Here Comes the Sun...sort of.

The past week has been pretty hectic around here.  A pipe burst under one of the buildings where most of our students live, wiping out their hot water for almost a week.  Most of them were really good sports about the whole thing, but we did have several angry phone calls/emails from parents to attend to.  The hot water is back now, so hopefully that mess is behind us.  We've also had a lot of students getting sick. There's a stomach bug going around, and then the beautiful garden that generates shocking amounts of pollen keeps everyone's allergies working overtime + constant rain + lots of people living in close quarters = colds/sore throats.  So we're all trying to stay well and keep the kids well.  Lots of visits to the nurse, and even one (completely unnecessary) trip to the hospital.  Long story...and not for the blog.  Everyone is fine now.  

Outside of all the drama, we had some fun activities for the kids.  We went to Stonehenge and Bath, and unlike last year, there was not a torrential downpour, so I actually got to take  a few pictures! 

Those tiny white dots are sheep!

I took a picture of this bird because he looks like he has a lot of secrets.

We also went on a bike tour around London, which was a blast.  We got to see some of the Olympic set up stuff in Hyde Park, which was great.  I am hoping to go back once the Olympics have started.  We also saw Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, and some beautiful gardens.  

I had my day off today, and I was extremely fortunate to have had some sun!  I ventured into town and took a couple of photos of my favourite (I have to use the British spelling while I'm here...) house that we pass anytime we go into town:

It is just beautiful. It has been my favorite, even since last summer.  Some of the houses around us are student housing, and most of those actually have blue doors.  Since this one doesn't have a blue door, I think it is just a private residence.  I have no concept of how much a house like this costs, but the other private residences around us have Bentleys and Aston Martins in the driveway...so I can assume this house costs more than I will make in lifetime.  

Even though this is my second summer in Oxford, there is still a lot of the city I haven't explored.  Today I went to Christ Church and was planning to take a tour, but most of the  tour-able parts of campus were closed, so I settled for taking pictures around the outside.      I'm hoping to make it back for a tour before we leave, because the inside is supposed to be as fantastic as the outside.  Several scenes in the various Harry Potter movies were filmed in Christ Church, and their Great Hall was actually the inspiration for the dining hall in HP. 

That's all I've got for now...if we get more rain, I'll try my best to send it to Texas.