Oxford

The city of dreaming spires, while not exactly what I was expecting, nonetheless deserves attention.

Far from the warren of tunnels and battling muddied children I was anticipating, Oxford is a lovely, academic city, brimming with universities, bookstores, churches and tourists. However, not even tourism can overshadow the quiet academic beauty of Oxford. Most of the city is built of a warm, yellow-coloured stone, which looks buttery in the sunlight. It's a city of stained-glass windows and academia, with the oldest University, of course, being Oxford University, founded in 911 A.D. by Alfred the Great. Despite his love of scholarship and academia, legend has it the the mighty Alfred actually couldn't read.

It has been a home of worship and the grounds of religious persecution. In the middle of what now seems like a perfectly innocuous street, Bishops Ridley and Latimer were burned at the stake during Bloody Mary's reign (part of the reason she was called bloody Mary). Apparently, as the English were quite out of practice at burning people at the stake, the result was rather an unpleasant experience all around (lesson learned, don't use green wood when you're trying to burn someone. They won't cook evenly.)

It has served as a refuge to kings, serving as King Charles' hiding place during Cromwell's revolution. Apparently, while the town supported Parliament, the University stuck by their king, keeping him behind the college's fortress-like walls. It obviously didn't work, but it was a noble effort.

Oxford, that famous home of education and literature, obviously the breeding ground of many scholars and politicians, has also managed to turn out it's fair share of famous authors. I can now proudly say that I saw the college that J.R.R. Tolkien attended (Exeter College, by the way). Well, ok, I saw the wall around it. That's close enough, right?

I did, however, eat at the famous home of the Inklings.

What are the Inklings, you ask?

Inklings are tiny little black creatures that attack you in the night.

Just kidding.

The Inklings were a literary society that Tolkien and C.S. Lewis (who were best buds in college) were a part of. The budding geniuses, along with their friends, frequented the Eagle and Child pub (pictures later). Legend has it that after imbibing quite a few pints, one of the guys claimed that a small creature had grabbed his beer, and thus hobbits were born.

If you're going to Oxford, the Eagle and Child makes quite a good stop, as it has not yet been impacted by the hordes of tourists invading the city. The food is good (and relatively cheap) and the service is friendly. Although, I did learn, at that point, that a beer with lunch is not a good idea. It was just one, but, well, it's not necessarily something I'll repeat. And no, a hobbit did not take my beer (although I would like to have met one).

We also stopped to pay a quick homage to the genius of Lewis Carroll, who also attended college at Oxford, and saw the birthplace of Alice and her Wonderland. Carroll, a painfully shy academic, couldn't tolerate the company of adults, and thusly, found himself spending a lot of time with the Dean's two young daughters, one of whom was named Alice. Considering Carroll's childlike companions, and the Dean who was constantly running late for his 'very important dates,' it is not too difficult to discover the roots of a children's classic.

Queen Victoria was charmed by Alice in Wonderland, going so far as to get an autographed copy, and to wrangle a personal promise from Carroll that he would send her an autographed copy of the next book he wrote. He was as good as his word, but the Queen was rather disappointed, seeing as Carroll was a professor of mathematics, and his next text was an expostulation of mathematical theory.

And of course, we saw Christ Church, one of the more famous colleges.

Why is it famous, you ask?

Is it famous because it was established by Cardinal Wolsey?

Is is famous because it contains the sole surviving portrait of Thomas Beckett (barely saved from it's destruction at the hands of Henry VIII's religous revolution)?

No.

Indeed, it is now famous because it's cafeteria was the model for the dining hall in the Harry Potter films. While the dining hall in Christ Church is lovely, it is also quite small, and one can see why they built one three times its size at the studios, north of London.

Christ Church's church is also quite worth having a look at, filled with antique statues in its niches, crowded with religious significance. Indeed, every college has its own chapel, but that one is the only one counted as a Cathedral. Inside the cathedral, among the images in the stained glass, you will find the only surviving portrayal of Thomas Beckett (famously being killed by the four knights).

Why was it the only one to survive?

Because it doesn't have any facial features, and as a result Henry could not positively prove that it was an image of Thomas Beckett.

In short, Oxford is a beautiful, historical, impressive city, one with far more value and knowledge within it than I can attempt to sum up in one little blog entry. But I hope that I have managed to convey some sort of impression of the city, and I will be posting photos of it later.