September 4, 2015 - Oxford, England

Well, there was a change of plans today and Tobey ended up not going with Tyler to Birmingham.

I did go for a long (almost 4 miles) walk today in search of fabric shops in Oxford! I found two online that seemed to be in walking distance. Darn it & Stitch Haberdashery and Sewing is located in City Center near the Town Hall. It was a tiny little shop run by a lovely woman from Japan. I had fun chatting with her and ended up buying 3-fat quarters (if you are a quilter, you know what I am talking about!). The prices for quilting cotton fabric are extremely high for fabric here – almost 17GBP/meter – about $26USD per yard!! Tobey would take my sewing machine away if I paid that much in the States! After tucking my tiny purchase into my backpack I continued on to the Bombay Emporium. My journey took me past Christ Church and Merton College again. I don’t think I could ever get tired of looking at these beautiful buildings! When I got to High Street I turned right and crossed the bridge over the River Cherwell where you can rent “punting boats.” They are like long pontoon boats and a guide stands in the back and poles along the river while you paddle. Business was slow today!

I should have considered the name of the shop before making that trek – most of the fabrics they had were silks and beaded. It was fun to see, but nothing I wanted to buy so I started home.

After lunch, Tobey and I walked to the Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the Pitt Rivers Museum. The museum was founded in 1860 as the center for scientific study at the University of Oxford. Now, the museum offers free admission and has an incredible collection.

We spent over an hour browsing through the displays on the main floor. It is a very family-friendly place and everything was well-signed.At the back of the exhibition hall is the entrance to the Pitt River Museum which houses some of the most interesting collections of anthropology and archaeology in the world. We barely saw the first level of the Pitt Rivers Museum which has over 500,000 pieces in its collections!




We were overwhelmed with the variety and how many items were displayed from around the world. We both commented that if we lived here we would come back over and over and probably never see it all!

We headed back to the apartment around 4pm, but had to stop at Mumu's Gelateria Café on our way home. Tyler said it was Katie’s favorite place for ice cream – and it was wonderful!!! We had a scoop of peanutella and one of coconut – a yummy combination that gave me enough energy to complete the walk home!

Tyler took us by the Hertford Bridge, popularly known as the Bridge of Sighs. It is a skyway joining two parts of Hertford College over New College Lane in Oxford. It was built in 1914 and there is no water under the bridge, like its namesake in Venice!
We all went to Turf Tavern on the east end of City Center for dinner. There is no way we could have found it on our own – we went through a maze of alleyways to get there, but it was worth it. The food was reasonably priced and good. Another good day!

Tomorrow the three of us are heading out to Cornwall for the weekend, hoping to see Tintagel Castle – where the legend of King Arthur is supposed to have begun!

September 3, 2015 - Oxford, England

Today Tobey and I took “Walk 10 – The Castle to the Cemetery,” with a few modifications. The walk took us through the Medieval Jewish Quarter of Oxford. We walked to City Center and headed to the Oxford Castle. The first building we came upon was not the castle at all, but the County Council Building! The castle is just to the north and west of this building.

We entered through the courtyard and bought tickets for the guided tour of the Castle and Tower.

The guide, dressed as a prisoner from the 1700s, gave a fun and informative tour and history of the castle which dates back o 1071AD when William the Conqueror took control of England after his victory at the Battle of Hastings. The initial castle was simply an earthwork mound which was surrounded by a wooden palisade. The motte rose over 60 feet.

The most dramatic moment in the military history of Oxford Castle came in 1142, at the height of the Civil War between King Stephen and Matilda. Matilda was nominated by her father, King Henry 1, as the heir to the throne of England, but in 1135, Stephen of Blois, her cousin, claimed that his uncle had changed his mind on his deathbed, naming him heir instead. Matilda’s army was besieged within the castle for nearly three weeks, and it seemed that surrender was the only choice as they ran short of supplies. However, in a scene that rivals the movies, Matilda was lowered over the castle walls in the dead of night, and wrapped in a white cloak as camouflage against the swirling snow, she ice skated through the king's army camp and across the frozen Thames to safety. Matilda was eventually captured and held prisoner at Oxford Castle. In 1153, Stephen agreed to the Treaty of Westminster with Matilda's son Henry of Anjou. This stated that Stephen should remain king for life (in the event this was less than one more year) and then Henry should succeed him. Stephen died in 1154 (Natural causes? Who knows?) and Henry was crowned King Henry I.

Our tour took us up the Saxon St. George’s Tower - 100+ circular stairway steps to see beautiful views of the city.

On the left in the picture above, you can see the original “motte” or mound where the wooden palisade was constructed.

After the tower, we descended underground into the 900 year old crypt, the only surviving remains of St. George’s Chapel. It is said this is where Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote the Legends of King Arthur!

Most of the castle was destroyed in the 1640s, during the English Civil War, and by the 18th century the remaining buildings became Oxford's local prison. A new prison complex was built on the site from 1785 and operated until 1996!

Most of the prison area has been redeveloped into a luxury hotel!

We didn’t go in to check it out, but our guide said the rooms still use the same prison doors into the “cells!”

Our walking tour took us past several buildings we have already seen, but it was fun to read the historic descriptions in the guide book. The large stone building below is the Oxford Town Hall which also houses the Oxford Museum.

On the top of the Town Hall building is a golden oxen weathervane. In the 13th century it was supposed to have belonged to a wealthy Jewish man named David of Oxford. The Jewish history is long and complicated, but it now rests atop Town Hall!

Further down the street we stopped into Alice’s Shop. It is definitely a tourist stop, but is supposedly where Alice Liddel loved to buy her sweets. The shop (and Alice) were the inspiration for the Old Sheep Shop in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass. Every item for sale is related to the Adventures of Alice in Wonderland ! I am happy to report that I only purchased one postcard.

After escaping an afternoon shower, we wandered back through the Covered Market and made our way to a downtown grocery to pick up a few items before heading back to Tyler’s.

After Tyler returned from Birmingham, we went out to Zheng Restaurant for dinner. It is just around the corner and we were lucky to get in since you normally need reservations at almost any restaurant in the evening! It was an interesting menu with Malaysian, Singaporean, and a variety of Chinese dishes. We had vegetarian spring rolls, fried rice, chicken satay with peppers and onions, Nasa Pattaya (fried rice with prawns wrapped in a egg), and Miao clay pot chicken. Everything was delicious and more than we could finish!

Tomorrow Tobey is going with Tyler back to Birmingham – another early morning start! I think I will stay in Oxford and go poke around some of the shops in City Center.

September 2, 2015 - Oxford, England

Today had a leisurely start spent reading and catching up on our sleep – at least Tobey and I. Tyler has to work every day, so we are trying not to get in the way. After lunch Tobey and I walked to City Center and took the free 2-hour walking tour offered by Footprints Tours.

Our guide, Tom, did a great job explaining about the different colleges which make up Oxford University and the history of Oxford. It can be quite confusing when you say Oxford University, because there are 38 colleges of the University of Oxford and six Permanent Private Halls. Each controls its membership and has its own internal structure and activities. Not all colleges offer all courses, but they generally cover a broad range of subjects. When you graduate from any of the colleges, you graduate from Oxford University.

We didn’t go into any of the colleges, but we got a glimpse of things to check out further. The picture below is Christ Church College, also known as "The House." It was founded in 1525 by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, and was originally called Cardinal's College. In 1546 Henry VIII took it over and renamed it Christ Church. This college is the largest and most visited of all Oxford's Colleges. The 7-ton bell in the tower chimes 101 times each night at 9:05pm, the time when the original 101 students were called back for curfew. Since Oxford is 5 minutes west of Greenwich, this is actually 9 pm Oxford time!

We loved the garden area at Christ Church. The guide told us that 13 British Prime Ministers in the last 200 years attended Christ Church which is more than any other college in Oxford, or all of Cambridge University combined! There have been 26 Prime Ministers educated at Oxford University.
This is the entrance to the Oxford Botanic Garden which was founded in 1621 “To promote the furtherance of learning and to glorify nature". All of it is part of Oxford University!
Another of the beautiful colleges in Oxford is All Souls College. All of its members automatically become Fellows (full members of the College's governing body). It has no undergraduate members and is one of the wealthiest colleges in Oxford.

We also walked through the quad at Balliol College, our guide’s alma mater. It was founded in 1263 and claims to have produced three Prime Ministers. The Bodleian Library is housed here – three levels underground. It is one of the oldest libraries in Europe and is second is size only to the British Library! There are over 11 millions items in this research library and Tom told us they are in the process of digitizing ALL the items which will then be available free, online, to everyone!

We really liked the architecture of the Radcliffe Camera. It was built in the early-mid 1700s to house the Radcliffe science library.

We also liked some of the “grotesques” carved on the buildings in Oxford. Some were amusing, others just disturbing!

The last building Tom told us about was the Sheldonian Theatre. The Sheldonian Theatre was built from 1664 to 1669 and designed by Christopher Wren. It is used for music concerts, lectures and University ceremonies, but not for drama.

After the tour we headed back to the Covered Market which has operated on this site since 1774! Oxford was originally a trade center and this is the place where it started!

Our daughter-in-law told us not to miss it, so we took her advice. It was fun to go through and see lots of the shops. One of the bakeries had some incredible cakes to impress just about anyone!

We picked up some meat at one of the butcher shops located in the Market before walking back to Tyler’s place. This was one of the colorful taxis we spotted at Gloucester Green. It looks like a fun ride!

We have passed by this guitar shop almost every day, but this was the first we noticed this kitty and sign.

 

He was busy watching Tobey – until he spotted a pigeon outside! He jumped from the window and was trying to figure out how to escape through the door! Too bad they were already closed for the night. I am sure his thoughts were, “curses, foiled again!”

We had a quiet evening and will decide on tomorrow’s activities in the morning!

September 1, 2015 - Stratford upon Avon and Warwick

We had an early start to a busy day! We left Tyler’s at 5:45 this morning and dropped him in Birmingham, about 1-1/2 hours north of here before heading back to Stratford upon Avon. I did the driving and Tobey navigated – quite an entertaining combination! The GPS had a hard time getting us out of the business complex in Birmingham and back on the M42 south, but with a few “take the fourth exit out of the roundabouts” (u-turns) we managed to get back on the road! Traffic going south was horrible and the 45 minute drive took almost 1-1/2 hours! Oh well.

We arrived in Stratford upon Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare around 9. After parking the car, we found a nice little café and had a breakfast of eggs on toast and tea. Our waitress was a college student from the University of Oregon who was spending her summer holiday working in England.
Just around the corner was William Shakespeare’s birthplace and childhood home.
We took a tour of the childhood home where William Shakespeare was born and lived. At 18, he married Anne Hathaway (not the actress) and they spend the first five years of family life here.

We entered through a museum which houses original copies of many of his works, as well as other interesting artifacts of Shakespeare’s life, before coming into the back garden of the house.

It was interesting to see the house where Shakespeare was born in 1564 and see what life night have been like for young William. We met one of his “father’s journeymen” in his leather business and learned how he made his living.Shakespeare's birthplace was a fascinating house that offered a glimpse into the early world of his life.

As we headed back to the carpark, we had to take note of the Jester Statue at the corner of Henley and Windsor Streets. The inscriptions read “O noble fool, a worthy fool” and “The fool doth think he is wise but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.”

From Stratford upon Avon, we headed on to Warwick to see the castle. Warwick has a long and interesting history. As early as 914AD, Ethelfleda, daughter of Alfred the Great, ordered the building of a 'burh' or an earthen rampart to protect the small hill top settlement of Warwick from Danish invaders.
In 1068, William the Conqueror built a motte and bailey fort, consisting of a large earth mound with a timber stockade around both the top and base. The picture below is The Mound, the oldest part of the Castle.

In 1088, Henry de Beaumont was appointed the 1st Earl of Warwick. For hundreds of years the castle passed through the Beaumont family. Much construction took place - wooden structures replaced with stone, towers and a dungeon built, and the barbican was built. The barbican is the outer defense of a castle or walled city, especially a double tower above a gate or drawbridge.

In 1604, King James 1, a Scottish king of England, gave the castle to Fulke Greville., along with the title of Earl of Warwick. Warwick Castle remained in the Greville family until 1978, when they sold it to The Tussaud's Group, part of the Madame Tussaud Merlin Entertainment.

We took the 12:30 Great Hall and Staterooms Free tour. Our guide, Richard, was fantastic. We were both nervous when we saw there were probably 50 people in line behind us thinking it would be hard to hear. Everyone was quiet and respectful and he did a fabulous job explaining the history of the castle – all without a microphone!

The Greville family had a penchant for parties and spending money. In 1871, fire swept through the private apartments, damaging the Great Hall before being controlled. When they needed to restore that part of the castle, they were the first family to apply to the government for financial assistance. The Great Hall is not restored to its original look because they spent half the money they received on parties, but it is still very impressive. There is a huge collection of armor on display.

I loved the ceiling in the Green Drawing Room – a reception room for men – even though I would not have been allowed in the room!

The chapel was simple, yet beautiful.

We were amazed that we could go through so many rooms in the castle and there were no ropes keeping visitors away from the artwork, furniture, or displays. The castle is said to be haunted, so maybe if you touch anything, Sir Faulke Greville’s ghost would get you!

We took the small climb to the top of The Mound. The view over the Castle property was beautiful. We could also see the church tower of St. Mary’s Church of Warwick located in the city.

At the end of our visit we went to hear about the “Horrible Histories” of the castle. It was a funny, yet informative, review of the history of Warwick Castle. We did not stay to see the show which showcases the birds, but we did visit their enclosures. These are just a few of the birds at Warwick Castle.



We didn’t take advantage of everything you could see or do at Warwick, but still enjoyed seeing the castle and learning more about its history. To really see everything we probably needed at least 6 or more hours. (They did offer a senior discount admission price – only $17.40 pounds – $26.50 USD – so we saved about $8 pounds per person!) For more information, you can check out Warwick Castle history at https://www.warwick-castle.com/explore/history-and-restoration.aspx
We headed back to Birmingham to pick up Tyler and manage to not get lost or make any wrong turns until we got into the business park! YEAH. I felt more comfortable on the road – driving on the wrong side as it is!

Back in Oxford, Tyler had a business dinner so Tobey and I had some dinner and relaxed. Tomorrow we will try the walking tour of Oxford. By the way, my leg is getting better and better!