Canon's Ashby and Kenilworth Castle

Today we made a trek a little north of Croughton.

Our first stop of the dat was Kenilworth Castle just north of Warwick. The castle's setting was very peaceful. At one time the entire area around the castle grounds was a lake that was created by stopping up 2 nearby creeks. The most memorable event at the castle was the rebellion of Simon de Montfont. After a nearby battle against the men of King Henry III the rebellion retreated to the castle and remained there for a number of months surrounded by troops loyal to the King.

After the castle we went to Canons's Ashby in Northamptonshire. It's the remarkably well preserved 16th-century family home of the poet John Dryden. The drawing room has a particularly fine Jacobean stucco ceiling. Across the road is the namesake of the house. A section of the parish church dates back to the 1200's when the church was connected to a monastery.

Winchester Cathedral and Stonehenge

We dropped Jennifer and her mom off at the Underground so the could catch the Eurostar to spend the weekend in Paris.

Her dad, the kids, and I then drove down to Winchester. We parked and then walked to the see the Cathedral. There was a service going on at the time so we decided to eat lunch on the Close surrounding it.

After lunch we walked about 1/2 mile to Wolvesey Catle. The castle is in ruins but it was still very interesting walking around and looking at what remained. At one time it served as the home of the bishops of Winchester.

Afterwards we walked back to the Cathedral and it was now opened. From end-to-end the Cathedral is 555 feet long and about 80-90 feet high. Next to the current church, with parts dating back to the 12th century, are the ground stones of the original church that was demolished to make way for the current church. It dated back to the 800s I believe and St Swithun is buried there. The current church is simply breathtaking. Looking down the nave in either direction is awe inspiring. One end is the huge stained glass window and the other end is the main altar with various smaller altars and burials behind it. About 1/3 of the way down the nave is the grave marker of Jane Austen.

We then left the Cathedral and made our way to Stonehenge. It was our 2nd trip but it still is as amazing as the first trip. The mystery of the stones gets one thinking of what it was like to build the henge and why it was done in the first place.

Last Day of School

Today was the last day of school for the kids at Beachborough. There was a leaving ceremony for the kids leaving the school and also a Prize Giving ceremony for the main school (Pre-Prep2 to Form 6).

We were very surprised and happy when Colin received the French award for Pre-Prep2 and Natalie received the Form 2 award for Effort and also received the Phillip's Award for best beginner musician.

It was a great day and a perfect finish to their first year at Beachborough. If only we could take the school with us back to the US in 2007....

We're looking forward to their continued development and success over the next 2 years.

Bourton-on-the-water

Today we went to Bourton-on-the-Water, a Cotswolds village, in Gloucestershire. It really is the Venice of the Cotswolds. There is a little stream/canal running through the middle of the town. We parked and walked down to the canal. The water is only about 6 inches deep and people are allowed, if not encouraged, to dip their toes and even walk in the water. The kids walked around the water looking for souvenirs. Natalie found a 3-pence coin from the 1950s (before the British moved to the current monetary system. We were going to visit a few other places but it was such a nice day and everyone was having so much fun we just hung out by the water and ate lunch.