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Have you ever
I’m not normally one of those people who visits
been inspired A fi lm locations, but last summer, that’s what I did.
to travel by a To explain: I live in Northern Ireland, where several
book fi lmed. I hadn’t realised that until my friend Anna
scenes from the Game of Thrones TV series were
and I binge-watched the series over the summer
or a holidays and I recognised certain places. We
film? Lough, as soon as possible – and we weren’t
organised a trip to see one of them, Strangford
disappointed. What made our day there special
was when we saw groups of ‘Thronies’ dressed up Trish
in medieval cloaks and helmets and carrying plastic
swords. They were really getting into the spirit of things!
Apparently, the recent boom in visitors to parts of Ireland is mainly due to the
popularity of ‘Game of Thrones’ locations, which is good news for the economy!
A while back, I was getting ready to go out when I overheard my parents
B discussing plans for a winter holiday. Mum wanted to go somewhere
different for her birthday and I heard the word ‘Iceland’. WOW! I thought,
what a fantastic trip! My mind immediately jumped to dramatic
landscapes of ice and volcanoes in The Land of the Midnight Sun.

We had been watching a documentary about volcanoes the previous
week (I was always thinking up good excuses for not getting on
with my homework!) so that’s presumably what gave them the idea
of Iceland. Anyway, it certainly lived up to all our expectations.
The volcanic landscape doesn’t appeal to everyone, of course,
but the amazing skies (Aurora Borealis at night!) and the hot
Rich geysers springing up from the earth were just out of this world.
I’m half Russian, but the word ‘Russia’ still conjures up the
Cidea of somewhere exotic. When I was a child, we used
to stay with my Russian grandmother a lot, so I have had more access
to the language than most people. Even so, Russian is really diffi cult
to learn. I was going to give it up but then I thought, No, I can do
this! This year, since I am studying Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina at
school, my mother decided the time was right to go back. So last
month, we were in Russia and I was blown away by it all! The
historical buildings are amazing and the countryside is so vast.
The highlight was Tolstoy’s country house at Yasnaya Polyana,
but I also fell in love with Moscow and its colourful domes, and
the Peterhof Palace in St Petersburg with its fountains and statues. Alexandra
It was just like being on a movie set!

I recently won a trip to the USA through a travel app on
D my mobile phone. I’d answered some questions about US locations
for The Hunger Games fi lms, which I was a fan of, but I certainly didn’t
expect to win fi rst prize. I was due to go off on holiday to Greece just
then, but I ended up going to the US instead! Once there, my fellow
prize-winners and I were taken to North Carolina, an area I recognised
from pictures. I couldn’t believe I was actually there! My favourite
location was DuPont State Recreational Forest with its superb
scenery of trees, rocks, waterfalls, ponds, lakes and streams.
I recognised the Triple Falls and Bridal Veil Falls that had featured
in the fi rst fi lm – but as a city boy not used to such awe-inspiring
nature, I was freaking out! What an incredible experience!

Sam

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