On 4th July 2002, members of 8GR and 8G6 visited the Sikh Gurdwara in Calderwood Street, Woolwich.

This gurdwara - the name used for a Sikh temple - is one of the central Sikh places of worship in South London, boasting several thousand members and worshippers.

The group travelled from Bexleyheath to Woolwich by train. Here are members of 8G6 at Bexleyheath waiting for the train.

Here are members of 8G6 on the train.

Here are members of 8GR on the train.

It is considered a mark of respect to cover your head when inside the Gurdwara, so students were asked to wear a hat.

The group was given a very interesting guided tour by a member of the Temple committee.

Inside the prayer hall is a large canopy called a 'takht'. This covers the Sikh holy book - the Guru Granth Sahib, which is read throughout the day by a granthi.

The group were offered Karah Prashad, special sweet food which represents God's blessings.

Here we see the food being blessed in the kitchen before being served. Women in Sikhism have equal status to men.

Queuing for a free meal, served by our own Mrs Shokar.

The musical instruments used during services.

Having studied the Sikh faith in the Summer term, Year 8 were well aware of the importance of the Gurdwara to Sikhs. However, everything they had learned previously had been from textbooks or videos. This visit allowed the students some real-life experience of another faith community. We hope to be able to take more groups in the future - who knows, perhaps one day we might visit the Golden Temple in Amritsar! The RE Department and Year 8 would like to thank the Woolwich Gurdwara for their hospitality and kindness.

All gurwaras have a free kitchen called a langar. Here anyone, of any faith is welcome to a free meal prepared by members of the congregation. During our visit we were generously given Coke and crisps, but many of the group tried the more traditional food.

Here Daniel enjoys the food in the langar.

Traditional food served in the langar.

8GR in the Langar.