Trinity Term, Wednesday, Week 5, 2014

I took a walk early this morning and there were flowers EVERYWHERE, especially roses. They were so beautiful I just had to take pictures. Not sure how productive the last five minutes of my walk were, but it was worth it:)

Trinity Term, Wednesday, Week Four, 2014

A couple pictures I forgot! The first one is from Jesus College, the second is the wisteria that is growing over the French doors that lead from my bedroom to my little garden patio.

Trinity Term, Wednesday, Fourth Week, 2014

For some reason I could't post these together, which might be for the best. These are the pictures from my parents' visit. We had so much fun!!

The first pictures are from our visit to London - the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace. The next bunch is Blenheim Palace, which was absolutely AMAZING. Seriously, it was beyond gorgeous. I got a yearlong pass so I can go back for free whenever I want:D

Tower Bridge from the entrance to the Tower of London.

The cell of Father John Gerard, a Jesuit who ministered to Catholics in England during the late 16th century. He was amazing. In spite of being tortured in ways too terrible to even contemplate, he refused to betray his brother priests or the names of the Catholics he had visited. See the oranges on the table? He used the rinds to make Rosaries for other Catholic prisoners, which he wrapped in 'blank' pieces of paper. In fact, he had used the orange juice to write secret message on the paper for the recipients. The ingenious thing is that once heated, the orange juice darkened so the message could be read and then STAYED dark so if someone else had read the message (i.e. their jailers, an English spy, etc.), the original recipient would know they had been betrayed. GENIUS! Father Gerard was able to escape from the Tower - oh, my gosh, that story is AWESOME - with the help of St. Nicholas Owen, one of my favorite people from the Reformation. OK, history lesson done;)

I almost thought I saw Peter Pan flying around Big Ben!

Parliament - an incredibly beautiful building.

Mums and Daddums in front of Buckingham Palace:D

Blenheim Palace. Seriously, I just can't. It was too stunning.

The entrance to Blenheim Palace.

The mural in the 'entryway' of Blenheim. Unbelievable!

The fully entryway to Blenheim.

The Red State Room. To be honest, I'm not sure of their 'official' names so I'm just going to go with colors:)

The Green State Room.

A gorgeous mural in the dining room. The DINING ROOM, for goodness sake!

I couldn't get the whole dining room in - it was HUGE - but what I could get is awesome.

The portrait is of the American Duchess, Consuela Vanderbilt. Her money saved Blenheim and was used in part to refurbish the State Rooms.

The cradle Consuela Vanderbilt used for her two sons. I WANT IT.

The house was absolutely filled with beautiful tapestries.

The library at Blenhaim. And yes, that is a pipe organ at the far end. It will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine;)

The detail throughout the house was impeccable.

The family chapel. To the right is the tomb of the 1st Duke of Marlborough.

The tomb of the 1st Duke of Marlborough.

Detail from the tomb. Amazing how marble can be made to look so fluid!

Chapel entrance. Mom and Dad offering some scale:)

A beautiful old tree on the way to the Secret Garden.

A path in the Secret Garden - I love it!