Saturday 30th July 2011

Today we had booked for a Roman Adventure in London! Therefore we decided to make the day of it.

Firstly we caught the 9.10am Train from Fleet to London Waterloo.

from there we started walking towards our first stop for the day.

Meanwhile, on route, they had great fun spotting landmarks and squirrels! Jessica was completely shocked that London would have Squirrels too.

The first stop on our Roman Adventure day:

This was our first time going to the London Film Museum. It was fantastic and I highly recommend it.

Soon they were sat watching Harold and Hardy on a small mock Cinema from back in the day. In brief, I haven’t heard them laugh so much! Completely astonished that they understood the humour of the silent film in question. I think I may have to introduce them to some more of the greats from the past!

London Film Museum Photos!

They Enjoyed having their pictures taken with the Simpsons And Peter Rabbit.

Jessica Loved looking at all the Props from the borrower’s Film and TV Series and found a very big plug very funny.

From the Museum we watched the London Eye and again spotted Big Ben.

So we then Walked across the Bridge over to Big Ben and the children saw the Statue of Boudicca before getting on the underground and heading to where the Roman Experience.

Second Stop: Lunch spot

We took the Tube from Warminster to Monument. Afterwards, we walked from Monument to Bank. From Bank, we got the tube from to Saint Paul’s. We were finally where it was being held.

Finally, we arrived, we got there well in advance and had some lunch in the shadows of Saint Paul’s Cathedral.

We then went for a walk around the Cathedral and Jessica Spotted loved the Statue in the Cathedral grounds and had her picture taken with it.

We then went on the hunt for loos which I was shocked to find out were miles apart but found some in a Shopping Complex across the road from the Cathedral.

Finally entering the Roman world!

Once all watered we left and walked the short walk to where the Event was being held.

So then as we got closer the children got Excited to see all the roman Soldiers Walking around.

Still a little early so had a bit of a wait. While waiting the children got talking all about Romans with a couple of other Home Educated Children from just outside of London. Due to this conversation, a very nice man dressed as a centurion stopped to talk to them. He talked them through the different weapons they were carrying and also told the children that Romans actually had field Medics! These Medics carried a kit very much like the kit we have today and the time quickly passed.

Welcome to Londinium!

When we got in we went for a walk around and Thomas came with me and Jessica went With daddy to get a War wound on her arm.

Thomas loved it and all his knowledge came flooding out. He was so much into it the cameras filming the event for the BBC followed him around for about 10 minutes! They recorded him asking questions about the different soldiers.

Thomas and the film crew.

He asked about different Clay used and how each pot was made. The cameras continued to follow us onto the Stall with a lady making Material and Belts. Thomas asked about how they spun the threads and what sort of different Threads they used. Surprisingly he recognised what they were made on and asked if it was a Roman Version of the Ickle Loom.

Tom did spend a few minutes talking to the lady about the name of the loom “is it “little” loom not Ickle because he was a big boy and could say little now?”. He said it very politely and listened when she went on to explain Ickle wasn’t meant to mean Little it was the type of Loom. The conversation really made her smile and she let him have a go with the loom. She told him about the weights for the other Roman Style Loom she used which were made for her by the man who did the pottery. The cameras continued to follow him onto the man who was explaining about how the Romans used to write. They eventually left him after Jessica and Duncan arrived back with her awesome fake wound.

Would you like to know more?

If you would like a chance to experience a little of the Roman London life there are still opportunities to do so although this event was a one-time event.

For more about Roman life in Londinium check out the permanent Roman Exhibition at the London Museum.

More Roman project posts can be found here.