They made it!

It's been absolutely wonderful having Mom, Dad and Caleb here this week! Ah, a taste of family was just what I was needing. When they leave, just another 2 weeks and it's over! While I'll be sad to see it all end, I can't deny that I'll be happy to be going home to the familiar and the comfortable.

This week, I decided to let Mom tell you what was happening, since she was able to experience it first hand. The picture is Mom and Caleb in front of what I think is the park right beside their hotel in London. Ok here's Mom:

Steve, Caleb, and I are having a lovely time here in the UK! It was so wonderful to see Matt in the flesh; to give him overdue hugs and kisses and sit down and share a meal! We have spent 3 days in Oxford…doing a lot of walking! I'm sure we have at least covered the marathon distance ( 26.2 miles) and I expect more. Oxford was much bigger and busier than we had envisioned. We stayed in a great B&B a little less than a mile from Matt's residence (Pickwick's Guest House.) They have a very friendly and accommodating staff. We have observed that all Brits are not that way, however. It is hard to get them to smile or even acknowledge you as you pass on the street! And they seem to delight in trying to run over you on the street! Of course, it doesn't help things that they are on the wrong side of the street and we get confused in judging what their next move is going to be. We have had 2 days of beautiful sunshine (unusual), but it has been COLD. Icy wind, though temperatures are actually in the 40s. We left Oxford this morning and bussed to London, which is BIG and BUSY. People everywhere! Caleb says it is a lot like New York. Our hotel is very near Kensington and Hyde Park. We rode the tour bus today and saw a lot of the city. We plan to do that again tomorrow and get off at some places. We observed the Queen's Horse Guard Parade today. It is a changing of the guards ceremony at the entrance gates to Buckingham Palace. It was interesting, but seemed a lot like a funeral! Based on what we saw today, we have seen enough of that kind of thing and will skip the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. There are beautiful gardens nearby! These gardens, or park like area, is actually the huge front yard of the palace. (You cannot see the palace from there.) We are impressed with the lovely greenspaces that big cities have. Tomorrow (Friday) we will be busy sightseeing again; Steve and I will continue here in London on Saturday, but Caleb and Matt will journey north to Manchester to look around and then take in a Manchester United soccer (football) match on Sunday. They will return to Oxford on Sunday night, as will Steve and I, and we will depart for our beloved homeland (and our beloved girls!) on Monday. No matter how good your trip is, there is no place like home!