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Elle Liao

2 years
Berwick upon tweed
I moved to the Northumberland to study at the Longridge tower school when I was 12 years old. I learned much more than academic knowledges and became someone who truly love and respect the nature.

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*My old phone was stolen near the southbank last year in London. Some of the picture in this article is downloaded from other sources. I have checked them to make sure they look the same as the Berwick in my impression. Thank you for understanding.

School forrest There is actually a forrest in the campus of longridge tower school.

Trees
The forrest is surrounded by pine trees and yews, inside there are elms, birch and alders. The holly trees stand by the tiny paths, the spruge laurels guard the playground and the crab apples decorate the tennis court.

Animals
Seagulls, doves and foxes are common guests of our forrest. Pheasants and deers come to visit us too. One of my favourite activity is to search for pheasant feathers and preserve them according to way my art teacher taught me.

Mushroom
Mushroom and puff-ball inhabits the floor of the woods and make the air smells damp but healthy in the morning after rain.

Flowers
Daffodil and snowdrops come in early spring, elder flower and other members of the carrot family takes over in the summer. Nettle is what we use to sting each other with as naughty boarders. Thistle, the national flower of scotland, is presented from early spring to Autumn, but I believe it is most robust in July or August.

Boarders
We went down to the forrest every evening from the boarding house to play, to run, and to forage for butter cups and wild berries in their harvest season. We escaped from the school through the rare of the forest once and picked some wool from a nearby farm (sorry...)

https://www.independentschoolsyearbook.co.uk/profiles
/1829/longridge-towers-school

The town After moving out of the boarding house, I stayed at a tiny flat behind the town hall and discovered so many beautiful places around Berwick-upon-tweed.

Castle and the ramparts
Best place to go for a refreshing run or relaxing walk after a stressful day would be the rampart. It is a bit like walking on an acient wall covered in lively grass all year around. The rampart will take you all the way to the cliffs by the sea and the Magdalene golf club where you can play golf at a price you never imagined in London.

The light house
Around ten minutes walk along the back street from my flat I would arrive at the light house where I can see the spital beaches across the bay. While the light house provided us a sense of security, the wind was strong and harsh in the winter and remind us of the power of the nature.

The bridges and river
Berwick is probably most famous for the royal border bridge that over looks the tweed river, it is the bridge that I will cross whenever I travel back to Berwick town by the train. There are 3 bridges in the town center, the other 2 are A1167 and the old bridge. I never got to known the real name of A1167, eventhough it is the one I cross through the most time. I cross it to go shopping at the tesco, to go to the garden centre and to join my gmnastic classes. It is a wide and modern bridge that gives a great view of the entire town.

The riverside is a great place to unwind, just the over-passionate common gorse might be abit overwhelming at first.

The garden center
The Berwick garden center is packed with plants, tools, art works, handmade-soap and the fresh breezes of the spring. You can enjoy a soothing afternoon there under the sun and begin a conversion with friendly local people. Speciality Nothumberland and scottish meals are cartered there every weekend.

This picture is posted byPeteonPixabay

My art teacher My art teacher - Mrs Mccorquodale- is one of the most important people to me during my time at Berwick.

Growing up in the beauty of the scottish borders, she knowns the splendid nature well and taught me how to identify animal tracks, illustrate watercolor bird eggs and paint the sea. She inspired me to read the Old paths and A Sand County Almanac, and to keep a natural diary myself.

Mrs Mccorquodale ran an art workshop every afternoon and evening for all students despite of their age or ability. She taught me how to acquire painting skills through learning from other artists' master piece and told me about David hockney. She also taught me how to knit and sew, and introduce me to the art of patchwork.

When not teachng at the school, Mrs Mccorquodale is an experienced rider who can ide ride all the way to Newcastle or Edinburgh and back during weekends (she is graduated from the Edinburgh university). She also sell her sea paintings online and was generous about teaching her students her signature sea-painting techniques.

I got so much more to share about Berwick - so much more than I can write on this page
Visit The northumberland wildlife trust and Visit berwick for more.