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DAY 01: NORTH AMERICA / LONDON.
We begin our British Isles tour by boarding our trans-Atlantic flight to
London.
 DAY 02: LONDON / SALISBURY / BATH /
BRISTOL AREA.
Upon
arrival at London's Heathrow Airport we are met by our tour escort and
motor coach. We will drive swiftly to the market town of Salisbury to
visit its Cathedral, which has the tallest spire in England. Then on
across Salisbury Plains to mysterious Stonehenge to visit the
fascinating collection of ancient monoliths placed there nearly 2,000
years before the birth of Christ. They were once used to calculate the
eclipses and equinoxes. We continue via the beautiful Georgian town of
Bath set upon the River Avon in a natural amphitheater of steep hills,
to Bristol, rich in seafaring tradition and linked with the colonization
of America. Dinner and overnight at our hotel in the area.
DAY 03: BRISTOL AREA / OXFORD /
STRATFORD / COVENTRY. Leaving
the Bristol area we drive via Gloucester to visit the small church from
which Robert Raikes launched the Sunday School movement and where an
early Women's Missionary Movement had its beginnings. It is here also
that George Whitfield lit the fires of the revival movement. On to
the university town of Oxford, where we will visit Regents Park
College. We then skirt the picturesque Cotswolds area on our way to
Stratford-Upon-Avon, birthplace of the Bard William Shakespeare. We
will visit his birthplace, see the 16th century Harvard House, the
Guildhall and other points of interest in this beautiful old market town
with numerous timbered old buildings. A short drive then brings us to
Coventry, where we will visit the new cathedral designed by Sir Basil
Spence which is situated next to the old one destroyed by the tremendous
air raids of World War II. Dinner and overnight at our hotel in
Coventry.
DAY 04: COVENTRY / CHESTER / LAKE
DISTRICT. Our journey today
takes us to the fascinating old city of Chester, where our sightseeing
will include the medieval walls that completely enclose Chester, the
"magpie" houses, so called because of their black timbers and white
plasters; the 12th century Cathedral and St. Johns’ an impressive Norman
Church. Then we travel to the renown Lake District, favorite area of
poets, writers, and artists, for dinner and overnight.
DAY 05: LAKE DISTRICT / CARLISLE /
EDINBURGH. We have a scenic
tour through the Lake District National Park, a lovely region of inland
water, forests and mountains. We will see Lake Windermere, the largest
lake in the area, and then drive through the quaint old town of
Ambleside and the picturesque village of Grasmere on the fringe of Lake
Grasmere to the pleasant old town of Keswick situated on the wooded
shores of Derwentwater. After passing through Carlisle, we travel to
Gretna Green, the village famous for its "runaway" marriage ceremonies,
and enter the land of the kilts, Scotland. We head for Edinburgh, the
city of Sir Walter Scott, John Knox and Robert Louis Stevenson, amongst
many others. Dinner and overnight at our hotel in Edinburgh.
 DAY 06: EDINBURGH. Our
morning sightseeing tour of Edinburgh will include a visit to Edinburgh
Castle; we also see the Palace of Holyrood House, so tragically
associated with the reign of the Stuarts. We drive to the Scott
Monument, Princes Street, St. Giles Cathedral (Thistle Chapel), the
prestigious Edinburgh University, Greyfriars and the Mound. The
afternoon is at leisure for shopping or other independent activities.
Dinner and overnight in Edinburgh.
DAY 07: EDINBURGH / YORK / NOTTINGHAM.
Today we drive to Abbotsford, the turreted mansion built by Sir Walter
Scott and his home until his death there in 1832. We then continue
southward through the wind-swept Cheviot Hills to Newcastle and on
across the Yorkshire's high open moors to York, founded on Roman and
Viking towns. Our sightseeing of York includes a visit to the Minster
with its majestic towers and priceless stained glass windows, and a
walking tour through medieval streets where the upper stories of houses
lean precariously across the roadway towards each other. The names are
fascinating Stonegate, Whip-Ma-Whop-Gate and Shambles, the old butchers
quarter. We then drive southward to Nottingham, of Robin Hood fame, for
dinner and overnight.
DAY 08: NOTTINGHAM / CAREY SITES /
LONDON.
Today is dedicated to the sites associated
with William Carey. He was born in 1761 in the village of Pury End,
Paulersbury, but sadly the cottage was demolished some 30 years ago. We
will drive first of all to Kettering for a short visit to the Baptist
Missionary Society which was founded in 1792 as a result of Carey's
advocacy of missions overseas. We will visit the Mission House (which
is a new Baptist Housing Association Development) and see the actual
parlor of Widow Walls. Nearby Fuller Baptist Chapel contains much
interesting memorabilia including Andrew Fuller's pulpit, a stained
glass window of him, and Widow Walls' teapot. Continue to the village
of Moulton where Carey served as a schoolmaster, cobbler, and pastor of
Moulton Baptist Church. We will visit the reconstructed church and
restored tiny cobbler's shop and museum, before driving to Bedford, well
known for its connections with John Bunyan the Bunyan Meeting House is a
memorial to him and in addition there is also a statue to him by Sir
Joseph Boehm near St. Peter's Church. Just outside of Bedford is the
village of Elstow, notable for its close association with John Bunyan.
Time permitting, we will see the Bunyan Museum and Moot Hall, before
continuing to London for dinner and overnight.
 DAY 09: LONDON.
Our
morning sightseeing tour of England's exciting capital city will include
Marble Arch, Mayfair, Piccadilly, The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben,
Buckingham Palace and the Changing of the Guard ceremony (if held). The
highlight of our tour will be a visit to Westminster Abbey. The
afternoon is at leisure for independent activities you may care to shop,
to stroll in one of London's many beautiful parks, or visit an art
gallery or museum. Dinner and overnight at our hotel.
DAY 10: LONDON / USA.
This morning we transfer to the airport for our return flight to the
Unites States at the end of our enjoyable tour. |
