May 10, 2008 Leamington

We may get to bed a little earlier tonight, though not much. Brooke and I are getting the royalty treatment here in Robert and Ann’s home (their last name quickly escaped me) in Leamington, near Warwick. Fr. B had some way of contacting a small Anglican church called St. Paul’s by the Racetrack, in Warwick, and arranged for the three ladies to be hosted by church members, while the boys slept on the church floor. While the boys will be waking up perhaps a bit stiffer, hospitality has taken on a new meaning to me.
Our hosts met us at the church, having waited for an hour or more because we were late, and drove us to their home. Brooke and I both got our own rooms, in which Ann had placed baskets of bath supplies, as well as books about England on the nightstands. My room had its own sink, where I did our hand washing, and Ann took the laundry to dry in the dryer downstairs. She also brought up tea and biscuits (cookies) with lemon slices while I was in the shower—how wonderfully relaxing after four hard days of touring! Then Brooke showered and I talked with R and A downstairs for half an hour or so about their interests, church, daughter and grandchildren, etc. Oh, I forgot to mention, this brave English couple had hung several small American flags in the decorative greenery along the stairway in the downstairs hall!
We started this day by waking up an hour late, then scrambling around frantically to get dressed, packed, and to the train station by 7:05. By some miracle, we made it on the dot, and boarded the train breathlessly, yet trying not to bump the other passengers with our bulky packs. Someone muttered, “Campers!” as we walked by. Well, we were only the next step up from campers! The train took us to the rental place where we picked up the high-roofed, royal blue 9-passenger rental van, which would take us to the rest of our destinations.
From there we traveled to St. Alban’s, our first stop really outside London. How wonderful it felt to be out of the cigarette smoke and crowds of the city! After looking around the church for a while (notes previous), we (minus Chris and Fr. B) walked through the town in search of food. The open market proved most satisfactory, after we found the right stands, and in the mean time provided interesting visual stimulation. We did end up at a Tesco for drinks, as well. I especially enjoyed the butcher’s stand, the fruit and vegetable tables, and the fish stalls (and accompanying smells!)
Successful, we set out through the town again to find the park near some Roman ruins Fr. B had directed us to. We wandered around for a while, and finally asked a couple of nice old chaps for directions. Then we were able to find the park and meet up with Chris and Fr. Boonzaaijer who had gone to park the van near St. Alban’s cathedral.
From here we drove on to Oxford, the girls singing and the guys napping (again excepting driver and navigator). Here we spent the afternoon and evening, most notably stopping to contemplate the small bricked cross in the middle of the pavement on one of the streets, which marks the site of the martyrdom of Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer. We visited St. Mary’s Cathedral and I admired the lovely organ, and made it to St. Paul’s in the college complex for evensong. The all-male choir overwhelmed me by its beautiful presentation of the liturgy. I believe we all heartily enjoyed the dinner at the pub as well—I know now that the plowman’s lunch is definitely a worthy choice from the menu, although bleu cheese is a bit stronger than the cheeses my American palate is accustomed to.
So! After yet another full day, we are winding down and preparing to turn in, with plans to be back at St. Paul’s by the Racetrack for Matins at 7:30 or 8:00. The boys will start without us if we’re a little behind schedule. After that, we head onward to broaden our horizons yet more!