We have been in
Oxford for ten day, and I suppose it is time to record some first impressions,
partly to compare them with one or three months from now. We have seen a lot, walking 3-4 miles each
day, but there is much more to see. We have not ventured much beyond the city
center. It is hard to sum up our experiences or find a defining image—and the
best images are already well distributed; see Wikipedia for a start at pictures
and information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford
The Oxford Castle is just down the block and the former Lion
Brewery—founded in 1743!-- is even closer (unfortunately it closed in 1998).
The street is now residential, with converted warehouses and industries, like
The Old Bakery next door. At the end of the street flows one of the branches of
the river Thames and we cross over the “Quaking Bridge” when heading toward
city centre.
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The part of the
city centre closest to us (Bonn Square, Westgate Centre, western end of High
Street, Cornmarket) is commercial. Lots of clothing stores, some coffee shops,
and banks on the corners. We took a
tour with some of the students, and while on Cornmarket, the guide advised that
“if you are ever homesick, look around and you’ll feel like your home.” In our
view as we looked around were McDs, KFC, Burger King (now a Canadian company), the
Gap, and Starbucks. No photo needed.
A little farther
down High Street, about a half mile from us begins a row of colleges: Lincoln,
Oriel, Queens, University (the first college, thus called University, and Bill
Clinton’s college), and Magdalen (pronounced maudlin), which is one of the
premier schools in all sorts of ways at Oxford. We have learned that one of the
great rituals of the year at Oxford is when the boys and men Magdalen choir
sings from the rooftop of the college tower at 6 am and the street is filled
with festivities—and the nearby bridge filled with drunk undergrads trying to
jump into the river Cherwell. We hear the police valiantly try to stop them,
since the 15-foot fall ends in about 2 feet of water.
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| Magdalen College |
We went to the
Magdalen Chapel Sunday night to hear the choir in evensong. It was an
impressive experience: A dozen young boys and college students on each side of
the aisle across from each other in this dark, Gothic chapel lit by candles and
filled with organ music. Wine was served afterward, but—uncharacteristically—we
passed it up and headed home.
The north/south
axis for Oxford is St Aldate’s, where Christ Church is located and the
aforementioned Cornmarket St. Cornmarket is a pedestrian street for a block—all
the better to shop in—then turns into St Giles. The Carfax Tower is at the
crossroads of High and Cornmarket/St Aldate’s. Whew, not sure anyone is going
to follow that paragraph but that intersection is the central crossroad and a key
landmark.
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| Carfax Tower, center of Oxford |
The other
important crossroad, and the more significant one for academics, is in the
northwest quadrant of the city centre, about ¾ mile from our flat. Of course,
while there are two roads crossing, there are 4 named streets, each changing
names at the intersection. Where Broad/Holywell intersects with Park/Cattes,
the Bodelian Library sits. One of the great libraries of the world, the
Bodelian is a complex of building with lots of floors underground, plus a huge
warehouse twenty miles south, where they can retrieve a book you order in the
morning by that afternoon. Nearby are Blackwell’s bookstore (another academic
shrine); the Radcliff Camera, the principal reading rooms of the Bodelian and
possibly the most photographed building in Oxford; the Sheldonian Theatre; and
another four college libraries within a stone’s throw of the Bodelian. So many
books—the library recives about 1000 items every week--so little time. We received our Bodelian library cards in a
bit of a ritual, where a member of the Admissions Office (to the Bodelian) in
her academic robes lectured on the history and centrality of the library, then
awarded us our cards after proper identification. We also had to sign a pledge
we would “kindle” no fire in the library. Kindle is not the reading device, but
rather a dangerous habit some scholars had of trying to stay warm before
central heating. Thus the pledge.
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| Radcliffe Camera is the domed building, more Bodelian library behind it |
The people we
have met have been unfailingly friendly when asked a question or for help. Couple quick examples: The woman in the
grocery was amazed that I couldn’t buy a bottle of liquor on a Sunday in the
US, chalking it up to another instance of a very strange country but with good
people. Kate had to try make sense of my directions when I wrote St George
rather George St, and a handful of people went out of their way to solve the
problem (my map had gotten her to George St, where she was headed) as the
strangers explained St George was a long ways away.
We are feeling comfortable. Plan to get behind the wheel this week and drive on the wrong side of the road (which side is that?). Stay tuned.
picture of the Bodelian is from http://prato12.blog.sbc.edu/files/2011/07/bodleian-library-large.jpg
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