Au Revoir Grace Church!

Our minds were racing! We had seen so much in the past few days that it was hard to switch to a regular routine of school. As our bus turned the last street, our eagerness speckled with nervousness, we bravely tried to face the situation. A week of fun and frolic led us to our actual exchange program in Grace Church School Manhattan.
The week before was unforgettable. With short excursions to pristine valleys of London, the classic landscape of Oxford, the mysticism of Stratford Upon Avon, the sheer beauty of Washington decked in Cherry Blossoms and Boston’s duck tour, fifteen of us accompanied by two teachers suddenly found ourselves facing our Exchange Buddies.
The initial meeting at school was like a conventional one! We were instructed to behave like angels (and we did live up to this!).
What intrigued me was that Grace Church School was so very different from ours. The tall building dating almost a century had in it all the amenities that a student requires in his school life. Besides, all through the day we received ample free time to walk into Grace’s gorgeous library, sit and surf on their innumerable computers and rejuvenate by playing all sorts of sports within the school! The day, unlike in VVS did not begin with assembly but began with an informal interaction with our peers and teachers. Another striking difference was that we at VVS follow a more formal sort of study pattern but at Grace, informal interactions are enough to get the dedicated students to work!
From the dramatic History lessons, to riveting grindings in Music, from the thrill of playing in Graces state of the art gym to studying serious Ethics and Drama, Grace Church School proved that it believed in the holistic development of it’s students!
The lessons thus struck an immaculate balance between fun and serious study. And by adapting practical demonstrations rather than tedious theory, Grace Church School students automatically get a head start in their early years.
But all good things end fast. And so did this week at Grace. There was so much to do and so much to learn! Thus ended our wonderful trip with smiles and tears. It shall always remain etched in our minds!