Sunday 29 June 2014

Welcome to Oxford


Welcome to Oxford - a charming university town and academic birthplace of many notable people including Tolkien and Lewis Carroll.

I have friends living here so we spent a glorious day together, exploring some of the surrounding countryside and enjoying the nice weather (there's rain on the way).  

Our first stop for the day was Blenheim Palace. The palace was built by the Duke of Marlborough and is the seat of the Spencer Churchills.  Winston Churchill was famously born here, during a dinner dance.  The grounds are extensive and beautifully kept and after we had seen the displays in the castle, we wandered down to the lake and around the grounds. It's a beautiful place to spend some time.

Our next stop was the village of Wolvercote, which is just down the road.  We went to a lovely pub called the Trout for a drink and sat in the courtyard next to a flowing river, enjoying the sun and watching the antics of a peacock as it paraded around the diners.  We went for a walk along the banks of the river, past a ruined nunnery (item: apparently the residents of the nunnery were not so chaste as they might have been and were known for providing a 'warm' welcome to visiting clergy!) and down to the lock to watch the boats pass through.  

After leaving Wolvercote we drove back to town and picked up the kids and then walked down to Ilffey lock to a pub on the river for drinks.  It was late afternoon and everyone was out enjoying the end of the day.  There were rowers, canoeists and boaters on the river and walkers, joggers and cyclists along the banks.  We enjoyed our drink in the gardens of the pub till the rain came down and then headed back home when we realised that it wasn't going to be letting up any time soon.  We ended up in a super cute pub called the Rusty Bicycle for dinner and more drinks.  What a great day.

Blenheim Palace (above) and the monument in the Palace grounds (below).




 

Path leading up to the Ilffey lock.




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