In April, Gumley House Convent School, Isleworth, flew 37 of their students to Washington DC on a history trip. They intended to stay for five days, but their trip was extended for an extra week.

I was one of the 37 students on this exciting trip. I never expected I would be stranded in Washington DC because of a volcanic eruption in Iceland. Remembering back on this trip, it really was an adventure; a bunch of 15-18 year olds stranded in America. There were times when emotions ran high, some A-level students worried that they would not get back in time for exams at the beginning of May, others missing sharing their birthdays with their families, and others missing various family events.

While we waited on news, we were treated to one night in the Hilton and the remainder at the Crowne Plaza. Our extra time was pleasurable, and we met lots of new people who made our longer stay even more enjoyable.

I would like to use this article to thank the four teachers accompanying us on the trip; the Mrs, Fulgoni, Murray-Gates and Williams, and Ms Standing. Even though they were marooned on the other side of the world with almost forty teenagers, they were calm and collected; without them our extra time in Washington would not have been as enjoyable as it was.

As Mrs Williams said; “This trip will go down in Gumley’s history.” And I think she’s right.