Sunday, September 16, 2012

Do you remember the shire, Mr. Frodo?

"Do you remember the Shire, Mr. Frodo? It'll be spring soon. And the orchards will be in blossom. And the birds will be nesting in the hazel thicket. And they'll be sowing the summer barley in the lower fields... and eating the first of the strawberries with cream. Do you remember the taste of strawberries?" -- Sam from LOTR The Return of the King

Welcome to Oxfordshire! We made a group trip across the countryside yesterday to visit Oxford, home of many colleges, and on the way there it felt like we were driving through the Shire in Lord of the Rings (get it? OxfordSHIRE? the SHIRE?). Did you know that the books were actually written in Oxford? The inspiration is clear, the only thing missing was the funny shaped houses Tolkien managed to draw up.

Oxford is even more beautiful than I ever imagined. The buildings are so old and unique that you can see the history in the stones! We went to a couple of the universities there that were the film inspiration for Harry Potter. So cool!

The computer is messing up so I'll give you some pictures below. Today the "Freshers" move in, so there will be a lot of activity on campus today! This week I'll be putting up pictures of campus for the students who are interested in doing the exchange back home.

Here we are, in front of Oxford!

They had so many small shops, and this one was perfectly English! I had to stop and take a look at the hats (and take a picture for Allison Aday). They're expensive!


 
 
 
 
We found the oldest pub in Oxford! It is said to have been built around 1300 and still serves food and drink all day, every day.
 
 
 
They also have some really interesting and free museums. I saw more real mummies in an hour than I have in my entire life! This is some ancient work from NUBIA! I had to take a picture for all my Aida fans (miss Kelly Reynaga included). It was so interesting!
 

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