We have only been to two countries since starting this adventure but I feel pretty confident that England is probably going to be my favorite. I really loved England.
London is beautiful and modern, while also being historic and grand. The architecture is amazing. Beautiful cathedrals are plentiful and each one has it's own unique details.
This was in Bristol. It was a fun outdoor square with live music and people milling around. It was very cool. I always felt safe in the cities we visited in England.
Oxford University is an exceptional campus full of history and magic. It captured Brooke's heart right away. She has a new life goal to work toward.... she wants to attend Oxford someday! We took a tour of the Bohdelian library and it was so interesting to learn about the great lengths that people went to in the past to acquire and maintain books. We take for granted how accessible books and information are in this day and age. It wasn't always the case and it was very cool to see the ancient books that are protected and treasured in this exclusive library. It was also the library used to film scenes in Harry Potter, so that was great to see in person as well!
The second place we stayed was a working farm in the English countryside. Although I had hoped for more interaction with the animals, the kids enjoyed seeing the cows each time we came and went from the property. We also took walks a few times and visited them face to face. 😁
We made a mental note after staying here that farms are nice to visit, but the smell gets very old, very fast. We will probably try to avoid staying at farms in the future, so we can open windows and have fresh air instead of choking on the smell of manure! 😝
Separated by a cattle guard, the cows were giving us a stare down in this evening walk!
Like most famous buildings in London, the Museum of Natural History is also stunning. The grand ceilings, carvings and arches are truly amazing. We definitely did not allow enough time to explore the rich history that is contained in all of the exhibits as well as the building itself.
Hailey has had a long standing fascination with the Dodo bird. When we were at the Museum of Natural History in NYC, she insisted that there was a Dodo bird display that we weren't able to find. She was over the moon to discover it at the London Museum!
We had several lovely walks through beautiful parks in London. Hyde Park was my favorite. It's sprawling grounds include fountains, ponds, streams, many majestic trees, birds, trails, statues and plenty of people enjoying the outdoors. We met several friendly local people. This mature, elegant woman that invited the kids to join her in feeding the ducks and swans was a joy to spend time with. She shared her bread with the kids and talked to them like she was an old family friend. She also had funny conversations with the birds, reminding them to use their manners. She lives nearby and told us that she visits the birds regularly. I'm guessing she's a friend to many park visitors, but we sure enjoyed her company for the time that we were there. ♥️
The place that holds the trophy for favorite town, village and overall location is Castle Combe. This delightful little village looks like it was pulled from the past. The charm has been preserved beautifully. We spent a whole day meandering around enjoying the scenic buildings, bridge, cathedral and creek. We had some traditional English food in a cafe. The food was different but enjoyable. We even bought a few locally baked goods from a roadside table. I'm pretty sure the lemon coconut shortbread bars were one of the best treats I've ever eaten! Yum!
The cathedrals are plentiful in England. We learned that every town has at least one. Most have several. The first time we came across one, we were mesmerized and had to stop to explore it. We soon learned that most of the cathedral grounds are also cemeteries. Many of the headstones date well back into the 1800s and beyond. Many were too worn to make out the inscriptions. We all enjoyed exploring these resting places from the past and paying our respects. Each time we walked one of these peaceful grounds, we tried to leave it a little better than we found it by picking up any stray trash, straightening flowers, etc.
It never got old for us to see the British flag flying on the buildings in England. We loved it!
The London Tower Bridge was beautiful to see in person. We fought a lot of traffic and rain to get to it, but it was gorgeous to drive over. If it wasn't so crowded and hard to get to, we would have spent more time there. It was still majestic though!
For Harry Potter lovers, this is a fabulous place to be! This is platform 9 3/4.... Where Harry and his classmates board the Hogwarts Express to the wizarding world! All of the kids got to have their turn as well. 😁
The supreme Court building and library was fun to tour. I loved the quote etched into the glass in the library picture below.
Buckingham Palace! Beautiful grounds.
The red phone booths and red mailboxes are prolific and we loved seeing them everywhere!!
Wicked is still my favorite musical and lucky me, I've seen it in Austin, New York and now London! It was fun to hear it in a British accent. It makes me so happy that my family loves it too. We have spent several days driving around singing the songs from this soundtrack at the top of our lungs. It's Wicked awesome for me!
The queen herself welcomed us into London!
Westminster Abbey holds a close second to my favorite place in England, but I'm pretty sure it was my favorite place in London. The architecture and construction are nothing short of stunning. This magnificent structure dates back many hundreds of years and is the resting place for countless historical figures and royalty. This workmanship is outstanding for any time period but considering the tools available at the time it was constructed, it is that much more impressive. We learned so much here and thoroughly enjoyed the self guided family tour. I plan to put together a whole separate post about Westminster Abbey.
This post barely scratches the surface for the things we saw and experienced in London, much less England. I'll post more about some of the highlights we saw including Stonehenge, Wells cathedral and castle, Bradford on Avon and the many other cute towns and sights nearby.
Right now I have kids waiting for me to give them spelling tests and math assignments, so my time for sharing experiences is up for today. Please forgive any typos, I'm doing all of these updates on my phone.
One last note:
For those that know and love Austin, I can share that we talk to him every single day. He is doing well in Colombia and gaining more confidence and experience every day. He spent yesterday in a small coastal town where he fished successfully and had a beautiful day. We all miss him terribly but are so happy to see him reaching his goals and spreading his wings.
For more up to date pictures and snippets of where we are and what we're up to....
Follow us on Instagram @wanderingdestination
We are trying to Make Every Day Count and I hope you are too.
Until next time. . . Enjoy the journey.
Angela
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