Our Visit To The City of Manchester Stadium July 14, 2009

Where do your children go on day trips from school ? On Monday 13^th July Class 4 had a trip to see a stadium preparing for the new Premier League soccer season.

The stadium was built for the purpose of England staging the Commonwealth Games in 2002. The Commonwealth is a group of countries which used to be part of the British Empire . (Almost all those nations who speak English, for example : Canada , India , South Africa , Australia , Hong Kong , Pakistan , Jamaica , Kenya , New Zealand and many others)

 The stadium is interesting in that, at first, it had just 2 tiers of seating but when the Games were over they dug deep into the ground where the pitch is now so that a third tier of seats could also be added. The bottom third is therefore below ground level.

 The Queen opened the Games in 2002 along with David    Beckham and her leather chair is still in position. Some people feel that because the Manchester Games of 2002 were a success, it increased London ’s chances of being selected as the Olympics venue for 2012.

 There are air vents high up in the stadium which allow air to circulate during the week to help dry the pitch ( Manchester is a rainy city) but these are closed during games so the fans are not too cold ! There is a road underneath the stadium which ambulances use as well as the away team bus so it can enter the basement of the stadium.

 The stadium holds 48,000 fans – it is the fourth largest League ground in England . (only Manchester United, Arsenal and Sunderland are bigger)

 Sportcity is the name of this area of East Manchester where all the Games were held. The national squash and cycling centres are here and we visited the Velodrome where the British cycling team (including Chris Hoy) are based half of the year. Some of the team were arriving for training when we were there. In Sportcity there is also an athletics track and a tennis centre.

 After the games, Manchester City F.C. reached an agreement to take over the stadium and leave their home in South Manchester where they had been for over 100 years. They are the only major English club to have been started by a woman – she believed the local men in the 1870’s needed something to occupy them to stop their habit of drinking and getting into trouble !

 The exits are circular tubes, similar to the San Siro stadium in Milan , Italy . Our tour guide explained that this was because the ground can be emptied in 8 minutes in an emergency.

Regular fans are the boxer Ricky Hatton and Liam and Noel Gallagher of the band, Oasis. In our photographs you will see us outside one of the executive boxes where wealthy fans have a 4 course meal before matches, us sitting in the directors’ leather chairs and also by the side of the pitch.

Philip and the class 4 – Churchfields Primary Schoo l- Chesterton, Newcastle-under Lyme- UK

“Bastille Day”: Le 14 juillet July 14, 2009

Fête du 14 juillet : Fête nationale française.

 

 

Today is our National Day ( July 14th) which celebrates the French Revolution which ended up by the King’s death ( he was beheaded in 1793, 3 years after  ”Bastille Day”)

A stronghold called “Bastille” in Paris was used as a prison for political opponents to the kings. It was also a place where amunitions were kept so when the Parisian people got angry with the king, they invaded  the Bastille fortress to have enough amunitions for their upheaval!

 The Republic was proclaimed 3 years later! Then began another scary episode! Lots of people were beheaded and a dreadful machine called “the guillotine” ( =the gallows) was excessively used in public. The condemned people would come to specific places where the gallows were and full loads of innocent people were transported in horse-drawn carriages to be beheaded. Those Days were called ” Terror”.

BUT!  Those days also promoted the first  universal chart for HUMAN RIGHTS. Incredible!!, Terror and “La Déclaration des droits de l’homme et du citoyen, 1789″ : every human being had the same rights which did not depend on the right of birth, religion or social status as it was the case previously.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Déclaration des droits de l’homme et du citoyen (August 1789)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nowadays, we are a little bit more peacable people!  We have fireworks and public dancing ( old-fashionned open air dances).

 Tonight, Paris will be illuminated by fireworks fired from the Eiffel Tower which is 120 years old  this year!

Affiche 14 juillet 2009: Mairie de Paris.