oxford! [day fourteen & fifteen]

after a detour to shakespeare's mother's farm (it was awesome. there was a giant owl and ginger pigs, as well as the normal things like cows and goats and horses and sheep. i didn't take any pictures, but just know that it was cool, and made me kind of wish that i lived on a farm), we made it to oxford. before coming into the city, though, we spent the afternoon at blenheim palace, which some call the versailles of england. it is the current home of the duke and duchess of marlborough and the birthplace of sir winston churchhill. we got a tour of the palace, and my oh my was it luxurious. however, i'm not really one for tapestries and portraits and intricate furniture and those sort of haughty expressions of a lavish lifestyle. there was one tapestry that cost the same amount as a battleship in its day. a battleship. all i could really think of was how many lives that money could have saved, how many mouthes it could have fed, or the homes that could have been built to shelter hundreds of families, or how many kids it could have put through school. so the palace itself was gaudy and silly, but i did my best to enjoy it. on the grounds of the palace was a butterfly garden and a maze--the second largest in the world, in fact. we took a cute little train out to see both. we gandered at the giant butterflies and made our way through the maze just in time to hop on the bus and head into town.

a piece of the palacethe tiny train on our way to the giant butterflies and giant mazeone of many of the monstrous butterfliesand the one monstrous mazethis is just a quarter of it

once we finally made it into the city and into our apartments it was dinner time. we have kitchens again which meant dinner was to be made rather than bought. i whipped up some tortalini and garlic bread and relaxed the night away in my pjs. i have a room to myself here, and so took in some much needed "me time" and called it a night.

this morning we woke up bright and early and headed for c.s. lewis's house. we got a tour of the place along with a bit of his biography and took part in a traditional comunion service at the church he attended as an adult (it was an interesting and enlightening experience), and went to both his and j.r.r tolkein's grave. it was only fitting, then, to have lunch at the eagle and child (also known as the bird and baby) where the inklings (a group made up of c.s. lewis, j.r.r. tolkein, and other writers) frequently met up at to share and discuss their latest ideas and writings.

a pond behind his house, with a ducky and her baby duckiesand his church"here sat and worshiped clive staples lewis"sitting where he sat

we then strolled the streets of oxford, popping in and out of book stores and whatnot. the buildings of oxford are beautiful, the city is big and clean, and the people are really nice. i've gotten such a good vibe from this place. and after seeing some of the colleges and the city, and especially while i was by myself, walking with my groceries, slowly making my way back to the apartment, i found myself imagining myself here for much more than just a day. had i come to oxford earlier in life, knowing how much i like it, how much it feels like a fit, i think i might have studied abroad here for a semester or two. who knows, i still have two years of college left, and maybe by some miracle it may still happen. and if not, i bought a sweatshirt and can wear it, pretending to be an oxford alum.

here's a glimpse of the city:

one of the oldest book shops in the world

we cooked dinner again tonight. more pasta and garlic bread. ...what? it's the easiest thing to make. and now we're hanging out, playing snaps and would you rather, and listening to music that brings us back to yester-year. we have to be up early early early in the morning for a day of adventuring and traveling. bath, stonehenge, and finally london! and until i get there, isle be seeing you..