Take Me to the West.

Our group's trip to the West of England was an adventure to say the least. It was actually kind of funny. It seemed like most of us really had no idea what we were in for. We were constantly asking each other, "Now, where are we going???" And no one knew. Even our directors seemed a little disoriented at times. The West was really a mystery to all of us, it seemed. But whoever suggested the trip must've known the amazing sights that lay in our path.

My pictures are out of order, but our first stop was Stourhead. It is a HUGE estate with lovely walking paths that take you around a lake, by temples, waterfalls, gardens, gorgeous buildings, etc. I heard one of the Pride and Prejudice movies was filmed here. It certainly looked liked something from a movie.

That night we stayed the night at the YMCA in Penzance-- yeah, just like the Pirates of Penzance!! I was singing all the songs as we took a walk out by the ocean at night.

In the morning we drove to the most amazing beach right next to Penzance. It is called Porthcurno, and it was stunning. 

We made a few more stops on the trip at Lyme Regis, a castle in the water, and Exeter Cathedral. I'll have to post more pics later...

Thank you, Porthcurno, for having me.

That's little Francis playing out there. Our director's daughter.

I really didn't take enough pictures of this place. It was so gorgeous. Everywhere you looked was a sight to behold.

Seashells by the seashore

This was probably one of the coolest beaches I have been to. Ever.

An ol' classic-- the Achilles pose.

Aloha from England!

Climbing over Rocky mountain! This my Pirates of Penzance pose. I was definitely singing all the songs here.

Alison being rad.

SAVE THE BEACH.

Staying at the YMCA was a first for most of us.

I wonder where we are going.

A spidey on a daisy at Hardy's Cottage.

Thomas Hardy's cottage.

Why is everything so cute here? Even the bees are cute. They're all big n' fuzzy, and they even let you pet them.

Inside the cottage. This could be a scene from Rear Window-- victorian style.

hours and hours of the English countryside from inside the bus.

The long, lovely path.

Humanities education moment-- notice the corinthian-style pillars. All right, move along...

Showing Stourhead what's up

The big naked giant on the hill. It had something do with pagan fertility rituals.

My cool new friends who are good at following directions.

Our heart silhouette.

Breathtaking.

Yeah, those are swans. Not ducks. Not geese. Straight-up swans.

I think that this is where they filmed one of the Pride and Prejudice movies.

I desperately wanted to walk on that bridge, but it was roped off.

Hydrangeas everywhere.

They were huge, and came in about every color possible.

I don't know.

Lauren and myself.

Consider the Lilies.

Party in the Back of the Bus! Yee-haw!

Someone kept pushing this button, which only makes a red light flash to our bus driver, Tony,.. who had a good sense of humor.

Another school group-- a little younger than ours.

The Stourhead Estate.