Oxford

Where: Oxford, England

When: June 17, 2012

With: Elyse, Kelly, Patricia and Lazar (who gives a **** about an Oxford comma)

Continuing on the weekend tour of England with Elyse, we decided to take a day trip out to Oxford. Kelly, Patricia and Lazar joined us for the quick 1 hour train ride to this lovely little university town. 

The university sits, funnily enough, in the city of Oxford and is the second-oldest surviving university in the world. There is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096. Everything in the town is old and small, but it commands an air of bustle and importance that is larger than the buildings. 

We headed for the town center and jumped on a walking tour of the city. They recommend doing this because it's the best way (and sometimes, only way) you can get into some of the colleges. Oxford University is made up of 38 separate colleges, each one with its own application process, hidden behind giant stone walls that blend right into the town. The colleges are located all over the city of Oxford, but to get into them (and sometimes, just to find them), you need to either be a student or be on a walking tour. Hence, our decision.

The first college we visited was Jesus College. It was founded by Elizabeth I in 1571. This is the main quad in the college. 

The dining hall still gives props to Liz herself. 

The second college we visited was Lincoln College. Founded in 1427, it is the 9th oldest college in Oxford. Our tour guide, who was incredibly verbose and was in love with Oxford (even though he didn't go there) couldn't stop talking about the well manicured lawn how we HAD to take pictures of it. 

In addition to a separate application process, we learned that each college has their own dorms, dining hall, sports teams, and list of subjects for students to study.

While wandering through the maze of the city, we got to take a nice detour through a covered market that let you out in a small square. The square was surrounded by an old hotel that apparently was around long enough to have housed William Shakespeare. 

One of the more prestigious of colleges at Oxford - King's College. This is not one you can just walk into, sadly.

Throughout the tour, our guide was....wearing on us. He just wouldn't stop talking, and he kept repeating the same things over and over. At one point, we passed another tour guide, a lady who said we were all so lucky to have the best tour guide in Oxford. We all wanted to know how much our guide paid her to say that.

The last stop on the tour was this tavern. It was hidden down a narrow pathway. After the guide led us in, he kept us in the alleyway, blocking the entrance, to give us his history lesson of the place. The owner of the tavern came out and told him to go in or leave, not stand there. So while the guide herded the group out the door, we just sort of...stayed behind at the pub and decided our tour was over. 

After a couple of pints and some lunch, we were ready to try one more college - Christ Church. This is one of the more popular ones due to its size, its relative ease to get in, and most importantly, its use as the site of some very important scenes in the Harry Potter movies.

The first courtyard upon entering.

The steps leading up to the Great Hall. Apparently, this was the big filming location for Harry Potter, but I'm not sure what was filmed here.

The Great Hall that inspired the one in the Harry Potter movies. The students of the college still eat here. And the eyes of the portraits on the walls follow you as you walk up between the tables. 

Early form of graffiti in Christ Church. Apparently, students in the 1800s were against the Prime Minister (Sir Robert Peel) and took out their rage on this door with nails. 

The quad of Christ Church. 

Christ Church was huge. This was another building inside the walls of the college - not sure what it was for, but it was pretty.

Inside the church that give the college it's name. 

Some nice gardening on the way out of Christ Church.

After we'd had our fill of colleges, we went on a hunt for Oxford Castle. However, we weren't very successful in finding it. Or we were, but there wasn't much to see. 

We instead ended the day with some tapas and sangria at a small Spanish restaurant before training it back to London. A lovely and educational day.