Ideas and prizes

(Two ideas came together to form a third, so I'm going to try something, and if it's a giant flop I will pick myself up and carry on, because the only way to find out is to try ... Right - pep talk over.)

Idea one - a friend of mine mentioned these London treasure hunt / mystery maps, which look like a lot of fun, and something my students might be interested in.

Idea two - My friend and I were talking about London resolutions - mine is to do at least five London things/places over the next five months that I've never done before (I already have two things arranged, but that's for another post.)

Some of the ideas we came up with as we were talking were:

• - photo-a-day (which I did for two years, and might yet go back to, because it's a brilliant way of getting in the habit of both carrying a camera and really looking at what's around you.)
• - blogging at least (1/2/3) times a week (Tired of London's daily posting being quite the ambitious undertaking!)
• - writing a weekly long letter about your experiences
• - keeping a daily or near-daily diary
  
• - weekly video or audio recording (daily, if you had the kit and commitment?)

• visit each end of every tube line
• do something in each of London's 31 boroughs (+ the City)
• join a choir / team / class and make it to x% of rehearsals/services/games/etc
• compile a list of 100 things you thought were notably different or notably the same as your expectations
  
• shop at 10 different markets and talk with 2 different stall holders at each one
  
• work towards a 'big goal' event, like signing up for a distance race, or to perform at the Union Chapel with the Exmoor Singers
• the 'collect them all, live' sampler: go to at least one opera, classical music, non-classical music, ballet, and theatre performance outside of class trips.
• tour all the Parliament/Assembly buildings you get close to - (Houses of Parliament, Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, Greater London Council, local councils - maybe a trip to Brussels?)

Idea three - what if I asked you - any of my students who read this - to comment with your suggestions for challenges and resolutions, and awarded a prize of the treasure-hunt-of your choice to the neatest suggestion I receive by the end of the month?

So let's try that. Comment here, or drop me an email if you'd rather keep your resolution private, and be in with a chance of winning a London treasure hunt.

NB - please feel free to comment, but the contest is only open to LUP students - sorry, wider internets.

* Photo by dr_john2005, used under Creative Commons, with thanks.