Oxford

The great UK tour days 4 and 5: Oxford.

Although the train from London to Oxford is only about an hour (once you get to the right train station), we got to have the proper London underground experience because we unwittingly choose to cross the city during commuting hours. Perhaps not unexpectedly, our tube line was delayed so we had to reroute and survive the crush of people flowing up and down escalators and in and out of trains. Nothing could have made us more grateful to have reserved seats on the quiet train to Oxford.

Once in Oxford, we met up with Hendrik’s friend from grad school, Pavel, who is a post doc in the math department there. He took us to see Christchurch College where many scenes in Harry Potter were filmed and then to the Magdalen College boathouse to go punting. Punting is a peculiar British activity in which one propels a punt (a boat) along a shallow canal using a long pole to push off from the bottom and steer. I thought it was brilliant fun. I think Hendrik preferred the botanical gardens which we visited afterward.

On day 2 in Oxford, our luck with the weather finally ran out and we got to experience the fabled English rain. Fortunately Pavel knew of lots of indoor activities like the Ashmolean Museum, the Bodleian divinity school (where more Harry Potter scenes were filmed), the Blackwell Bookstore (which he claimed was larger than Powell’s), and the Oxford Castle.

We concluded the day with a visit the The Eagle and Child pub where Tolkien and C.S. Lewis used to hang out and the Turf Tavern which is a 13th century pub in Oxford and the site of the gown vs. town brawl.