Highlights

Our Home Assignment in England already seems so far away, even though we have only been back in Juba for two weeks.

We enjoyed seeing so many friends in England- it was great to have so many turn up at our MAF talks during our UK time. If you came along to any of the MAF events we did, thank you: your support is so appreciated!

We visited churches, church groups and a couple of youth groups in Liverpool and Lathom, in Burscough and Ormskirk, in Yorkshire and London. I didn't take my camera to most of them, but did get this picture at a Saturday meal and talk at St.Leonard's, Bootle. It was good to be back at the place where I grew up -such a long way from South Sudan! 

During our time in England, there were many highlights in addition to seeing so many lovely friends at MAF events.

We had one week away with my parents on a canal boat- life could not be more different from Juba than sailing along a rural British canal at a maximum speed of 4 miles per hour! Andrew exchanged his aeroplane controls to command this more leisurely canal boat: 

In Africa, Esther has travelled a few times in the front seat of Dad's MAF plane, zooming through the African skies; in England she got a different kind of experience, as Dad taught her how to drive the boat:

We may have been on holiday on the canal boat, but the children kept diaries for the duration of the Home Assignment, so even on board our barge there was some school work to be done. This time, however, Nana could be teacher instead of Mum!

One of the great things about being in England was being able to take advantage of so many cultural opportunities for the children, to fill in the gaps for educational field trips which are not available in Juba. Here are a few examples...

The Victorian classroom at the Museum of Lancashire. This time, I got to be a pupil with my children instead of playing Teacher! It's hard work, doing maths in shillings on a slate board and I think Esther did better than me!

After studying the Tudors at home-school in Juba, during Term 1, we finally got to visit a real Tudor home at Liverpool's beautiful Speke Hall:

We uncovered more history at Winchester Cathedral, which has an excellent children's guide, making a tour of this incredible building a fascinating visit:

Wolvesey Castle was a great chance for the children to think about history from centuries ago and to stretch their imaginations. There are few opportunities in Africa to see remains of historical buildings from several centuries ago, so this visit prompted some great discussion and imaginative play!

Winchester Mill was a fun visit, seeing how the Mill operates and watching the mill at work: a bit of technology in action!

In London, Joel and I discovered Wonders of the Deep at the aquarium. Joel was very close to this shark...but there was very thick glass to separate the shark from a potential dinner of a small blonde boy...

There were other treats in London. Uncle Ian treated Esther, my Mum and I to an amazing theatre trip to watch the fabulous "Lion King":

And we had a special family outing to eat with the wild animals at London's Rainforest Cafe, amidst the realistic sound effects of tropical storms. Our children, who love the tropical rain storms of Africa, were a little disappointed that no real rain actually materialised! However, they were mesmerised by- even a little afraid of-  the moving animals who come to life when the "lightening" flashes!

Whilst in London, we were able to enjoy a bit of time with friends from our days with MAF in Tanzania. What a contrast in our meeting place- from the startlingly blue skies of Dodoma where we last saw each other, to the blustery grey of  the Thames Southbank! It was good to catch up and reconnect:

Of course, the major highlight is always to spend time with family. We enjoyed time with both sides of the family, up and down the country:

For Esther, Ben and Joel it was also special to have time with cousins in England. It is always lovely to get together with our extended family and to spend time with them. Sadly, I seem to left my camera behind on too many occasions, as I also did when I got to meet up with lots of wonderful friends. But here are just a couple of reminders of another major highlight: time with friends, which is always so valuable when you don't get to see each other that often, as we live on different continents!