Day 5 in England

On to London! We packed up this morning and loaded the bus to leave Bath, taking in one last magnificent view of the city as we drove away. After about an hour drive, we arrived at Stonehenge. I know I've said it before, but each day seems to be colder than the one before it, even more so when yesterday gave us a warmer, sunny afternoon. But, with Stonehenge located out in the open, the bone-chilling wind added to the atmosphere of the place. We keep getting told it's the coldest winter they've had in fifty years! Oh well. We can soak up the sun when we get back, and the beaches will always be there, but England is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. 

Last views of Bath

Stonehenge was amazing, both because of its mystery as well as because of the impressive size of the stones. Rays of sunlight were streaming through the clouds as we approached the stones, and the sheep were milling about the adjacent countryside among the ancient burial grounds scattered around the hills. As some of the kids remarked, we've all seen pictures of Stonehenge, but to see it in person was truly remarkable. 

Our devotions focused on what these stones have to teach us considering that Stonehenge was most likely a place of pagan worship. While it might be easy to indict these people as the worst of sinners, we need to remember what Surgeon himself reminded us: "Whatever a man depends upon, whatever rules his mind, whatever governs his affections, whatever is the chief object of his delight, is his god." This makes us all idolaters. Our devotions reminded us that the question to be asked is not, "Am I an idolater?" But rather, "Am I striving to remove the idols in my life." 

I should also mention that our devotions have not been our only teachers. Each student had to prepare a brief presentation for one of our stops on the tour. They have done remarkably well as our instructors along the way. We have also been listening to English hymns on the drives between our stops (all put together by Davis Muxlow). We were blessed today with "Come Thou Fount," "Crown Him with Many Crowns," "In Christ Alone," and "It Is Well with My Soul." What a soundtrack for our trip! 

And then there was London! As we moved closer and closer to our hotel as we drove through the city, the excitement level of the bus rose higher and higher. And, then we got our first glimpse of Big Ben and the cameras started clicking and the kids could hardly contain themselves. To see their thrill at being in such an incredible city was truly a joy. We arrived at our hotel, the Marriott at County Hall. It's absolutely incredible. Situated on the Thames and right next to The London Eye, it is a magnificent way to spend our last few days in England. 

The London Eye and The County Hall (our hotel!)

The entrance to our hotel

 

We had just enough time to drop off our luggage before we boarded the bus to head over to the Tower of London. There, we were able to explore the various towers that house the armory as well as areas that highlighted the tower's more infamous past as a prison and place of torture and execution. But, the greatest display available to visitors were the Crown Jewels. What an incredible (and beautiful) exhibit. 

The Tower of London

Tower Bridge

The White Tower (armory)

On our way to see the Crown Jewels

Once we finished there, we all took our first ride on the Tube. Keeping 30 people all together for our first ride was a little nerve-racking, but we didn't lose anyone. But, the best part was when we walked out of the Tube at the destination for our hotel. Right there in front of us was the impressive Westminster Abbey and Big Ben! To our right was the Thames and an incredible view of the Eye and our hotel. I keep marveling at the sights I am seeing with my very own eyes. 

Mind the Gap!

Big Ben!

We had just enough time to get checked into our rooms and get some dinner before heading back to the Tower of London (once again on the Tube) for the Ceremony of the Keys. This is a special ceremony that was a privilege for us to attend since this is not a ceremony that is open to the public. It was a great experience to watch the locking of the gate, an activity that is done every day of the year and has been done every day with no interruption for the last 700 years! 

The Tower of London at night

The Tower Bridge at night

Trying to stay warm before heading in for the Ceremony of the Keys

Waiting for the ceremony to begin

Coming back to our hotel after the Ceremony of the Keys

It's been a long day, and we are finally all back in our rooms trying to warm up and get some sleep. Tomorrow will come quickly, but at the same time we can't wait for it to come. There is so much to do, and we are realizing that we just have two days left. 

Pray today... 

• that God would give us eyes to see the idols of our heart and the courage to eliminate them 
• that we would hunger for and be satisfied in Him only 
• for the British people who, to this day, continue to construct individual Stonehenges

--MrB

Day 4 in England

Since we pulled into Bath around 9:30 last night, we really had no view of the city until this morning. Throwing open the curtains this morning revealed an incredible scene. Our hotel backs up to the river Avon, and all around are majestic, yellow limestone, mansion-like buildings--a truly beautiful European city. 

The view from our hotel!

After breakfast at the hotel, we walked over to Bath Abbey, just a block from the hotel. The outside of this church is breathtaking, but walking through the doors into the Abbey itself is awesome (in the truest sense of the word). Your eyes are instantly drawn upwards to the incredible architecture of the ceiling, no doubt a design that was meant to draw the eyes of the worshiper towards heaven. All this was illuminated by the morning sunlight streaming through the massive stain-glassed windows as the the pipe organ played music that reverberated through the whole building. 

Bath Abbey

Bath Abbey

Outside Bath Abbey

Inside Bath Abbey

Our group inside Bath Abbey...wish you could have heard the pipe organ!

After leaving the Abbey, we hopped on a tour bus that took us on a tour of the city. What an incredible history this city has. Obviously, the city is well-known for the Roman Baths themselves, but better yet is the architecture of the buildings within the city. The Circus and the Royal Crescent were two of the more amazing buildings. These, along with the many gardens and parks around the city, were simply beautiful. (I feel like I am running out of adjectives to describe the places we go in England!) 

Boarding our double-decker for the city tour.

Part of "The Circus"--stunning!

Once our tour was done, we were back at the Abbey and walked to the Roman Baths located next door. The students were treated to a glass of water from the Baths. It has a high mineral content and therefore has a distinct flavor that is not necessarily appreciated by everyone. But, you don't come all the way to Bath without taking in some of the rumored health benefits of its water. 

Next on the list was high tea at the Regency Tea Room at the Jane Austen Center. The girls were thrilled to have tea with Mr. Darcy himself (a portrait hangs in the room). Tea was served with several varieties of cakes, scones (with clotted cream a jam), and finger sandwiches (ham, cucumber, crab, and salmon). I think the one who enjoyed this experience the most was Dr. Keoshian who kept marveling at how good everything tasted. The way he kept describing each bite he took, you'd think he was filming something for the Food Network.  

Time for tea!

Definitely yummy :)

A short walk from Jane Austen's took us to two museums. The girls went to the fashion museum (Bath is now more known for its shopping than anything), and the boys headed over to the Bath at Work Museum. The girls tried on corsets and dresses similar to what those in the 18th Century would have worn when they came to Bath to socialize at the many Balls. The guys looked at the machinery often used during the 19th and early 20th Centuries in the various businesses in Bath at that time. We all met back together in the Assembly Rooms near the Fashion Museum to take a quick picture in one of the rooms where the elite of society would have gathered for Balls. 

Playing dress-up at the Fashion Museum

Ready for the Ball!

By mid-afternoon we made our way back towards our hotel, stopping on the Pultney Bridge and taking a break in the Parade Gardens. From there we split off into smaller groups to spend the afternoon relaxing or shopping before having dinner. It is a much needed break. (I really can't believe that this trip we looked so forward to is more than half-way over!) Tomorrow we head towards London to finish off our trip with a grand finale. I am already excited for the many incredible adventures that are ahead of us. And, yes, again we heard today, "This is the best day yet!" 

The view from Pultney Bridge

Relaxing at Parade Gardens

Playing Ninja at Parade Gardens

For our devotions, we took our cue from Jane Austen, whose characters were selfish and spent their lives struggling through dysfunctional relationships as a result of this self-centeredness. Spurgeon said, "Christians live by dying. Kill self and Christ shall live in you, and so shall you, yourself, most truly live. The way upward in true life and honor is to go downward in self-humiliation. Renounce all, and you shall be rich; have nothing; be nothing, and you shall have all things. Try to be something, and you shall be nothing; be nothing, and you shall live; that is the great lesson which Jesus would teach us, but which we are slow to learn." 

Continue to pray for us and our trip. Specifically pray today that... 

• we would have eyes to see the needs of others and a desire to be the one to meet them, 
• we would find several people today to give demonstration to what sets us apart from the selfishness of the world, and 
• we would desire a deeper level of less of us and more of Christ.

--MrB

Day 3 in England

Our day started off eating a wonderful English breakfast at our B&Bs in Stratford before getting on the bus and heading to the Cotswolds. We got off our bus in Stow-on-the-Wold where we began our two-mile hike across the chilly English countryside to a little village called Lower-Slaughter (which, believe me, is so much more wonderful than the name suggests). The walk took us across fields and over the rolling hills and down narrow country roads. We crossed bridges, hopped fences, and even petted some horses who were in a field we walked through. Everyday it's been fun to hear students say, "This is the best day, ever," and that phrase was heard often on our hike. 

How cool...A Morgan drove past us on our walk today!

Abbey Road or Duck Crossing?

I told you Lower-Slaughter was pretty!

After we were picked up by our bus we headed over to the small village called Bourton-on-the-Water. It has many little shops so we had some time to walk around and do some shopping after eating a sack lunch. Bourton-on-the-Water is well-known for its ice cream. Not too many of us were willing to get any, though, with the temps still in the 30s and wind chills that make it feel much colder. Hot teas and lattes were more appropriate. 

Bourton-on-the-Water

A view from one of the many bridges that cross the river at Bourton-on-the-Water

The shops at Bourton-on-the-Water

Three brave ice cream eaters

We have marveled how we keep thinking that nothing could get better than what we are experiencing at the moment. How could anything be better than the Bronte Parsonage? Then we found ourselves in Stratford thinking, how could anything be better than walking in the footsteps of Shakespeare? Even this morning, we were so excited about the walk through the English countryside. Nothing could surely beat that, but then we arrived in Oxford!  (These pictures are from around Oxford.)

 

Now, I'm a book person, but I wasn't prepared for the breathtaking beauty on the architecture of the buildings that make up one of the world's most widely know universities. Our one stop was to visit the Bodlein Library. I fail to find the words to describe the incredible majesty of the buildings that make up the library. Hopefully the pictures give you a sense of what we were privileged to take in ourselves. We were even able to tour the original library and see the old books that line the shelves and the reading room the scholars use. There is just something about standing in a place that holds the knowledge and intellect of men, which has been collected over the past 700 years!  

Inside the quadrangle of the Bodlein Library

The other side of the quadrangle of the library

The Divinity Room at the Bodlein Library

One of the many buildings that make up the Bodlein Library

 

Inside the reading room of the Bodlein Library

Today, before our long walk in the countryside and a visit to Oxford, Mrs. Wyllie reminded us in our devotions that while we explore the depths of man's ability to communicate and debate and learn, we should be even more amazed by the Source of all knowledge and Truth. As Spurgeon said, "Visit many good books, but live in the Bible." How true! Even the books that have been part of the Bodlein Library have faded with time; some were even purposely destroyed through the ages. But, God's Word will never fade. 

All together at dinner tonight

After having a nice dinner together in Oxford, we boarded our bus for the drive to our hotel in Bath. We are all definitely tired from another wonderful day in England but looking forward to what the day holds for us tomorrow. Continue to pray with us that... 

• God would protect us from wrong thinking and theology especially for our students who will be heading off to college in a few short months, 
• we would be disciplined to saturate our minds with Scripture as a habit every single day of our lives, and 
• our love for the Word would be contagious to those around us who desperately need Truth.

--MrB