Day 10: Can you believe it?

The final day...

Riding the Tube
US Embassy
9/11 Memorial
Abbey Road
Oxford Street Shopping
China Town

Our final full day in London was pretty packed.  We've all settled in and become so comfortable here in the UK it's hard to believe we will be returning back home tomorrow.

At the US Embassy this morning we had a tour of the grounds and memorials before going through security and in to see some of the Embassy's inner workings.  The 9-11 Memorial was particularly moving, we spent a little while quietly looking around and reading some of the names on the plaques.

UK 9-11 Memorial
"grief is the price we pay for love"

After our visit to the Embassy we took the tube up to Abbey Road and took turns crossing the famous crosswalk.  As always, we took some time for souvenir shopping before hopping back on the tube.

This afternoon was spent touring London's shopping district until we were all ready for dinner.  We made our way to Chinatown and had one last big "family" meal together.

When we got back to our accommodations there was a spirited game of soccer-wall-ball played in the upstairs squash courts.  Rob had a fluent conversation with some French students, and everyone went upstairs to teach the French students how to play NINJA!  We've had a pretty late night, nobody wanted to go to bed because we've all been having too much fun so tomorrow should be a very sleepy plane ride.  We're looking forward to seeing familiar faces greeting us at the airport!

See you tomorrow!

-------------------------

For each family at home reading this, I can't describe how nice it is to spend time with everyone, you have absolutely amazing children and Mike and I have had such a wonderful time with the group and getting to know each of them.  Your children have been so polite, kind, funny, spirited, sweet, happy and just plain lovely.

***In order to avoid completely jinxing this final night and trip home, I'm going to have to stop.  Please know that I will forever gush about how wonderful your children are and if they ever need a personal reference, I would be happy to provide one for any of them based on the outstanding qualities I have seen from each of them during this trip.***

Day 9: How long have we been here?

It seems like ages ago when we arrived at JFK and sat in the VIP area waiting for our flight.  We took a little time tonight to look at pictures from the trip and we just can't believe how it seems like we've been here for so long.  Oxford had become a second home by the time we left, everything was so comfortable and easy.  Now, Oxford seems like a distant memory, and we only left yesterday morning!  

Today was a busy day with LOTS of walking.  We met our photographer at Trafalgar Square this morning and he stayed with us the entire day.  We had a very busy day!  After Trafalgar Square we walked to see the changing of the guard.  We walked up to Buckingham Palace (which was an absolute ZOO!  Check out the pictures to see how many people were there today)  and after the changing of the guard we made our way to a bus stop just in time for a massive rainstorm to attack.  We rode around on the sightseeing bus for a few hours until finally we were ready to find lunch and walk around.  We got off by the Thames and walked along the river where we found some shops and restaurants.  After a late lunch we proceeded along the river to the London Eye - WOW, what a great view!!!  John D. and Tom did well, despite their fear of heights.  After the ride we met up with Paul Tanahill, a UK based AC counselor and we walked across a bridge back to London, walked up to Picadilly Circus and then on to Oxford Circus shopping along the way.  Finally, we had dinner at an Italian restaurant and made our way back to the dorms.

It was a busy day and a lot of walking but I wouldn't have changed a thing.

Tomorrow we are off to lunch at the US Embassy then Abbey Road and Camden Market.  

Approximately 120 new photos were posted today of the sights so go check them out!

Cheerio!!!

Day 8: What time is it? (Greenwich Mean Time!)

Hello London,
We're so happy to have met you today.  Your sights are fantastic and historic.  Big Ben's chimes really keep us on track, reminding us after every 15 minutes have passed.  The British Museum sure does have a lot of stuff in it, you must be so proud.  We spent hours in there exploring the exhibits, we even had to make a new photo album to fit all of the pictures we've gotten from you today.  I'm sure you already knew this but we took a boat ride on the Thames today, under London Bridge and all the way up to Greenwich (home of the Prime Meridian).  Thanks for the fun day!
We look forward to our tour tomorrow and our ride on the London Eye.
Goodnight,
The ACUK Crew

Day 7: Do we have to leave? Oh wait... We get to go to London?

Creative writing, our best seminar yet, started off this morning and was a wonderful capstone to the Oxford leg of our trip.  Everyone in our group blossomed with natural talent and creativity... when we get home, please ask your child about this workshop and encourage them to keep writing, there were some beautiful pieces written today in just a few short minutes each.  Families: If your child tells you they didn't write anything, they are being humble... please don't take that answer, everyone had gorgeous pieces to share.  I hope this workshop was inspirational and that this experience will encourage everyone to continue writing.

Our afternoon was less structured.  We had a going away reception with the Sheriff of Oxford, the Oxford International Study Center and the British Council.  We had sparkling cider and some light snacks and received certificates of completion of studies from the Sheriff.  We left some time in the afternoon for final souvenir hunting, packing and relaxation in the back garden.

It was a lovely day, not very exciting, but a well needed day of rest before we rush off to London in the morning.  The coach will pick us up at 9am sharp so I'd better be off to bed.

Cheerio!

 

Day 6: Are they going to have sweet British accents?

"Lawrence is absolutely lovely, you will love him." That's what Alice and Ben told us yesterday when we asked how our lecturer would be today... they were right.  He spoke to us about University life at Oxford, the application process, the lack of Lucky Charms cereal and Denny's restaurants in the UK and woke us all up with some self-guided discussion.  He was a big fan of John D. and proclaimed that John will be famous some day, nobody disputed that idea.

Our afternoon was spent mingling with elderly people at a day program for senior citizens.  Some people were paired with very chatty partners and others struggled a bit more to keep the conversation going.  Margaret and Minerva were 96 and 97 respectively and they were lively and young at heart.  Margaret had a flirtatious crush on Grenville and he has apparently been over to her house for tea (83...a younger man, Margaret, nice job! *wink wink*).  Grenville is from Wales and sings in a choir - which goes to further the point made in yesterday's lecture-humor about the Welsh and their singing.  His favorite songs are from The King and I, 7 Brides for 7 Brothers, and The Sound of Music.  There was an effort made encouraging him to join in and sing Edelweiss but he just chuckled and listened as somebody* made a fool of herself.

 

(Grenville and Minerva)

The quote of the day was thrown out by Robert in reference to his lack of luck with Margaret.  He said, "I knew I was struggling when I asked her how well her walker worked."  (Rob, I overheard the other questions you were asking her and I can't imagine why a 96 year old English woman wasn't jumping at the chance to tell you about her favorite sports teams... nice effort buddy)  Kieran admitted that he has a way with the elderly after we had to drag him away from their conversation... his partner LOVED him!!!

It was "hot" today (76 degrees maybe) and ice cream was on the brain... so, ice cream we found!  We went home for a bit to play more croquet and badminton (it's become a tradition) and got ready for our big night out at Toy Story 3!  We've been excited to see TS3 together since the first day so this was quite a treat.  After the show we grabbed dinner... a few of us went on a kebab jog around town and found a kebab-truck that made the "spiciest" and messiest kebabs Tom has ever seen.  

Tonight was another relaxed night of croquet until dark and card games in the common room until bed.

Tomorrow morning is our creative writing workshop followed by a "Goodbye Oxford" party in the garden.  There should also be some time for shopping, packing, and a few final rounds of croquet in the afternoon.  The 3 photos posted in the blog are the only ones we have from today's activities, it wasn't really a photo-op kind of day.  

Cheerio, pip pip and tahtah for now!  

-The ACUK Crew

*Edelweiss was the third song I attempted, he wouldn't take the bait... and I was left singing by myself... only slightly embarrassed.

Day 5: Who said that?

Punting and Sunday Roast - OH MY!

Let's just start out by saying all the photos of punting were taken when things were calm, or mostly calm... so they won't depict the mayhem that occurred.  It seems there is a bit of a friendly competitiveness between several parties on this trip.  Somehow, we were able to turn a pastime which is generally regarded as leisurely and quiet, into an all-out brawl on the water today (ok, not a brawl... but it was intense)... picture Bumper-Gondola-Grand Prix-Surf-Jousting.  For those of you who don't remember, "punting" is a boating activity, similar to a gondola except the boats are flatter and lower to the water, see:  wikipedia - punting  We should have known that this group would get competitive, we should have planned for wet clothing and drenched shoes... but we didn't.  Luckily, no electronics were damaged in our punt race (although a camera was dropped and damaged later in the day (mine... not a campers)) but there were definitely wet shoes, soaked pants, dripping shirts, well... let's just say that nobody fell completely in and leave it at that.  Sound crazy?  It was FUN!  We had so much fun on the punts that the competition couldn't sour even the third place (last place) boat.  Any sore egos were promptly forgotten when we met up with Woody, Paul and Asa back on shore.  On the way home to change into dry clothing we stopped at a sweet shop, so even the most drenched people were cheered up by the tasty treats.

After grabbing a quick lunch to-go we boarded a bus to Soulbury where Henry's family lives and owns a pub called The Boot.  I would highly recommend The Boot to anyone in the area, the food was yummy and the atmosphere was incredibly sweet.  Personally, I tried my first Yorkshire Pudding and was very happy.  Many people chose sandwiches for dinner, a safe bet, so for desert people went out on a limb... Brownie Popcorn Sundaes were a HUGE surprise hit!  Have you ever heard of putting popcorn on ice cream?  TRY IT!!!  It is shockingly amazing!  (they used a light caramel corn for extra sweetness and crunch)  The creme brulee was also delicious and the chocolate fudge cake was just plain decadent!
Following a hot ride home (the air conditioner in the bus was broken) we all needed a bit of fresh air so we headed out to the back garden for croquet and badminton.  Asa, Woody and Paul had to leave after the first round of games but we continued to play on until it was dark and then, we moved to the common room for... you guessed it... more games!

Paul, Asa and Woody - Thanks for making the trip up to Oxford!  We can't wait to see you in a few weeks at AC9!!!



Lastly, these quotes will not have the same meaning when they are out of context, but when everyone gets home we will want to remember these moments...

QUOTE BONANZA!:

"What kind of fruit is that?"
"He hit me really hard, that was too hard" (said in the world's cutest English-small child accent)
"
M: "Where's Tommy?  Is he up?" - K: "Yeah, he's showering or something." (He wasn't up...not at all) K: "I said 'or something'"
"He had ants on his shoes!"
"It's like a punch in the face!
"That baby was unhealthily huge!!!"
"You were shoving small children out of the way... hoarding two and three rats at a time!  Part of the fun of the game is to let the kids catch them too!"
"He was an atheist!"
"The name of our band is The Floating Heads, want to hear our debut song?"
"That lady has it out for us... maybe we should take a child with us so we can get into the princess tower."
"TWO LAPS!"
"Double Purple Dragon"
"I didn't step on it!"
"Chloe is coming for you."
"Shenanigans!"
"I just can't get over how huge that baby was!"

More quotes will come later when I have a little help remembering the good ones...

Cheerio!

Day 4: Why can't we go into the Pretty Princess Tower?

Today was such a lovely day!  

Immediately after breakfast this morning we took a coach bus to Warwick Castle - a touristy castle with people dressed in costume performing and interacting with the crowd.  It wasn't incredibly intellectual, but it was a lot of fun!  We climbed 530 steps into the castle tower, watched the trebuchet launch a 15 kilo stone, learned to spin a plate on a stick, saw a falconry show (and everyone laughed at me - Beth - because I have a fear of birds and apparently my reaction was pretty classic... I thought I held up pretty well).  We were also turned away from the Princess Tower and told that it was only for little kids, the boys were the most disappointed ones of all at this news...

This afternoon we went to Stratford upon Avon, the birthplace and resting place of William Shakespeare.  This town was absolutely packed with tourists!!!  The cobblestone main streets were only open to foot traffic so we meandered our way through town, down to the Avon river, past a park and over to the church where Shakespeare and his family are interred.  On our way back we took a break in the park and played a few rounds of "ninja".

We kept life low-key tonight, yesterday we were gone all day and tomorrow will be busy as well so tonight we tried a pizza place in town for dinner - very creative pizzas.  It was still light out when we got back to the house so we had a game of poison croquet in the back yard which turned into a bit of a friendly-grudge-match... alliances were formed and broken and then reformed again... it was worse that Survivor.  Finally, it started to get dark and we went to the common room to play cards, foosball and many intense rounds of mafia.  

Today was a lot of fun!  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to take any photos - I left my memory card in my computer while uploading photos last night.  I took some photos off the kids cameras so there are some new ones posted tonight.

Everyone is looking forward to tomorrow... we are meeting up with a few AC counselors and going punting and then to a small town where Henry's family is from.  Check back in tomorrow for details!

Day 3: How many dreams within a dream can there be?

Short and sweet tonight folks... it was a long day and we just got back to the house after seeing Inception, a good flick.
This morning a very knowledgeable lecturer joined us and gave us the history of the UK from the year 46AD to the 17th century... WOW did we cover a LOT!
Then, it was off to Blenheim Palace where we saw the birthplace of Winston Churchill, weren't allowed to take pictures inside the palace - but it was HUGE!, played in a maze, had a game of wizards chess in the rain, visited the butterfly garden, rode a tiny train, chased geese, climbed inside the rabbit hole to follow Alice and the White Rabbit, learned about tapestries and china, and discovered that the Duke drives a Range Rover.
Our bus ride home was full of quick stops and crop circles.  We had been going all day so we decided tonight would be a perfect movie night.  We saw inception and everyone was buzzing about dreams and the meaning of reality on the walk home.
Tomorrow is a full day out and about at Warwick castle and Stratford upon Avon.
Pictures from today are posted in the Picasa album.
Cheerio!

Day 2: Have you read the Harry Potter books?

John D. was on fire today... He started his morning a little mixed up with cereal on his plate and a bowl of toast for breakfast.  Even Tom struggled down the stairs this morning declaring that he thought he was late, was going to take a shower, and then forgot to put shoes on as he left his room for class. Our first class began promptly at 9:15 AM when our lecturer arrived at the front door on his motorbike. We all took an informal quick quiz on Oxford and learned the Mini-Cooper is made here and the Thames is known as the Isis up in these parts. Some interesting answers were given to some of the questions (London to Oxford is only supposedly a "river's length away") and we learned that John D. has too much on his plate to read the Harry Potter series.  This proved that we still had a lot to learn about the town so we took to the streets to explore.

Wandering the meandering streets of Oxford we saw college chapels and in one particular chapel we were all a little tempted to pull on the dangling unguarded rope which would ring the tower bell.  All of our walking made us weary and thirsty so the Turf Tavern, a tiny basement pub, was our next stop for some much needed refreshment (coke and "lemonade" aka sprite for most of us, and the day's 3rd cup of tea for Kieran).  This pub was so tiny in fact that "Big John" cleaned the cobwebs from the ceiling with his hair.  On this impromptu tour our best view of the day was seen from the top of the Sheldonian Theatre where we climbed to the cupola and met a soon to be published author who also happened to be an expert on the inner details of the building (and on multiple occasions corrected our "tour guide" on his falsification of the facts).  

After the theatre we parted ways with the lecturer and made a b-line for FANCY lunch at St. Hilda's College.  The fancy-factor didn't stick around for long as John D. once again stole the show having a solid rant about Pixar vs Dreamworks, The Land Before Time dynasty, and Disney's lack of love for their own movie, Hercules.  In keeping with the theme for the day we once again questioned all the things he must "have on his plate" that would allow him to watch and memorize countless (useless) facts about all of these movies.

Following lunch was a brisk walk back to the center of town where we met our second tour-guide for the day.  He was very informative and brought us to see the Harry Potter filming sights and were all impressed at Rob's Harry Potter expertise.  He is a true HP aficionado.

Our afternoon break hosted yet another badminton battle, Mike and Tom vs Rob.  Mike and Tom took the early lead and became overly confident.  Rob made a quick response and it became a close game but in the end, victory was not meant to be for him.

Dinner at the Bird and the Baby (Eagle and Child) pub next door to our hall was a cultural experience with fish 'n chips and meat pies on the menu.  Alice and Ben, our Oxford friends, met up with us hear and took us to a windy and rainy rooftop presentation of Romeo and Juliet.  Luckily, blankets were offered for rent - 50p a piece - because the final scene culminated in a full rain shower, befitting of the mood.

Once again, everyone retired to bed early tonight, ready for another history seminar in the morning and a trip to Blenheim Palace tomorrow afternoon.

Quotes of the day will be posted tomorrow as John D. dominated the quote board for the day...
New photos have been posted in the ACUK Adventures Picasa web album, go check them out!

ACUK Adventures

Day 1: Are you traveling with a group?

Essentially an extension of yesterday, our first day of the trip has seemed like an eternity.

When we arrived at JFK we were surprised to find out that we had been granted access to the Virgin Atlantic VIP Club.  Sitting in our private lounge we were greeted by our second happy surprise... all of the food was FREE!  Everyone took a different approach to this idea, some got appetizers and a meal, others treated themselves to ice cream bars, cookies and soda, and then there was Robert... his approach?  Eat all of the clubs free bananas... ALL OF THEM!  Somehow, I wasn't shocked when he got a side-ache on the way through security.

Molloy gave us all a real-life literature lesson on the meaning of foreshadowing when, on the way out of the VIP area he said jokingly, "Our VIP experience ends here."  Little did he know how right he was about to be.  When we reached the gate we were supposed to get "fast tracked" service... that didn't happen.  Molloy lead the group up through the priority line and was promptly turned away and told to go stand in the line with the rest of the economy travelers.  We all had a good laugh and temporarily "renounced" Molloy's leadership role.  

Once we were all on the flight we all found that were so many channels, movies and games to choose from on our personal screens, it was hard to get any rest.  Some people decided not to sleep and by the time we reached London, everyone was feeling a bit jet lagged - it was about 3am in NYC when we landed.  Luckily, we were greeted at the gate by an airline representative who showed us to customs.  One camper to remain unnamed was feeling particularly independent when he met the customs agent and decided to tell the agent he was traveling individually, not with a group.  The guard didn't like his answer and questioned him briefly, he knew we were all together, so Molloy redeemed himself as a leader and rescued our strong-minded friend from the guard.  We all learned a valuable lesson, don't joke around at customs!
Alice, our Oxford representative, greeted our sleepy group and got us to our coach and we were whisked away to Oxford.

The town is adorable.  Lots of shops, restaurants, tourists and students.  We got settled in and went out for a quick lunch and a stop at the sports shop, then returned to the hall for some much needed rest.  Some napped, others played badminton in the back garden.  

Dinner didn't work out exactly as planned.  As it turns out, ordering pizza in the UK is a very complicated endeavor!  Instead, we decided to walk around town a little and treated ourselves to dinner at Wagamama.  Some people were more skilled than others at using their chopsticks, but everyone gave it a try!  

We stopped by the market on the way home to pick out some snacks for our rooms and everyone had a look around at the unfamiliar foods and products.  

Now, everyone is settled in their beds!  It's been a long trip out and everyone is looking forward to some much needed rest tonight and an exciting day tomorrow, culminating with a performance of Romeo and Juliet at the rooftop amphitheater on Oxford's campus. 

Thoughts of the day:

More TEA! - Kieran (working on his 11th cup since the tea party yesterday)

Mmmmmm...Coconut Ice Cream - Brittney

I have a ton of room in my bag and money to spend - re: his new authentic cricket bat - Tom

Don't steal my sleeping chair! - John D. 

Are they ever going to fix my screen?  I've been staring at this frozen game for 20 minutes! - John B.

"Did I mention that I haven't slept yet!?!"- Molloy

Bananas... bananas.... bananas... - Robert

Cappuccino! - Corinne

Hey!  Let go of my headphones! - Yaritza

Is it time for bed yet? - Lauren

Molloy is no longer allowed to be in charge - Henry

SMILE!  Oops, you weren't looking... (Sorry Corinne) - Beth

Packing Day

Good morning fellow travelers and families,

My mantra for today is: don't forget your passport, don't forget your passport, don't forget your...
Well, you get the idea.

Tomorrow is the big day!  Afternoon tea at the British Consulate General's house and then departure to the airport.  Can you believe that in less than 48 hours we will be stepping off a plane and onto foreign soil?

With our busy schedule we will be creating many memories and taking loads of photos which will be posted on our Picasa Web Album - "ACUK Adventures", you should have received an email invitation to this album earlier this morning. (There aren't any photos in this album just yet)

We will also be using twitter to post in the moment updates... follow us at twitter name: @ACUKAdventures

It's back to packing for me (don't forget your passport) and a run to the mall for some spare adapters and to set-up international calls on my phone.

This is going to be a great trip - I can't wait to see you all tomorrow at Randall's Island!
-Beth

ACUK Adventures Picasa Photo Album

 No photos posted just yet, but there will be.  Check back once the trip starts to see what we've been up to!