visiting, countries we came from -- and about the Commonwealth itself. Just talking amongst ourselves, not necessarily about journalism, was a great experience,'' reports Bermudian journalist Miss Carol Parker.

Selected from a field of 200 applicants throughout the Commonwealth, Bermudian journalist Miss Carol Parker recently joined nine colleagues from around the world for an advanced course in journalism sponsored by the Commonwealth Press Union in London.

The Royal Gazette senior reporter just returned from the gruelling two-month programme, designed to broaden the horizons and skills of practising journalists.

Far from being merely an academic exercise, Miss Parker and her group were soon plunged into the rough and tumble of the typical journalist's working life, for they all spent periods attached to regional newspapers throughout Britain -- to say nothing of a week's visit to Belfast, Northern Ireland.

And in spite of the red-carpet treatment, where the group met the leading individuals in many of Britain's most hallowed institutions, Miss Parker says it was the interaction with the other journalists who came from Canada, India, Botswana, Ghana, New Zealand, Australia and Singapore, that proved to be the most rewarding aspect of the whole experience.

"I think we all had pre-conceived ideas about each other, the country we were visiting, countries we came from -- and about the Commonwealth itself. Just talking amongst ourselves, not necessarily about journalism, was a great experience.'' Her first intimation that the Commonwealth is still a viable force in international affairs came when one of her colleagues from Ghana revealed that his newspaper, facing a government lawsuit as a result of their having exposed government corruption, was receiving practical assistance from the Commonwealth as well as Amnesty International in fighting the issue in court.

With only one free day (spent in shopping) at the very end of the eight-week course, the itinerary mapped out for the journalists makes dizzying reading and only the highlights can be mentioned here.

Their first week was spent in London at the Newspaper Society, where discussions were held on the background and operation of the Commonwealth, the British press and newspaper ethics, where one of the speakers was Mr. Brian MacArthur, editor of The Times.

British politics were covered, with a visit to the Press Association, known as "the mother of news agencies'', and to Reuters, the BBC and also a meeting with the head of Public Relations (a former journalist) for Rolls Royce plc.

Then it was off to Hastings, on England's south coast, for a two-week course at the Westminster Press Training Centre, where journalists from its 115 UK newspapers (including The Financial Times) are schooled in the development of writing skills, typography, lay-out de sign, colour and graphics, and personal communication.

The emphasis at Hastings, she says, was bringing the newspaper industry into the 21st century amid the competition of TV, "especially amongst the 15- to 30-year-old age group, who are reading less and less. If newspapers are to survive, it is this group who must be brought back.'' The "dreaming spires of Oxford'' provided a suitably academic setting for a week of lectures by professors and diplomats on international current affairs and then it was back to London for more familiarisation visits to such institutions as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Racial Equality Commission, the Eurotunnel visitors' centre, Westminster Council and the Overseas Development Administration.

And was she nervous when the time came for their visit to Northern Ireland? "Yes,'' she laughed, "I think we were all expecting the worst, especially as `for security reasons' we were given no advance itinerary. Then we found we were going to stay in the Europa Hotel, which has been bombed 27 times, so we were rather taken aback by that.'' Miss Parker says the bus ride there, on a Sunday evening, had the same sort of effect as riding on a roller-coaster -- "up and down, excited and apprehensive at the same time'', as they were periodically stopped en route to check for possible bombs and explosives.

But the hotel proved to be an oasis of luxury and after the first night, the group began to relax.

"The aim of the Northern Ireland trip was to show reporters that the media often gives a very one-sided view of the Irish situation.'' On the whole, Miss Parker found this to be true, for while she witnessed the very visible presence of the British army, especially around the notorious Fells Road area of Belfast and saw evidence of bombed buildings, she was impressed by the normality of life there.

"Northern Ireland is very beauti ful and at times, it's hard to realise all this is going on,'' she said. "In fact, it is only about 10 percent of the population who are trying to destroy the country. Most people are just getting on with their lives and refuse to become prisoners in their own homes.'' Miss Parker says that visits to the Belfast Development Office, the various political party offices, the Industrial Development Board and various companies tended to confirm that the UK is investing heavily in the Province's future, reporting an increase in tourism figures to over a million in 1990.

With fellow journalists going off to regional papers in England, Wales and Scotland, Miss Parker was assigned for one week to the Evening Chronicle in Bath, a paper with a readership of 25,000, published twice daily and, she felt, very much like The Royal Gazette in its news coverage.

Choosing education as her special topic, Miss Parker visited several schools in the Avon county area and met with well-known MPs, including Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown and Bath MP Don Foster, with whom she discussed educational reforms in Britain and how they might be applied to Bermuda.

The last week in London included a more than lively visit to the House of Commons, where the group passed by coal-miners, demonstrating against projected closures which were being noisily debated inside the famous Chamber.

"I received a valuable insight on the meaning of the Commonwealth. I had thought that it was all about Britain, but it involves much more,'' she said.

"The Commonwealth brings people together from what was the old Empire and acts as a representative for countries that don't have a voice anywhere else, either politically or socially.'' Miss Parker was educated at Berkeley Institute and holds a Bachelor of Sciences degree in Journalism from Florida A & M University.

She was put forward for the course by CPU fellow and editor of The Royal Gazette Mr. David L. White.

"I think all of us who went on the course will have brought something back that will help enhance our own newspapers,'' said Miss Parker.

COMMONWEALTH FELLOWS -- Representatives of the Commonwealth Press Union at a London reception are, from left: Mr. Methaetsile Leepile, Botswana; Mr. David Haynes, Canada; CPU Chairman Mr. Richard Winfrey; Mr. Finny Jacob, India; Mr.

Jim Hendry, Canada; CPU director Mr. Robin MacKichan; Mr. Howard Kuhl, Australia; Miss Oi Ken Chin, Singapore and, centre from left: Miss Vaijayanti Kulkarni, India; Miss Carol Parker, Bermuda; Mr. Steven Larbi, Ghana; and Miss Suzanne Chetwin, New Zealand.

TUNING IN -- Gazette journalist Miss Carol Parker listens in on a French language class during a visit to Beechen Cliff, a boys' grammar school in Bath.

CASUAL CHAT -- Among the top officials Miss Parker met was ... well, not Prime Minister John Major. This phot was taken at Madame Tussaud's London Wax Museum.