Oxford

Wednesday, July 8

    "My happiest hours are spent with three or four old friends in old clothes tramping together and putting up in small pubs..."

                            ~C.S. Lewis (as posted in The Eagle and Child pub)

Bright and early (but not too much so), we got ready and left for Paddington Station. Our aim was to catch the 9:20 train to Oxford. We got to the station in good time, found the ticket booth, found 2for1 passes (I'll explain later) and made it to our platform with a couple minutes to spare. When we got on the train though, it was very full, and we ended up standing in the aisle way. There were a few reserved seats that ended up not being filled, so Anya and I were able to sit down (and eventually Joe) for the hour long ride. 

Having arrived, we found a map and walked out into the not-so-scenic-or-historical streets that were currently under construction. But as we continued walking, the scene improved. The occasional cobblestone streets led to old, beige-colored stone buildings, some with very old, heavy wooden doors. We weren't exactly sure where to go and knew of a couple places we definitely wanted to see in our limited stay, so we set off. Our first find was an outdoor market. We hadn't eaten breakfast yet, so we found some homemade pastries to pair with the Nero coffee (and I had tea) that was next door. We also bought a few pasties (Cornish and a Cheese and Potato) for lunch later on. We kept wandering on and came across a memorial. It was dedicated to three men who had been martyred (burned at the stake) for their faith. 

As we walked on, Anya spotted the pub called The Eagle and Child. I had really wanted to see this because this is the pub that C.S. Lewis, JRR Tolkien, and other Inklings (the name they gave their group) came to discuss both completed and unfinished works, including The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe manuscript! Fun fact: they nicknamed the pub "Bird and Baby."

Trying to keep up :)

What did I see? ..take a look

We continued our journey. All of a sudden, Joe and another guy on the street see each other and exchange greetings! We had just run into one of Joe's Harvard acquaintances in Oxford!! He was introduced to Anya and I, and it turns out that he had studied at Oxford previously and was there now because his sister is finishing as well. He was a providential send, because we had been headed in the wrong direction for the places we wanted to see, and he was able to give us directions and tips. 

In the next couple of hours, we saw 

*a cross on the ground (the place the men were martyred)

-a random, small alley that led to a cafe

*a three story bookstore

*a library that looks more like the university 

*music hall

*what we thought was Christ Church

*the real Christ Church

*the Alice in Wonderland field where the story originated

Then on our way back, we had to take an alternate route back (due to construction) and passed by the Oxford castle. 

We were able to do all this in time to catch the 2:00 train back to London. As I mentioned before, we had grabbed 2for1 passes at the train station. There is a promotion here in London where they are trying to get people who live outside the city to come into the city to visit. To do so, if you show a valid train ticket and a 2for1 pass at one of the many attractions, you can get two tickets for the price of one. This is why we wanted to be back in London by a certain time. Also, there is a tube strike that was starting that night at 6. 

Everything had been flowing smoothly all day until we were trying to leave Paddington Station. For some reason (we couldn't hear much of the announcements but something about a police investigation somewhere?), the train was majorly delayed, and we had to wait about 20 precious minutes on the platform. Hoping we could get on the train with all the other people who had slowly trickled in, the train finally pulled up and we squeezed on. 

The attraction we wanted to see was the London Tower, so when we arrived, we got in line to buy our tickets, and with an hour and fifteen minutes until it closed, set off to see as much as we could. It ended up being almost the right amount of time, because we were able to quickly walk through the white tower (full of armor and weapons), see the Crown Jewels (so so so lovely!!), walk along part of the wall walk, the torture room :/ , and under the bloody tower. 

White Tower

Under the bloody tower

And a great view of the bridge next door:

After it closed, we had just enough time to take the tube to our dinner stop (we literally exited at 6:00). 

Rush hour traffic!!

Fortunately, we had planned it to be walking distance from our house. When we exited, we discovered a new part of London. The streets were lined with tattoo and piercing parlors, an assortment of other little shops, lots of people smoking, and a general unwelcoming smell. We bought lamb and chicken Döners from a Turkish place that despite the area, still looked decent and had great reviews, and walked back home. After sharing the Döners, Anya and Joe went to Nero's, and I, still feeling unwell, went to bed.