LONDON and OXFORD

Gosh!!!! What a busy weekend!

Saturday was spent in London, always bustling with life, noise and traffic. We were dropped off near Waterloo station (quite close to the London Eye) and from there I moved on to the Houses of Parliament. 

>>> London Icons: Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament

To be quite honest, it was not what I first had in mind, but definitely worthwhile to go on the guided tour that lasted about 2 hours and unravelled the amazing blend of history and politics within these imponent buildings famous worldwide. The tour took place in the Lords and Commons Chambers; other highlights included Westminster Hall, the Queen’s Robing Room, Central Hobby, among others. The huge stained glass window you can see on the right (a gift from the Members of both Houses to Her Majesty the Queen on the occasion of her Diamond Jubilee) is already in display but will be installed in the three central panels of North window of Westminster Hall during conservation work planned for this year.

Lyceum Theatre

When this tour finished, it was already 1pm and time to head to Wellington Street, for Disney's beloved animated film but in a theatrical / musical event I'll never forget: The Lion King. Well, as all London musicals, this one was as gorgeous as any other I’ve been to before: a spectacular production, a fantastic orchestra, an extraordinary wardrobe, stunning effects – an impressive show really! It was packed with people of all ages and even for foreigners other than English speakers, it’s quite easy to follow due not only to its famous songs but also to its simple storyline. Thumbs up!!! Fantastic musical for our kids / students. Not to be missed!

I’m dead tired. If I already felt exhausted yesterday, imagine today after visiting Oxford! No, you haven’t missed a bit… I just returned to Cambridge for the night and at 8.30 in the morning, I was already on my way again but this time to Oxford, a beautiful city of stunning architecture, history and culture. It is believed that the first centres of learning in Oxford were connected to the monasteries established by Augustinian monks in the 12^th century; for about 800 years colleges have existed around the city of Oxford and today there are 38 colleges and a total of about 18,000 students. Relations between the town and the students have not been as easy as they are today. In the 13^th century, after some troubles, some scholars fled fearing for their lives and some went / came to Cambridge where they founded another university. Regardless of attending any of the 38 colleges, the most important really is being a student at Oxford, the oldest English speaking University in the world.

Entrance to the Museum

I started by visiting the The Ashmolean Museum , established in 1683, that houses the oldest public collection in the country; this art and architecture museum is not only home to an original collection but also displays the University’s collections from ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome and the near East along with a fine collection of European paintings. Definitely worth a second visit or a longer one…

The guided tour gave us an introduction to Oxford and to some of the ancient and modern colleges, fascinating museums and galleries, large parks, but as far as I’m concerned, a visit to some of the colleges and other sights on the way will be for another, a second visit with the family. This time, just a little sightseeing of this compact city centre with nearly 1,000 buildings of architectural or historical interest within just one square mile. Besides, who could resist the temptation of so many book bargains? In one store, all books cost 2£ (and recent books) and in another one 3 books for 5£… I wish I had larger and lighter suitcases to carry dozens of books (and not having to pay extra at the airport, obviously!)

Included in my top of things to see and do in Oxford are, for instance, 

Radcliffe Camera, a majestic circular reading room for the Bodleian Library

The Bridge of Sighs

Oxford is also famous for the college dining halls where some Harry Potter scenes were shot. Famous Oxonians include Sir Thomas More, Christopher Wren, William Gladstone, JRR Tolkien, TS Eliot, WH Auden, Indira Gandhi, Margaret Thatcher, Prof Stephen Hawking, Aung San Suu Kyi, Tony Blair …a constant presence in Oxford is Alice, from "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass" (there's even a shop with her name that only sells artifacts connected with the book and its characters) and so Charles Dodgson (another famous Oxonian better known as Lewis Carroll) is also omnipresent even in portraits.