of them were!

The next day was, unfortunately, our last proper day there, but was spent rather well. We went on a trip to the lovely island of Capri, home to Emperor Tiberius’ retreat. It was a lengthy walk up hill and over dell to the top, but the views made all that pale into insignificance. After a scenic day, it was a lovely way to round off the trip to have dinner in Sorrento. The prize-giving ceremony might have slightly annoyed other diners (when 33 Sevenoaks students start whooping and clapping in a confined space you know about it!) but it was all very good fun.

And then, before we knew it, we were off, but to England. Let’s be honest, it can’t really compare to the Bay of Naples, can it? I think I speak for all of us when I say that it was a thoroughly brilliant trip. Our greatest thanks go to Mr. Carr, Mr. Grant and Ms. Gale for organising such a fantastic trip, and for injecting just that little bit of culture into our lives. This alone made it worth doing Latin, oh, and Pyramus and Thisbe...