As part of Airbnb’s Daily Kindness bulletin film maker Leon Stuparich travelled from London to Glastonbury relying on the kindness of strangers.
Self-study activity:
Watch the news item and answer the questions below. The activity is suitable for Intermediate 2 and Advanced students.
1 How much money did Leon Stuparich have on his pilgrimage?
2 What did the lady on the campsite offered?
3 What exactly did the man they found on the road bring them five minutes later?
4 What was the group doing in the arts centre?
5 Where was the house they were offered?
The idea of the peace pilgrimage really to try and take the lessons I learned from the Dalai Lama when making Road to Peace and put it to the test and to see if kindness and love is enough that we can survive on in 21st century Britain, doing a walk 200 miles, (1) without money, penniless, from London to Glastonbury to see if it was really possible to live through kindness; would people take us into their homes, would we even find somewhere to stay.
When you meet somebody with a smile and you take time to understand that story as well, people come forward and they will naturally be kind. People automatically turn round and say, well what can we do for you, what can we offer?
One lady came out the campsite one morning and we said, oh, we're on a pilgrimage, you know, going walking two hundred miles, and she said, oh, (2) would you like some rice? I cooked some rice last night I've got a load leftover I can give me some!
Where we stayed the first night was literally by the side of the road and we woke up to this guy walking his dog, and he's like I'll come back in five minutes. You guys like a cup of tea?, and he turns up with (3) a kettle, mugs, tea bags and the kettle with boiling water inside just making us all cups of tea.
It was probably the most drastic night where we didn't, we didn't know where we're going to stay and one of the group, she got really sick and (4) we were screening the film Road To Peace in an arts center that night and then somebody in the Arts Center said, you can come in, you can come and stay in our flat, you know, here's the keys. Let yourself come and go as you please; it's actually (5) across the road from the hospital. Giving somebody the key to your house that four hours before you'd never met and trusting them with that, I think there's something really special about that.
