Our first guest!

What a great weekend with my brother, Steve. We picked him up from Bristol at the end of business trip to the U.K. On the way to Oxford we stopped in to visit Stonehenge. The English Heritage site was surprisingly not busy and we received priority concierge service to the front of the line because we are English Heritage members.


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Matthew and his Uncle Steve.

Steve and the ancient rock calendar

Brothers. We have similar tastes; note the clothing. (No, we didn't coordinate outfits.) We even have almost identical cameras!

After a few hours at Stonehenge, we drove to Woodstock (only 7 miles from our home) to spend the afternoon at the birthplace of Winston Churchill and one of our favorite weekend destinations, Blenheim Palace. We had a light lunch before touring the staterooms and gardens. Unfortunately, guided tours are not offered on Sundays. After tea, we explored the "Behind the Scenes" exhibition on the top floor of the palace.


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Steve and Matthew in front of the palace.

Matthew's impression of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough.

View from the lower garden. The lake is behind us.

We finished the day with pies at a local pub, the Victoria Arms.

Mark in front of the fireplace next to the table; Oliver Cromwell sat here.

On Monday, we rode the bus to the Oxford Rail Station to catch the train to London. The Underground took us to St. James's Park where we arrived for the end of the changing of the guard. The crowds were light at Buckingham Palace, too!

Buckingham Palace from St. James's Park.

In front of the palace. Note the small crowd behind us for the changing of the guard ceremony.

We walked to Westminster Abbey and took the self-guided tour of the interior.

In Parliament Square next to Westminster Abbey. Big Ben, Parliament, and the Eye are in the background.

The side entrance to Westminster Abbey.

The front of the cathedral.

We walked to the London Eye and took the 30 minute ride with no waiting in line!

Our lunch stop, Note the sign; pound cake?

Changing of the horse guard

The rest of the detachment in their winter uniforms.

We walked down Whitehall, past 10 Downing Street, to the Horse Guards, arriving just in time for the changing of the guard.

Matthew in Trafalgar Square on Nelson's Column.

We walked through Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, and to Oxford Circus stopping to visit Hamley's, the world largest toy store, and Selfridge's, a posh department store. We didn't purchase anything; it was fun to just look.

The underground took us back to Paddington Station and the train back to Oxford.

EVERYONE reads a paper on the underground.

Matthew at Paddington Station.

On Tuesday, we started late and caught the bus in front of our house to Oxford city centre. We took the hop-on-hop-off tour bus and then wandered the sites.

The evening ended with a delicious meal at Jamie's Italian on George Street; thanks, Steve!

http://www.jamieoliver.com/italian/oxford

We really enjoyed having Steve visit. Who is next?