Guy Fawkes Day in Cambridge is a big party. There were fireworks, a fun fair, toffee apples and cotton candy. I went on a ride. It was unexpectedly exhilarating.

We watched the fireworks from the college boathouses. There were signs warning people to only watch the fireworks from the Midsummer Commons (a big field) or from inside the boathouses. We joined the hundreds of people ignoring the safety warnings. I did get rained on with debris. The danger added to the thrill.

Owen, a coursemate, said, “England is the only country I know that celebrates the failure of a revolution. It’s like, every year, the Government sponsors these fireworks and a huge bonfire to burn the effigy of Guy Fawkes so that our leaders can remind people, ‘This is what will happen to you if you try to revolt!’ “