From Russia with love – Alumni stories, Dorothy Greenwood

When Ripon College alumna, Dorothy Greenwood, got in touch offering to chat to us about her trip to the Soviet Union we were instantly intrigued. Dorothy’s trip was organised by the British Council, who offered British students the opportunity to spend a month in the Soviet Union learning about Soviet education; an experience she describes as ‘eye-opening’.

 ‘I grew up in Huddersfield and was the first in my family to go into Higher Education,’ Dorothy, who attended Ripon College between 1963 and 1966, told us. ‘While at Ripon, I saw a notice on the College noticeboard about an educational trip to the Soviet Union for students who were interested widening their horizons. It appealed to me although I’d never even been abroad before!’ After completing an application explaining why she wanted to go, Dorothy found out that she was one of around ten successful UK students.

It took the group two days to travel to Russia as most of the journey was done by train, but Dorothy and her fellow students kept themselves busy. ‘We spent lots of time practising our Russian and we were expected to present a ‘party piece’ which was supposed to be an example of national culture. One of our group was Scottish so we prepared the Three Witches’ scene from Macbeth and learnt a few traditional Scottish songs.’ One unexpected adventure found the group having to disembark at 1am while the train was lifted onto different size rails.

Seven-year-old children in a Russian school

 Dorothy’s group eventually arrived in Moscow, where they spent the first two weeks of their visit. ‘We were under close supervision almost all the time,’ Dorothy explains. ‘Most mornings were spent in the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute or in local schools, but one of the most memorable experiences was visiting the theatre inside the Kremlin, where we saw the Bolshoi Ballet perform Swan Lake. One of the things we absolutely loved about Moscow was the Metro, we could travel almost anywhere for less than a penny. I can also remember that ice cream seemed to be sold everywhere! The Russians really loved it.’

After Moscow the group travelled to Leningrad (now St Petersburg) where they spent time at the Leningrad State University. They also took a trip to the frozen sea in the Gulf of Finland, visited the Winter and Summer Palaces and attended a performance by the Alexandrov Ensemble (more commonly know as the Red Army Choir). ‘One of our less pleasant experience of Russia was the food, which took some getting used to,’ Dorothy remembered. ‘Especially if, like me, you weren’t that keen on borscht. There was also very little food available in the shops – although we were introduced to yogurt which was not yet widely available in the UK.’

Taken in West Berlin, looking over the “wall” into East Berlin.

Incredible as Russia was, it was the journey home which left an indelible memory on Dorothy. ‘We had to stop in Warsaw for 24 hours and it was there that we first realised the impact the Second World War had on Jewish communities. Huge areas had been completely decimated. After leaving Poland we then stopped in Berlin for 12 hours, and there we saw a Concentration Camp – we were absolutely horrified. At that time World War Two wasn’t yet part of the UK school curriculum, so most of what we knew came from our parents. We weren’t aware that the camps existed, nor the role they played in the war. It was an incredibly eye-opening moment.

‘My memories and experiences from the trip continue to live with me, it was an incredible few weeks and gave me a unique insight into education in Russia.’

After returning to Ripon, Dorothy was the joint recipient of an award for services to college; not only had she represented the college on the trip to Russia but she was also a fire warden, helped organise the 1964 Jazz Dance and umpired the ladies’ cricket team. She then went on to a career in teaching. ‘I spent much of my career in small schools, I just loved the atmosphere of a village and village schools. I will always be incredibly grateful for my time at Ripon.’

Thank you so much Dorothy for sharing your experiences and memories with us. If you would like to chat to us about your time as a student we’d love to hear from you! Get in touch by e-mailing alumni@yorksj.ac.uk