departure 9:43! Ahead of schedule!

twas the night before London and all through the School..... checked bags were tagged and ribboned because we’re nobodys fool.... s.

Santa would be super proud of these hard working elves! - 173 Passports ready for departure with neck wallet, personalized ID Cards and trip itineraries.  Now it feels real! 

on our way to the plane. Should be home this afternoon and we look forward to sharing the experience and prepping all our chaperones and students for a life changing adventure this December!

we began the day at a location near the London Eye because today was the opening of the government so.... imagine the state of the union back home. Also it was interesting to see the security protocols for such an event. Similar to what they do for the parade. We were really put at ease with all that has been made of security and news reporting back home. The city continues to prove how you feel as though the motto of the parade is saftey and security first. After our tour (and check out the CPPHS Bands Facebook page for a glimpse of the queen! We have friends that lived here for 17 years and never saw her , we were in the country 24 hours and saw her being driven back to the palace with prince Charles. The rest of the day included meetings about logistics, media and security as well as our ittinerary being more solidified as we move closer to departure. We are planning on taking a couple of audio tours and doing a tour for you when we get home with pictures and videos. We will also go through the parade route and what it's like to get from our hotel to the area where we will be using the ATM to get your spending cash out. Lots to do! Good night for now!

lots happening today. Bringing back samples of MP3 player guided tours and even personalized emergency cards and luggage tags. The trip organizers even provide a drawstring bag that will be red for visibility. Comfortable shoes are a must while standing to passport check for 1.5 hours. We will also be in meetings from shipping and logistics to security and parade safety tomorrow. It may be 4pm at home but here it's after 9 and it's time for an early bed before a full day.

well it's been a crazy day for the griffin crew. But we made it to the airport. Points that we have looked into are visibility of us with moving groups and security procedures. As a couple of teachers that have had students loose their universal or Busch Gardens tickets from the motor coach to the gate ... we will work through procedures to make sure that everyone gets through, for me personally, the most stressful part of the travel. It's ironic that we leave the rain for a sunny warm London. Currently waiting on the flight to arrive from Ft Lauderdale and then we depart!

The Griffins are headed to London this week and are departing at 8:30pm as on the picture. This week we will be testing new ways to communicate. Taking plenty of pictures and uploading them to the blog and Facebook to give families the opportunity to check out how we can communicate, what apps you may want to test out while checking FlightBoard schedules or some of the key attractions we will be experiencing in December. From Hotel to Parade Route, we will be working this week to bring you a pre London Experiance.