London

London was teriffic! We got there early and headed to the British Library. We got to look at things like the Codex Sinaiticus. The Codex Sinaiticus is the oldest surviving full manuscript of the New Testament. It was amazing getting to actually prove the existence of the word. This came from around 4 B.C. After lunch at the British Library, we all met as a group and walked to the British Museum. It was AMAZINGGGG! The rosetta stone along with all of the ancient Egypt artifacts along with all of the Roman artifacts. We could have stayed there much longer than three hours!
After walking around half of London to get to our hotel, we got changed and ready for the play WICKED! On the way to wicked, of course, we got lost! It would happen to us(: We got out on the wrong subway station; however, we finally got there and were absolutely amazed by the play. The singers were awesome and and the stage props made everything so realistic. It was so much fun! I would suggest it to anyone, any day!
The next day was one for only strong legs! As we walked around about ALL of London! We visted West Minister Abbey, The changing of the Guard, and saw the largest toy store, Hamelys.
We did so much more and saw things such as Trafalger Square, Buckingham Palace, and Big Ben. London was amazing and i enjoyed the time with the family and all the amazing sites.

Hannah

Land of Kilts

Scottland was bascially amazing. I wrote a huge blog about it,... but it erased somehow so I will just give you the highlights! Living in a mixed hostel is very interesting-funny memories and extremely long bedtime stories thanks to Jacob. We got tickets for the sound of music at great student discounts and it was soo neat. The actors all looked exactly like the movie. Everywhere we walked was a workout in of itself. All the streets were hilly because the city was built on an old volcano. We got a free walking tour with a very interesting young lady named Kate. Kate gave us the insiders stories about Scottland. My favorite part of the trip was heading up to St. Andrews. We got to walk on the Old Golf course and stand on the famous bridge!!! I think Grant and Jacob were more exctied than Kristi and I. At night, when it was almost dark, we headed out to a break wall that went into the North Sea. The wind was blowing, the rain was heavy, and the waves were so high. We ventured to the end of the wall and climbed up to the top to watch the powerful waves come in. It was so stunning. God is so powerful and catches our breath when we are not expecting it. I love water and how captivating it is. Needless to say, we got drenched and were fully satisfied of our adventure!!

Kelly

Days in Oxford

Most of our days in Oxford include the following: sleeping in until 12, walking about 3 miles, and settling down at 5 (because that's when it gets pitch dark here). This weekend started early for us as Daddy came in on Thursday. Little did he know, the first day he was here we decided to walk around ALL of Oxford. That day we put in about a total of 8 miles walking. Friday proved to be a very "European" day. It was cloudy, freezing, and raining. We decided to go to the Ashmolean Museum. The Ashmolean is the oldest museum in Oxford, started in 1636. The Ashmolean is the smaller version of The British Museum. It included lots of statues, artwork from around 800 B.C. and lots of Roman structures. It proved to be an exhausting museum as one level took us approximately an hour.

As is necessary, we go to the grocery store every single day. The largest package of eggs has 6 in total, milk comes only in half gallons, and the largest pack of oreos have 12 total cookies. The lack of large quantities of food makes up for the large quantities of money we pay for the food. Honestly, it's slightly rediculous! So, we got our usual 2 half gallons of milk, some bread, and fruits and trudged back a mile, in the rain, to the house. All in all, our days are very fun and adventure packed. Today, we went to an Indian resturant and it proved to be a very "educational" experience. The food was "different" but the company was good. We went out with Cole Bennett, Jaque and her husband Mike, and our family. We enjoyed our time together though! Oxford so far has been a great experience!

Lytle Family

Flying To England

We wanted to invite you to join us on our four month adventure to England!!

The trip here was slightly bumpy but we continue to be showered with safety blessings! Our flight was delayed about three hours due to the previous snow storm that hit parts of England. The Dallas International Airport is huge and we got a lunch budget because of the inconvenience of the delay, so there was plenty to do with our extra time. We flew over night and the plane ride was about nine hours long; there were lots of movies to watch and it was not too bad actually. We arrived at the London, Heathrow airport on time and went straight to customs. The immigration office did not exactly know what to think or do with us; they had changed their restriction policy (little did we know) so two hours of waiting with thirty-five restless college students was not our ideal plan, but they eventually let us in "just this time."

We then took a coach from London to Oxford. Everyone is exhausted by this point in the trip, with most of us not sleeping at all since eight a.m. the previous morning. When we get to the houses everyone dragged their luggage to their room which in some cases (like Kelly's) they live on the fourth floor so that just added to the exhaustion and energy level!

Thankfully we made it here safely and have been spending most of our time settling in and exploring the beautiful city of Oxford. Classes for the students started today (Monday)Hannah and Kelly included in that. As for me (Michelle) i am taking high school coarses online through Texas Tech and not actually enrolling in a school, so that we might have a more flexable traveling schedule.

Hope everyone is doing well we miss you all.

Love,

The Lytles