Today we had planned to visit my ancestral and spiritual home of Avebury (like Stonehenge but bigger and less crowded) but the rain was bucketing down and we chose to postpone. Instead, we drove for almost an hour to the outskirts of Oxford and then caught the park'n'ride bus into the city. Away from the retail hub it reminded us a lot of Cambridge that we saw last time we were in the UK - simply gorgeous architecture and heaps of students cycling hither and yon (as we say in these parts).
We spent a good hour or so in the Old Bodleian
Library precinct, which has a fascinating history involving rich pilchard merchants and royal patronage.
We were a bit perplexed that the ticket seller seemed to think we wanted to run riot through the joint - she was very insistent that our 2 pounds 50 pence entry fee entitled us ONLY to access the quadrangle and Divinity Hall, and don't even THINK of going anywhere else within the complex. She just stopped short of calling us riff-raff and I think was rather surprised when we actually returned our audio thingies after completing our self-guided tour (which involved no trespassing) rather than chucking them in the gutter or selling them to the highest bidder in a pub.
TheDivinity Hall - where prospective clerics had their exams until last century. It's quite beautiful and was built in 1488 - the uni's earliest purpose-built teaching room.
It was also used as the Hogwarts infirmary/hospital in the Harry Potter movies!
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| 4,000,3,221 steps from noooow... |
the cell door through which Bishop Nick and the two other Oxford martyrs (Thomas Cranmer and Hugh Latimer) walked moments before their executions. They were all held in Bocardo prison (adjacent to St Michaels) and this year marks the 460th anniversary of Nicholas's and Hugh's deaths - Cranmer followed in 1556. Forgive me if you have already seen this and the other significant Oxford landmarks I am about to share! This was all new to me and I loved the "three blind mice" story you put in our blog comments.
The spot where Nick and Hugh were burned at the stake* (and Cranmer the following year). Back in the 1550s, Broad Street was a ditch and had been a horse-monger's alley since the 12th century. Interesting that there's no signage about the events at the actual site of the executions. We had to ask at the Tourist Info Bureau, while being exhorted to buy souvenir tea towels. * As a small girl, I thought people were "burnt TO the steak". You know - cooked until they became steak. I don't mean to be flippant. And I do know Bishop Nicholas Ridley died a particularly horrible death because his well-meaning bro-in-law tried to help hasten his death and simply prolonged it.
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| X marks the spot |
The spot where Nick and Hugh were burned at the stake* (and Cranmer the following year). Back in the 1550s, Broad Street was a ditch and had been a horse-monger's alley since the 12th century. Interesting that there's no signage about the events at the actual site of the executions. We had to ask at the Tourist Info Bureau, while being exhorted to buy souvenir tea towels. * As a small girl, I thought people were "burnt TO the steak". You know - cooked until they became steak. I don't mean to be flippant. And I do know Bishop Nicholas Ridley died a particularly horrible death because his well-meaning bro-in-law tried to help hasten his death and simply prolonged it.
I hope you are still awake, Melons, because this is the grand finale - the monument to Nick, Hugh and Thomas. Geoff almost got drowned and hit by a bus taking this pic. Am sure you and/or family members have done the Oxford pilgrimage thang, but must say we rather enjoyed this diversion while we were in that neck of the woods!
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| The Oxford Martyrs Memorial |
Am sorry spacing is shite with this blog post. As we all know, this sort of thing happens when you have a conservative government. Over now to Geoff for beer and football news!
How come I always get left with the low rent stuff? For the record, I was mightily impressed with Oxford. At one point I wondered whether it was as wondrous as Cambridge, which we visited two years ago. But a bit later we found the truly historic part of town. 'Historic' meaning at least 700 years old, or a bit more than any person-made structure you'd find in Mudgee or Toowoomba. Only a bit, mind - no more than 600 years or so. So here's another random sample.
The roundish building on the right is the Radcliffe Camera. Camera being the Latin for room, and nothing at all to do with photography. As I'm sure you all knew. The Bodleian Library is in fact now known as the Old Bodleian library, as distinct from the New, which dates from the 1930s. Perhaps not so impressive, until you understand that the Bodleian Library houses a copy of all books published in Britain forever (that's ALL and FOREVER). So it's not all that surprising that in the 1930s it was decided that they needed a bit more shelving space. I think the new library now has 173 kilometres of it. But don't hold me to that.
Alright, since my job is to provide bloke-style news ... Upon our return to Ogbourne St George we repaired to the Inn With The Well, the village local. To be honest, we are a little less than bowled over, particular by the unenthusiastic hospitality. We did like their dog but. Here's me and Barley, enjoying a pint of either the Spitting Feathers or the Deer Stalker (can't remember where I was up to at the time).
Barley's the handsome one with the black coat, not the decrepit looking one half way through his Spitting Feathers or Deer Stalker. We're sure there are village pubs that offer warm welcomes to visitors, but unfortunately for us we haven't found one yet, and we're running out of time. Wish us luck for the next few days!
Till anon, grasshoppers! xxxx
Just catching up with your recent blog entries. We thought Oxford was great. Isn't it wonderful that people can bring their dogs into pubs!
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