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Feb 14, 2005 13:11

Carla Thomas
Period 5
February 13, 2005

When ever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrival gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion is starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I do not see that. Seems to me that love is everywhere, often it is not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it is always there. Fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends and girlfriends, old friends… When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge. They were all messages of love. If you look for it, I have got a funny feeling you will find that love actually is all around.
At nine o’clock British time, on February 5, a mix of local high school lacrosse players arrived at the London Heathrow Airport, Terminal 4. Though these girls were not greeted with loving arms, nor Hugh Grant himself, they managed to pile their bags into pint-sized carts and march off towards their own personal coach. At the head of the group were chaperones Susan Chinnici and Wendell Thomas, organizing and executing a precise, and time consuming agenda. The body was made up of students from Atholton and Howard High schools, and various parents squeezed their way through the herd, as well.
Day one: after a grueling seven hour flight the girls went to Bath. Still wearing their plane attire, they traveled around the city. The ancient architecture and the Roman built baths made a suitable stop for sight seeing and touring. Still, however, no Hugh Grant.
The next destination was Malvern Girls College. After 80 kilometers of driving on the wrong side of the road, the girls unloaded the bus on the dark street, and entered the historical main building of the campus. It was tea time.
After crumpets were consumed and tea was sipped, the girls were assigned to their host families and traveled off into the night. Seven out of the twenty-seven girls from Howard County resided in the Malvern dorms with the rest of the Malvern student body. * (quote from either Sara Hester, Allison Akers, Mel Keller, Katherine Johnson, Katie Chinnici)
The trip was flowing smoothly, until Sunday 6 came around. It was Super Bowl-an American tradition. The girls were not in Kansas anymore, instead, they were in a whole new country that flaunts their obsession for games like cricket and football-aka soccer.
“I missed this year’s Super Bowl. It felt like I was missing Christmas or something,” said junior Lauren Sampson.
The girls who stayed with the Malvern boarders found themselves half asleep in front of a glowing television in the common room, at ten thirty British time. The game commenced, and for the following four hours every pair of American eyes were glued to the screen. * (Quote from Sara) Three in the morning rang and the girls climbed up the two flights of stairs to their rooms.

Some games were won, and some games were lost. In the end, seven dreadful hours on a plane, followed by countless unforgettable miles on a bloody coach bus produced everlasting friendships and memories that will never fade. Even if Hugh never made an appearance, Great Britain still had some great looking blokes across the pond. * (Quote about England and loving it)
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