Oxford

Trip Start Jan 01, 2009
1
18
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Trip End Jun 06, 2009


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Flag of United Kingdom  , England,
Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Wednesday morning we took the train to Oxford which took about two hours.  We decided to treat ourselves to luxury in Oxford and took a room in a Bed & Breakfast.   The first day was about long hot showers and relaxing.  The student neighborhood was right behind our B n' B so we went there for some Japanese food...yum! 

The next day we got up and went into the heart of Oxford.  First we stopped at the University of Oxford gift shop for some small souvenirs for our host families.  Next we wanted to go to Alice's Shop, but got sidetracked by Christ Church, one of the best colleges within the University of Oxford.  Christ Church was established by Cardinal Woolsey by order of Henry VIII.  The school has a long list of famous members including John Locke, Albert Einstein, Edward VII, and William Penn (founder of Pennsylvania).  Lewis Carrol was a math professor there and developed the book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by making up stories that took place on the campus and telling them to Alice Liddell, the daughter of the Dean of Christ Church.  More recently parts of the school were used for filming Harry Potter and the school's dining hall was used for creating the Hogwarts dining hall. 

After spending sometime there we went to Alice's Shop which formerly was the store where Alice Liddell went to buy her sweets and now is a gift shop for all thing Wonderland.  At this point we were pretty hungry so we stopped by The Turf Tavern, a pub est. 13th Century.  The pub was a hangout for Richard Burton and Liz Taylor while they filmed Cleopatra, allegedly the place where Bill Clinton "did not inhale", and also the place where a young Bob Hawke (former prime minister of Australia) set a World Record as a student by drinking a yard of ale (2.5 pints) in 11 seconds.  Unfortunately he will probably remembered more for that then his political life.

On our way home we decided to stop and see the science museum.  Unlike the Pacific Science Center, this museum had a collection of scientific instruments as they were being developed, showcasing the evolution of astrolobes, microscopes, telescopes, cameras, and more!  It was amazing to actually see these instruments that I had only read about in my history texts.  These developments are responsible for the discovery of the Americas, advancement of the medical field, and such other mind boggling things.  After dinner we hit up so Oxford nightlife starting at The Eagle and Child, J.R. Tolkien and Lewis Carroll's famed hangout.  Then we discovered a rock n' roll bar....Oxford was not the place that I was expecting to find one of those!  After a night, we went to bed not too late to prepare for the next leg of our journey. 
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