Before I tell about today’s adventures, let me tell you a little about last night’s chapel and formal hall dinner. First of all, we met our first Medievalist. It a scary sounding word, isn’t it? She tutors (remember how it works here, independent study with tutors) students in Medieval English Literature. Fortunately, she spoke normal British, which is hard enough for us to understand. I thought seeing a sample of Medieval English would help you see why someone would definitely need a tutor to work their way through it: Syððan wæs geworden þæt translates in modern English as And it came to pass afterward. Strange looking language, right? Chapel last night was a gospel theme. We were eager to see how the Brits would handle gospel, which is probably as much against their grain as hugging their neighbor. They gave it a good shot. Even Fiona had a little hip movement going. It was visitor night for students at Formal Hall, so it was really loud and lots of people.
Well, today we definitely made up for our day of sitting at our desks all day yesterday. We think we must have walked about eight miles (I may rethink the need for a Pilates class) as we explored C. S. Lewis’ stomping grounds and then went in search of a much-recommended fancy pub name The Trout. (Remember a pub is also a restaurant, so don’t go spreading rumors.)
Our adventure started at 11:00 as we headed to town for lunch. It was pouring down rain, but like good Brits, we packed our umbrellas and hit the busy streets of Oxford anyway. (See photo of crowded street.) We had lunch at an Italian place and then ran to a mall to stay out of the rain for a while. I still haven’t bought much since we’ve arrived, but the day is coming. England is still in a recession, so I’m thinking that the sales will soon start as we’re getting closer to Christmas.
At 2:00 we were supposed to meet our new BFF, Kelly, at the Eagle and Child. Kelly rides a bike everywhere and it hit us that if something happened to him, we would never know. Then we thought about ourselves, if something happened to us who would know? Before we could work ourselves up to nervousness, Kelly came walking up. He had a flat tire on his bike and had to catch a bus. So, all good. Kelly has taken students on the C.S. Lewis tour before, so he took us today, so no tour guide needed. We started at the Eagle and Child (photo above), which I may have told you before is the pub Clive Staples Lewis or Jack, as he was often called, would sit and discuss life, philosophy, faith and his books with the likes of J.R.R. Tolkien. After a short visit there we took off to see his home place. It is now in a trust and allows visitors by appointment, which we didn’t have, since people do live in the house (see photo above). We walked around the beautiful pond out back where C.S. said he loved to skinny dip. Next stop was to the church of his choice and his gravesite. An interesting fact that I never knew, is he died of osteoporosis the same day President Kennedy was assassinated. Hence, there was very little publicity surrounding his death in 1963 at 64 years old.
Next, we took the bus back to the other side of town and started our trek to The Trout. We took another tow path along a canal to the Thames River. What we didn’t know was exactly where the Trout was located. Even Kelly hadn’t been there. So two and a half hours later, passed boats, cows, joggers, cow paddies, a wind storm, rain, bicycles, bridges, up hills, and down valleys, we arrived hungry and thirsty. It was definitely worth it. Most pubs are small and dark, but this one is large and beautifully decorated with different styles of tables and chairs. It has glass all across the back with an incredible view of the river and the pastures surrounding it. The meal was excellent and we enjoyed visiting with Kelly. As much as we loved the walk, we opted for a taxi home.
Tomorrow, we’re off to church and then to open mic night where some of our new friends from college are performing. I’ll let you know.
One of the things that puzzles me daily is the way the Brits hold their fork and knife. I know it’s a little thing, but what I really want to know what caused Americans to adopt another way. I do plan to research this. I have a theory that when Americans came over they didn’t have all their supplies and were just happy to have a fork, so the habit of using both died away. I have no basis for this theory, other than knowing what moving is like and how things get lost. I’m sure there are a hundreds, thousands of things, that have lapsed with time as new inventions and better ways of doing things have taken over. But God’s word, through 2000 years of studying and debating, has remained the same.
“God's Word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds. You'll like it better than strawberries in spring, better than red, ripe strawberries.” Psalm 19:10 The Message
Have a great Sunday.
Love and hugs,
2 Mama
Well, today we definitely made up for our day of sitting at our desks all day yesterday. We think we must have walked about eight miles (I may rethink the need for a Pilates class) as we explored C. S. Lewis’ stomping grounds and then went in search of a much-recommended fancy pub name The Trout. (Remember a pub is also a restaurant, so don’t go spreading rumors.)
Our adventure started at 11:00 as we headed to town for lunch. It was pouring down rain, but like good Brits, we packed our umbrellas and hit the busy streets of Oxford anyway. (See photo of crowded street.) We had lunch at an Italian place and then ran to a mall to stay out of the rain for a while. I still haven’t bought much since we’ve arrived, but the day is coming. England is still in a recession, so I’m thinking that the sales will soon start as we’re getting closer to Christmas.
At 2:00 we were supposed to meet our new BFF, Kelly, at the Eagle and Child. Kelly rides a bike everywhere and it hit us that if something happened to him, we would never know. Then we thought about ourselves, if something happened to us who would know? Before we could work ourselves up to nervousness, Kelly came walking up. He had a flat tire on his bike and had to catch a bus. So, all good. Kelly has taken students on the C.S. Lewis tour before, so he took us today, so no tour guide needed. We started at the Eagle and Child (photo above), which I may have told you before is the pub Clive Staples Lewis or Jack, as he was often called, would sit and discuss life, philosophy, faith and his books with the likes of J.R.R. Tolkien. After a short visit there we took off to see his home place. It is now in a trust and allows visitors by appointment, which we didn’t have, since people do live in the house (see photo above). We walked around the beautiful pond out back where C.S. said he loved to skinny dip. Next stop was to the church of his choice and his gravesite. An interesting fact that I never knew, is he died of osteoporosis the same day President Kennedy was assassinated. Hence, there was very little publicity surrounding his death in 1963 at 64 years old.
Next, we took the bus back to the other side of town and started our trek to The Trout. We took another tow path along a canal to the Thames River. What we didn’t know was exactly where the Trout was located. Even Kelly hadn’t been there. So two and a half hours later, passed boats, cows, joggers, cow paddies, a wind storm, rain, bicycles, bridges, up hills, and down valleys, we arrived hungry and thirsty. It was definitely worth it. Most pubs are small and dark, but this one is large and beautifully decorated with different styles of tables and chairs. It has glass all across the back with an incredible view of the river and the pastures surrounding it. The meal was excellent and we enjoyed visiting with Kelly. As much as we loved the walk, we opted for a taxi home.
Tomorrow, we’re off to church and then to open mic night where some of our new friends from college are performing. I’ll let you know.
One of the things that puzzles me daily is the way the Brits hold their fork and knife. I know it’s a little thing, but what I really want to know what caused Americans to adopt another way. I do plan to research this. I have a theory that when Americans came over they didn’t have all their supplies and were just happy to have a fork, so the habit of using both died away. I have no basis for this theory, other than knowing what moving is like and how things get lost. I’m sure there are a hundreds, thousands of things, that have lapsed with time as new inventions and better ways of doing things have taken over. But God’s word, through 2000 years of studying and debating, has remained the same.
“God's Word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds. You'll like it better than strawberries in spring, better than red, ripe strawberries.” Psalm 19:10 The Message
Have a great Sunday.
Love and hugs,
2 Mama
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