Oxford you say!

 Day 2: After a fitful nights sleep we wake up to a 10 am on the clock! Oops! We didn’t travel across the ocean to sleep in? Or did we? After all it’s vacation time! Today we take ourselves to Paddington station  and then to Kings Cross to make our way to Oxford! I mention Paddington because today was also the day I found Paddington was a really good movie. In a couple of days as we laid low in Edinburgh Tootsie and I would watch a double feature of Paddington 1 and 2. 

More on that later. For now onwards to the majestic Kings Cross station and Oxford! Kings Cross Station looks majestic and apparently is a splitting image of Calcutta's Howrah Station per M. Its also a really old station built in 1852. The pictures here are from the platforms where the long distance trains take off. More on Kings Cross in the next post as we explore Harry Potter locations. Another claim to fame for Kings Cross.

Travel tip: If you are doing this book ahead. Usually for the long distance trains there are great deals online if you book ahead. We got a reasonable deal when we got to the station (Don’t use the Kiosks, the agents are much better equipped to find you the best deal). The other problem with not booking ahead is you don't get assigned seats and are then going to be going from coach to coach to find seating. But Oxford is not a long ride about 1 hr, so no harm done! And off we go!

It was with a lot of excitement we got to Oxford. M and I the geeks that we are were just excited about going to a stellar university! Tootsie was excited to see Harry Potter locations! Cheeky was just along for the ride! Tip for Oxford: Book yourself on a tour depending on what you want to see. I was so cocky about my ability to navigate on my own which we did reasonably well, however we missed some of the key stops - Christ Church was one I really wanted to go into, but we couldn’t as they were sold out! M was beginning to feel the worse for wear already and we should have been able to tell by his general lack of energy which is not usual! But my excitement at being at such a monumental place clouded everything! Trinity college was closed to public, but we took a peek at Ramanujam’s alma mater and that gave us goose bumps!

Here are some other notable sightings at Oxford

The Bodelian library home of a lot of Harry Potter scenes

The Radcliffe Camera

University Church of St Mary the Virgin (across from the Radcliffe camera)

Museum Of science ( I think! After a few days all buildings blend  into one. This one was near Radcliffe camera)

Bridge of Sighs (Another HP location)

Christ Church buildings and gardens (See the building in the back with the spikes? That’s the Hogwarts great dining hall). Also did you know Albert Einstein taught at Christ Church in 1930's and was the first Jewish- German academic at Oxford?

Another Oxford Alumni is JRR Tolkein of Lord of the Rings fame (Exeter college which we didn't visit). Oxford does have a lot of stores selling the paraphilia with pride - Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. And my kids were like a moth drawn to the stores. Here was Cheeky's attempt at vanishing!

Oxford also has its very own castle most of which is in its ruins! This was towards the end of the day and we were ready to get a snack after all teh walking. You will see the mound at the far end of the second picture. The Castle is behind it and played a vital role in the Anglo-Saxon war apparently.

Overall Oxford was quaint and had so much history breathing through it. It was a lot to take in! Although we were exposed to some rude behavior that I have often heard of. M has recently lost a lot of weight and was having a hard time keeping his pants on (quite literally) so wanted to duck into a store and buy a belt! We stepped into a store and M picked up a belt and took it up to the counter. He wanted another belt hole added to the belt and asked the guy if he would do it! The response was "Who are you asking? Are you asking me? Does it look like I add holes to the belt! It should be obvious!". We were shocked at his behavior, handed him the belt and left the store! Talk about customer service! But all's well that ends well. We found a little mall, M got his belt and Tootsie and I found her a really cute Biker faux leather jacket at Zara for a steal! I was so jealous that later in Edinburgh I went to look for and buy the very same jacket (in a different color.. mom of a teenager now!) at Marks and Spencer for almost twice the price! 

Here are some more pictures from Oxford! As always I kept stopping to click pictures much to the irritation of my kids! But I have now captured the memories in my mind and in my photo library for me to go back look and relive!

At the end of the day, we proved that you can take the South Indian out of India by you can never take the South Indian out of us! We went to Dosa an Indian restaurant that made great promises but fell way short! 

As we returned home that night we were happy and a little exhausted! But pleased for the day we had had with no arguments, happy kids and general sunny dispositions! Little did we know trouble was brewing in the form of a pesky little virus called COVID!

We got off at Paddington and stumbled upon this surprise canal side! It’s beautiful with some floating bars and restaurants on the canal! 

As we walked on towards our Hotel we passed through another surprise location! St Mary’s Hospital! Was Penicillin really discovered here?

With that Oxford is a wrap, we fully intend to come back and fill in the gaps that are a thorough look at all the colleges inside and out, and a game of Punting! That night M and I (as is tradition) snuck out to the bar to catch some adult time while the kids caught up with electronics in the room! As I brought out my glasses sheepishly from my purse to read the menu at the bar, M clicked a pic! We may be growing old and having to take our glasses to the bar! But we are still not past goofing off and having some fun! I think I look good despite the glasses (the lighting in the bar may have had a big role to play!), so will leave you with that image!