oxford

Day 2: Oxford

Posted on by Susan

20190915_122359-1We checked out Blenheim Palace today. Maurizio Cattelan’s contemporary art was displayed at random places around the place where Winston Churchill was born.

I didn’t like it. A taxidermied horse hung from a ceiling, a boy sat up high and banged a drum, other odd displays were around the historical building. We weren’t able to see the $4.5million 18-carat gold toilet bowl because it was stolen yesterday – yanked out of the wall, causing massive flooding, and tossed in the back of a van.

I tried punting later in the day. This old English sport is difficult – pushing a flat-bottomed boat along with a long steel stick.

Tomorrow we start our row on the Thames.

20190915_11430520190915_051804-1

Day 1: Oxford

Posted on by Susan

20190914_073849We arrived in London this morning and almost immediately jumped on a bus to Oxford, where our week begins. The ride was about 1.5 hours and the cab ride to our bnb was another 10 minutes. We had too much luggage to walk.

We checked in at the Marlborough House, then left right away to walk into the center of the city. It was about a 45- minute walk, but we stopped along the way.  The university was having an Open Doors day to begin their semester, so we lucked into that and saw some old, old buildings.

We checked out the Thames River, where we will be rowing this week, although we aren’t sure where we will start.

We had dinner (paella👍) at a food festival, where there were at least 25 vendors.

We ended our day on the back deck of the Red Lion, where we enjoyed a cocktail before walking back to our hotel.

20190914_082356Thames River20190914_084827Learning to open the lock so a boat can pass through