Stonehill College Alumni Travel

After breakfast, we set off for a full-day excursion to the city of Bath, dubbed "the most elegant city in England". Perhaps one of the most popular residents of Bath is 18th century novelist, Jane Austen, whose life's work now resides in the Jane Austin Centre in downtown Bath. The entire city of Bath is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  After a driving tour of the city, we stopped to visit the Royal Crescent, a crescent-shaped row of 30 townhouses designed by architect John Wood, Jr. and built between 1767 and 1774.  Currently 10 are still full-size townhouses; 18 have been split into apartments of various sizes; one is the No. 1 Royal Crescent museum, and The Royal Crescent Hotel & Spa, which lies at the center of the crescent, is made up of No. 15 and No. 16 and rents for close to £1000 per night ($1300 U.S. dollars)! Next, we visited the Roman Baths, one of the most preserved Roman ruins in the world. Built in AD70 over hot springs, the site contains thousands of ar

It is hard to believe that we are at the halfway point of our trip!  Day five started off, as usual, with a wonderful proper English breakfast at our hotel.  Today our group split in two, one small group hopped on the train bright and early for a full day excursion in Liverpool where they took in all things Beatlemania.    The remainder of the group traveled by bus to the lovely, lush, green town of  Hampstead in North London.  The first stop was a visit to Kenwood House, the home of many different historical noble families since its construction in the 17th century. It is currently home to the 1st Earl of Iveagh's renowned collection of Old Master and British paintings, including works by Rembrandt and Vermeer. The artwork on display in the mansion was incredible as was the architecture of the home itself.  After wrapping up our time at Kenwood House, we had some free-time to explore downtown Hampstead. Some of us hit the shops, others hit the pub, and some decided to explore the

Today we hit the road early for a two-hour ride to the charming countryside city of Oxford. As we drove into the city, our guide Janet pointed out the Eagle and Child Pub famous for being the meeting place of authors JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis. We had a wonderful walking tour through the city and around the University of Oxford. Founded in 1096, Oxford is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. The University does not have a main campus, but its buildings and facilities are scattered throughout the city center.  Oxford has educated a wide range of notable alumni, including 31 prime ministers of the United Kingdom, as well as many heads of state and government around the globe. Just as impressive as its storied academic history are the expansive buildings that house the 43 colleges that make up the University, some of which date back to the 1300's. After grabbing lunch and spending some "free" time exploring quaint downtown, we jumped on board the bus to take th

 Today we had a "free" day to explore London on our own.  We received full-day passes from our guide Janet for the Tootbus , which is a hop-on/hop-off guided tour bus that travels throughout London.  After enjoying breakfast at our hotel, the group took to the streets of London. Some travelers decided to further explore the Kensington area, others opted to hop onto the bus and take the full three and a half hour tour circuit.  One popular stop among travelers was the Churchill War Rooms .  This museum is comprised of the actual underground Cabinet War Rooms, a historic complex that was command central for the British government throughout World War II, many of which have remained completely untouched since August of 1945 when Japan surrendered and the war was declared over. It also houses the Churchill Museum, a biographical timeline that explores the personal and political life of Winston Churchill. Other notable visits among travelers were the Shakespeare Globe, cruises dow

After an enjoyable breakfast at the hotel, we boarded our tour bus and took a winding ride through the narrow streets of London for a visit to St Paul's Cathedral . Completed in 1711 by Sir Christopher Wren, it is the most recognizable feature of the London skyline. In recent years it has been used for the wedding of Prince Charles to Lady Diana, the state funerals of Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher, as well Jubilee celebrations. The cathedral was destroyed and rebuilt after the Great Fire of London, and survived the Blitz of World War II. Known for its Whispering Gallery, the Cathedral also features a crypt which holds famous historical figures such as Admiral Lord Nelson, Florence Nightingale, and the Duke of Wellington and is home to the American Memorial Chapel.  At the heart of the chapel sits The Roll of Honour, a 473 page book containing a personal message from General Eisenhower and the name, rank and service details of the 28,000 American soldiers stationed in Grea

We arrived in London around 9:30 this morning London time a little tired and jet lagged but ready to start our first full day in England.  Our tour director for the week, Janet Sayers, met us just as we made our way through customs and led us to our tour bus where we met Tony, our bus driver for the first two full days. We took a scenic bus tour through the city of London  Our first stop turned out to be quite an eventful one.  We hopped off of the bus to visit Westminster Abbey to find that today is the anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the first major military campaign fought entirely by air forces.  The Battle took place on September 15, 1940 in southeast England between Britain and Germany.  A special remembrance ceremony was held in the Abbey and we were able to see the dignitaries and military personnel leaving the ceremony, including (rumor has it) the Prime Minister.  Before heading back to the bus, we were treated to the remarkable sound of a WWII engine overhead when to a