Oh, the anticipation waiting to get on the flight to England!
The morning of arrival, being picked up at London-Gatwick and heading straight to Oxford.
Our fabulous professors were bright and cheery for our first tour the day we arrived.
On the walk, I noticed how this angle gives the Eagle and Child sign a cross shape on the front of the Pub--one of Lewis' favorite hang outs.
Our delicious (and free) welcoming dinner from IES
The Eagle and Child (or "Bird and Baby," as the Inklings affectionately called it) Pub sign
We even got to eat at the Eagle and Child.
It was delicious pub food, but the experience was even more fulfilling as we imagined C.S. Lewis and the other Inklings (including, J.R.R. Tolkein) discussing their writings in the back corner sipping ale.
This C.S. Lewis poem is mounted on the side wall of the walk around Oxford where Lewis had an important conversation with J.R.R. Tolkein that changed his life forever.
We got to go on the walk, but we had to do some off-roading because the path was flooded, along with everything else in Oxford.
Because they told us we were forbidden to touch the sacred water of the ancient Roman Baths we wanted to jump in even more!
Becky and lyse listening to their audio guides and learning about the ancient Roman Baths.
The beautiful city of Bath at Dusk
No lie, this pub had the best English meat pies in all of the royal land!
(I had the venison meat pie with the vegetable gravy...delicious!)
Just one example of Paul magically capturing all of our attention.
Here, we are outside of the Canterbury Cathedral.
This cathedral was decorated with spectacular stained-glass windows throughout.
This particular window is dedicated to the life of St. Thomas Beckett.
This candle burns in honor of the saint and martyr who was murdered in this cathedral because of king Henry II who said the famous lines "will no one rid me of this turbulent priest."
Oh how we loved Paul! We got to grab a picture with him at the pond behind C.S. Lewis' residence.
The sign on C.S. Lewis' house under his bedroom.
The Anglican church where C.S. Lewis and his brother Warney worshipped.
A small memorial for C.S. Lewis inside the church, along with a plaque where he sat each Sunday.
The dining room inside Christ Church at Oxford.
This is also the dining room in the Harry Potter films.
Just half of the outside of King's College Chapel at Cambridge University.
The very front of the inside of the King's College Chapel. It was beautiful with intricate stained glass. At the altar at the front of the chapel is "the Adoration of the Magi" painting by Rubens in 1634 (unfortunately photography of this masterpiece was forbidden).
Some of the boys playing in kiddie toys in the London-Gatwick airport on the way back to the US... pay special attention to the third one from the front!
