Fab Four

The Beattles Magical Mystery Tour

Laura and Lisa took a walking tour of the Beatles' haunts in London. We saw their Apple offices, the building where they played their famous rooftop session, Paul McCartney's music company headquarters, and the world famous Abbey Road Studios and the Abbey Road crosswalk.

Oxford

We only had time to spend a few hours in Oxford. We wish we had more time! We did make time to visit the Eagle and Child pub otherwise known as the "Bird and Baby." In the 1940s and 1950s, a small group of like-minded friends met at this pub to discuss literature, writing and life. this group included C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and called themselves "The Inklings."

Hiking through villages in the Cotswolds

There are a series of walks throughout the Cotswolds to explore the countryside. Villages provide maps of walks through pastures and along rock walls. We walk from bustling market towns to sleep villages with a pub. From windswept hill tops to woodlands.

Burford - "Gateway to the Cotswolds"

We loved Burford! It's absolutely lovely! Burford is steeped in history going back centuries. Burford was the first Cotswold town to be granted a charter in 1087 therefore giving it the status of a market town.

Norman barons, medieval merchants and Kings and Queens have all at some time trodden its streets. The size and architecture of St John the Baptist Church is a testament to the wealth and importance of the town since the 1500s. The hills surrounding the town make for good grazing land for the sheep and the stone was excellent for building. Some of the stone from Burford was used to build the dome of St Paul's cathedral in London.

Witney Wool & Blanket Trail

On 19th July 2002 the looms in Witney stopped and the woollen industry in Witney was consigned to history. The woollen industry has lated almost a thousand years, dominating the economic and social life of the town. For centuries Witney was famous all over the world for woollen cloth. The blanket industry survived many of the changes that took place in the industrial age but in the early 1970s the woollen market finally met what was to prove it's best competitor - the duvet.

Cheltenham Racecourse

We went to Cheltenham to watch horse jump racing. Cheltenham Racecourse is a beautiful amphitheater to watch several races. Horses and riders are tested by jumping fences, hurdles and water pits to cross the finish line. The thoroughbred racehorses are so strong to go up and down hills around the strenuous racecourse.

Doors of England

As we walked through some of the villages in the Cotswolds Lisa was really struck by all the beautiful and unique doors. Here are several of the doors we walked past.

Julia's Ambulance Ride

Julia took her last horse riding lesson last Wednesday. She was jumping really well as her horse, "Shadow", maneuvered the jumps. Her instructor decided to give Julia a bit of a challenge and she set up a double jump. Julia jumped one perfectly and then after jumping the second Shadow decided to bolt right while Julia fell off the left side. She couldn't move her neck once she hit the ground and we became quite concerned that she might have broken her neck or jaw. She cut her chin pretty badly. So we called an ambalnce and spent the evening at the Kingston Hospital. In the end Julia was totally fine - no broken bones. Praise the Lord!

Guy Fawkes Neighborhood Event on November 7

All of London broke out in parties and the skies erupted with fireworks in honor of this man who lived between 1570 and 1606, named Guy Fawkes. He belonged to a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.

Fawkes was born in York. He converted to Catholicisim and left for the continent and fought in the Eighty Years' War on the side of Catholic Spain against the Protestant Dutch reformers. Later Fawkes met Roberet Catesby and together they planned to assassinate King James I and restore a Catholic monarch to the throne. The plotters leased and an underground tunnel beneath the House of Lords and Fawkes was put in charge of the gunpowder. The English authorities received an anonymous letter and search Westminster Palace on November 5 and found Fawkes guarding the explosives.

Fawkes became synonymous with the Gunpowder Plot, which has been commemorated in England since November 5 1605. On this day every year in Britain people gather around bonfires and set off fireworks. We were invited to a neighborhood fireworks event by a friend of a friend.

Eton College

Eton College is across the Thames River from Windsor. The girls and Lisa had a lovely afternoon after the tour of Windsor Catle feeding the swans and then walking across the bridge to Eton. Eton is a small town with upscale shops and restaurants. Eton College is a British independent school for boys between the ages of 13 and 18. It was founded by King Henry VI in 1440.

Eton has a very long list of distinguished former students. David Cameron is the nineteenth British Prime Minister to have attended Eton. A 20th century historian of Eton wrote, "No other school can claim to have sent forth such a cohort of distinguished figures to make their mak on the world."

Windsor Castle

The girls and Lisa took the train from Paddington to Windsor for the day several weeks ago. John was out of town in Devon. We really enjoyed our day in the town of Windsor and our traditional Shepherds pie at the pub where there is a tunnel to Windsor Castle.

Windsor Castle is the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world. Its history goes back 1000 years. The castle covers about 13 acres. We took the audio tour which was incredibly informative and took 2 hours for a walk through the State Apartments, St. George's Chapel (burial place of 10 monarchs), Queen Mary's Dolls House.

Rememberance Day in London

Laura, Julia and Lisa walked to Trafalgar Square to mark the Armistice. At 11 AM today London fell silent. It was very somber. The Royal British Legion hosted Silence in the Square. The pop group the Saturdays performed and there were readings from celebrities before before the silence.

Phantom of the Opera

Laura and Lisa walked across the street from our London flat to Her Majesty's Theater to see "Phantom of the Opera." Laura plays the song "Think of Me" on the piano and we really enjoyed listening to all the pieces during the musical. The theater wasn't as nice as our very own Morris Theater back in South Bend but we really enjoyed the production.

Think of Me

think of me foundly, when

we've said goodbye

remember me

once in a while, please

promise me you'll try

When you find,

that once again you long

to take your heart back,

and be free

if you ever find a moment,

spare a thought for me........

Bath

What a quaint city! Bath was first established as a spa resort by the Romans in AD 43. The Romans built baths and a temple in the valley of the river Avon around hot springs, which are the only natural hot springs in the United Kingdom. The Romans worshipped the goddess of healing, "Sulis" in Bath.

In 1987 Bath was named a World Heritage Site. It is known for its Georgian architecture with the crescent and the Bath Circus. During WWII Bath was hit by the Blitz with more than 19,000 building destroyed.

Bath is on the southside of the Cotswolds with beautiful limestone hills and gorgeous country estates. Jane Austen lived in the city of Bath from 1801 with her family until 1806. Her two novels, Persuasion and Northanger Abbey are largely set in the city and feature the social life and music recitals of the city during that period.

Stonehenge

Well....after visiting Stonehenge on Saturday we are more confused that ever about the purpose of this stone circle in the countryside of England. Before listening to the audio guide we associated Stonehenge with Druid religious rituals. As it turns out, the Druids had nothing to do with the construction of the Stonehenge. They were known to have conducted their pagan rituals in sacred forest groves. We learned during the tour that it was used as an astronomical observatory. So we conclude now that Stonehenge was used simultaneously for both astronomical observation and ritual function. The Stonehenge observations were used to determine the solstices, equinoxes and lunar days.

Archaelogists believe that Stonehenge was built between 3100 - 1100 BCE. It is estimated that the construction of Stonehenge required more than 30 million hours of labor. It interesting to note that there are about 900 stone rings (henges) around the British Isles. Stonehenge is the most well known.

Julia is taking Riding Lessons

Julia has been taking riding lessons at the Kingston Rider Centre. We are so glad to give Julia this opportunity because she enjoys riding and grooming horses. Although it takes us 4 hours round trip to give Julia these riding lessons we think it is well worth it. Kingston riding centre has indoor and outdoor arenas. Every week Julia takes a "flat" lesson where she learns the different schooling figures, dressage. Then the alternate week she takes a show jumping lesson. We are so proud of her progress. Her instructor, Anita, is from Germany and a little difficult to understand.

Alpha Marriage Class

John. Lisa, Jim and Barbara co-lead an Alpha Course for Chinese graduate students at Notre Dame every year. We host 10-12 Chinese students every friday night during beginning in January for 12 weeks. It has been a very meaningful time as we develop deep friendships over dinner and discuss different aspect of the Christian faith.

Since we have been living in London we decided to attend the Alpha Marriage Course. It's been great going every Monday night for a candlelight dinner and discuss different topics:

* understand each other's needs

* communicate more effectively

* grow closer through resolving conflict

* recognize how your upbringing affects your relationship

* develop great sexual intimacy

* discover each other's love languages

We have really enjoyed our dates nights!

National Gallery of Art

The University of Notre Dame building, where we are staying in London, is right next to the National Gallery which houses the national collection of Western European painting from the 13th to the 19th centuries.

John gave the girls an art project at the National Gallery. They were each to find a painting and explain why they chose it, research the painter and what they liked about it. Julia chose "Whistlejacket" by George Stubbs and created a powerpoint presentation. Laura chose "A Lady pouring Chocolate" by Jean-Etienne Liotard painted in 1744.

Covent Garden

Covent Garden is a district in central London with shops, street performers, bars and restaurants and theaters. At the heart of the Covent Garden piazza is the famous market, designed in 1632. In the open piazza are jugglers, mime artists and a variety of acts and musicians.

Homeschool in London

Every morning we begin our day with the girls in bible lesson then math, language arts, literature, history, geography, science and Chinese.