It is amazing how quickly this first week has flown by.

This time last week we were hugging our friends until their heads bulged and packing and repacking to make sure we hadn’t forgotten anything (like, say, a kid!)

We have had a near perfect week. The weather has been lovely, the trains have run on time and we haven’t mislaid any children along any of our numerous routes. Sunday we attended a Sung Eucharist at Westminster Abbey that was truly ethereal. We walked past the tomb of Sir Isaac Newton and right over Darwin’s head as we headed down the long corridor of famous remains to sit in the “poet’s corner” of the Abbey and listen to little boys sing like angels. Is there any better way to start our grand tour of churches on this trip than to celebrate in a place that has stood for almost a thousand years and has seen the greatest leaders, minds and theologians of all time walk within her halls?It was an awe inspiring and humbling experience.
We’ve also made quite a parade schlepping through museum after museum:

• The British Museum, home to the best Egyptian mummy display ever and the famed Rosetta Stone (note to Grammy: Tony says that the ears you can see in the reflection on the stone are likely Gabriel’s.)
• The Victoria & Albert, which is one of the best museums we’ve ever been too… the pillar of Trajan alone is worth the price of admission (which, incidentally, is free.) We wandered its halls for hours ogling the statuary, the musical instruments, their collection of British historical artifacts, fashion throughout the ages and so much more.

Then today we were back at the Abbey to spend the big bucks to tour through every nook and cranny looking at the tombs of everyone from Edward the Confessor (who built the Abbey to begin with) to Elizabeth the first and Mary Queen of Scots and a whole string of King Henrys… who can keep track? We stopped awhile at the tomb of General James Wolfe… explorer of Quebec and Upper Canada, after whom our island in Canada is named. We ate our lunch in the garden and wondered what it would be like to live in the Abbey. Yes! People actually live there! Some of the staff, as well as the boys who are in the choir and a few of their teachers at the designated boarding school on site. We decided that we couldn’t fathom it.

The last museum today was the Imperial War Museum.

This little gem was not on our list but Tony found it on the map and the boys voted for it. I must say it has done more for giving an overview of the history we’ll see than any of the others we’ve visited so far.

They had several interactive exhibits for children, including one on living in the trenches in WW1 (particularly helpful in our tour through Belgium next month) and another on sitting through a Blitzkrieg in a bunker during WW2 (this one scared Ez to the point of nearly twisting my arm off!) The boys’ favorite was the submarine that they could play in while the girls toured with Daddy through the Holocaust exhibit (deemed a bit heavy for the little men). They torpedoed whale poachers all afternoon and had a grand time. I was grateful for a bench to sit on and a few minutes to visit with an older lady who was equally worn out. I think we’ve worn a full inch off of our heights this week.
Tomorrow we cap our week with the Tower of London. We’ve saved the best for last. Tonight was spent repacking, yet again, and doing up the last bit of laundry. Our hosts, the Knosens (pronounced Canoe-sons) have been so kind. They did up a South African BBQ for us last night and fixed us our first Pimms (a British summer drink a bit like a wine cooler but homemade). They have grand plans for our departure morning to fix us grilled smoked kippers, insisting that these little fish are a delicacy and must be had if we’re truly looking for an authentic English experience. Which we are. However, I’m still afraid. Stay tuned to find out how THAT goes.

For those of you on the Virtual Field Trip, we’ve been working on the packet and you’re going to love it! We’ve been taping everywhere we go and should soon have a pod-cast on the way. In the meantime, enjoy the pictures we’ve posted and keep praying for sunshine!!