Oxford, England it is then

Two gents playing croquet in front of Queen's College
at Oxford University

 

We didn’t have a plan, just a warm day open in front of us so we hopped the train to Oxford.

 

The thought of a formal tour only made us shrug so we struck out on our own with a free map snagged at the train station and it was enough. 



Bodleian Library

 

 

 

 

Although there are loads of things to see, this was a spontaneous trip so we narrowed it down to just a couple sites: the Bodleian Library for Rex and the Botanic Garden for me. Everything in between was frosting on the cake. Luscious, luscious frosting. 

 We're big fans of the show Inspector Lewis which is set in Oxford, so we figured whatever we saw would eventually pop up in one of the episodes. 

 The Bodleian Library was unfortunately, not open to the public (students and faculty only, I suppose) but we were able to enter part of the older library and it’s courtyard which itself requested “quiet please” upon entering. For Harry Potter fans, this is where the Hogwarts library scenes were filmed for Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets.

Across from the Library is St. Mary’s church, the official church of Oxford University since the 1200’s. We paid our 4 pounds each and climbed its tower for a gorgeous view of the university.

View of the town from St. Mary's Tower.

 

The Botanic Garden was as I’d hoped: well laid out and yummy. With eight formal botanical beds, a water garden, rock gardens, sustainable meadows, and medicinal gardens it was just what the doctor ordered.

Oxford University Botanic Garden: view of the botanical family beds.

It's hard to imagine now, but gardening used to be only for the upper class. It wasn't introduced to the middle class until the 1800's - but it took off like a scalded dog. People needed information and they needed it quickly. One method was the drawing and painting of trees, grasses, flowers, and plants. I was happy to see this discipline still goes on at Oxford University, as these women's work testifies.

Students practicing the art of painting flowers. 

 

For more photos of this trip to Oxford, please click right here.