My favourite things in Oxford
 

When I write a trip report, I try to include answers to questions that I had before I went. Fodorites who have already worked out their own, better answers can:
a) improve mine
b) read more advanced stuff
c) read mine anyway

Let me first write about transport and lodging. As others have said here, the trip between Heathrow and Oxford is easy. After you have collected your luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 you keep on following the signs for 'central bus station' ... maybe a 10 minute walk. You can buy tickets right there: £30 pp return. If you buy tickets for more than one person, and you want it printed seperetely, you have to tell the strict lady before the time.
I made the mistake of asking for a BUS. It is not a bus, it is called a COACH. A bus, I have learned from the nice driver, travels within cities, a coach has better seats and bigger windows and travel between cities. So there you have it.
More to follow, at least I have made a start.

Hi Kovsie,

We also found the trip to Oxford direct from Heathrow to be easy. It was easy to find the central bus station, to find the right bus (coach). The ride itself was quite pleasant.

Looking forward to the rest of your trip report.

FYI, If coming from T5, you don't need to go to the Central Bus Station. It's much easier and quicker to go straight out the door at arrivals, past the fountains and find the Oxford stop ( #11) next to the lifts. Takes about 2 minutes at the most. There is a coach about every 20 minutes.

yes eurepeannovice, we also enjoyed the ride. There were spring flowers everywhere, and England is green, green and green. We arrived at Oxford bus terminal and easily found a taxi to our guest house. Whole trip from airport to guesthouse took less than 2 hours.

Transport in Oxford: we are in a guest house in Banbury Road +- 10-15 minutes from city centre. There is a bus stop 3 minutes from the guest house. Buses come regularly, every 5 minutes or less during peak times. One thing to note: a single ticket costs £2. You can buy a 7 day travel pass for £14. There are at least two bus companies in Oxford, and they do not accept the travel pass from the competition. I bought a pass from Stage Coach and are happy with them. Stage Coach buses are often green, sometimes golden. The competition's buses are mostly red. If you get to the bus stop and the red bus arrives, just ignore, the other bus will arrive in a minute or two.

Continued (sorry, did not mean to submit the above just yet):
If you stay in or near city centre, you do not need a travel pass, you can easily walk everywhere.

Where to stay: I should have heeded Flanner's advice to stay in central Oxford. It would just be so much nicer to be able to drop in at your hotel in the middle of the day without spending at least 30 minutes to get back to the guest house (waiting for bus, 20 minutes on bus, walking to guest house ... and do the reverse again later).

Oxford general: Fodorites who said that Oxford is not a touristy place were wonderfully right. Yes, there are tour groups and there are people wandering / wondering around with guide books. But Oxford is as unspoilt as such a great destination can be. No little stands selling cheap nick-nacks, only a few places selling T-shirts and coffee mugs (KEEP CALM AND STUDY). It may be different in summer, but at the moment I never feel crowded, and there are no queues.

Oxford is a truely beautiful city. What I find so pleasing is that builders from the 12th century and builders from the 19th century have used the same lime stone, and used the general same style. Of course there are interesting differences, but you get the feeling of restful uniformity when you walk the streets.

This will be old hat for seasoned travellers and especially those of you from Europe, but let me say just once how I struggle to get my head around the weight of history here. Just consider for a moment that a university in South Africa recently celebrated its 100th year with great fan fare. Also consider that nothing in Dubai is older than 50 years. Then show me the 'New Building' in Magdalen College that is from 1733, while its other buildings were started in 1494. I find this incredible. Before I came, I told my regular Pakistani taxi driver in Dubai that there are buildings that already existed in the year 1500. He lifted an eyebrow and asked: "The building has not expired?" I just laughed.

kovsie, glad you enjoyed the trip, on for the ride to read what you did.

Yes, I agree. Oxford is a place of great beauty and history. I'm planning to return for a few days this summer. I am glad you found it as inviting as I do.

We also thoroughly enjoyed Oxford. I agree with you about the ages of some of the structures--how amazing is that?

DAY 1 - SATURDAY
We go for a walk along the Thames /Isis. The weather is glorious, not too hot not too cold not windy no rain ... just mild blessed sunshine. The Brits are out in full force, jogging and cycling and rowing and walking dogs and children. We join this happy lot on the following route suggested by Historytraveller: go down St Aldates, past Christ Church (resist the temptation to enter here), cross the river at Folly Bridge (resist the temptation to sit down at Head of the River Pub), immediately after the bridge turn left and enter the tow path. Now just keep on walking.
What a joy. The colourful rowers and the sun on the river, the green fields, the willows, daffodils, wooden fences ... It is an easy, level walk. After about an hour we reach a pub ... cannot remember the name, but it is right on the river. Wooden benches, a tree for shade. People are reading weekend papers, children are playing, a dog is being served a bowl of water. We do not resist the temptation (!) to enter and sit a while, have coffee and share carrot cake. Nice! After this pub it is a mere 5 minute restful walk to the Iffley Lock, where you cross the river. Look at the pretty little bridge just before the Lock. After the Lock you turn right and just kind of follow the path up the hill, until you reach the church of St Mary the Virgin. It is a small and truely beautiful church from the 12th century. Have a look at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Mary_the_Virgin,_Iffley

My usual fascination with things very old takes over again. The sunken gravestones, daffodils everywhere, the lovely church smelling of white candles, birdsong in the trees.

My DD is not as impressed with age and gravestones as I am, so rather too soon we make our way further up the hill. We ask for directions, and soon come to 'the oval' where we wait 5 minutes for a bus back to Oxford City Centre. To find the bus stop was easy: you just keep on walking with your back to the church, then when you reach a street you go to the right ... it was Saturday and there were enough people in the street to point us in the right direction (In Italy they always say: go straight until the end!).

The whole outing took approximately 3 hours, but we went slowly. I believe it can be done in an hour or 90 minutes without hurrying much. Highly recommended!

The Pub used to be called the Isis and is now called the Isis Farmhouse.

Thanks Bilbo! The place seems popular, and we heard no other languages ... only us and various versions of British English.


DAY 1 (continued):
For lunch we behave like the tourists we are: we go the the Eagle and Child. When I had read about this pub (established in 16something :) I assumed that it would be a hidden away little place (based on nothing but my own fanciful thinking). It is not hidden, you see it from the bus when you come down Banbury Road, it is right opposite the monument to the martyrs. One of my dreams for coming to Oxford is to follow in some or the footsteps of CS Lewis and Tolkien, and this seems like a good place to start. It is a narrow and darkish building, and we find a table towards the back. We are not hungry, so DD and I share a plate of nachos with several really nice dips. It is more than enough for a light meal and cheap at £7. I also have a chilled glass of white housewine. People around us have fish and chips and declare it to be very good. Yes, it is a place where tourists go. I also think that it still gives good pub food and value for money, but I was there only once.

Above the fireplace is a framed letter signed by the Inklings. I linger for a while; how nice it is that this lighthearted letter survived! How nice to see the penmanship and the signatures. I am planning to visit a few other pubs also frequented by Lewis and Tolkien and friends, but this one will stay in my memory.

Wonderful report, kovsie. Are you back home now?

Enjoying your report Kovsie.

So understand the history aspect. I spent 1988 in the UK, which was Australia's bicentenary year. On the day my country turned 200, English friends arranged lunch at a friends house. The house was 400 years old, and yes, I did hit my head on most door frames.

Oh - I do miss Oxford in the spring/summer. Great that you had nice weather for your walk. Been to the Isis many times and your description of the river/activity when the sun is shining is right on . . .

Enjoying this very much !

It's been 4 years since I've visited a particular aunt and uncle in England during the Spring, but whenever we're together, we do trips like this one in various parts of England and have done many in the past.
Glad you enjoyed it and happy to be reliving it again with you here.

I am glad you were able to do the walk in such fine weather and enjoyed St. Mary's. It is a gem isn't it?I've always done the walk round trip, and it usually takes me about 40/45 minutes each way. Nice to know about the bus back to Oxford Centre.

Really nice trip report. I take it you didn't do the climb to the top at St Mary's? It has a nice view of Radcliff Camera and the wonderful spires of Oxford.

Hi Kosvie,

“For lunch we behave like the tourists we are: we go the Eagle and Child.” Thanks for the description of the pub and the “lighthearted letter” signed by the Inklings.

Hey, we are all tourists on these jaunts, right? I am one who freely admits it. :)

Really enjoying your report. So glad the weather cooperated for you…

Hi europeannovice! churches called St Mary's abound in Oxford. This is not the one with the tower in the city centre, it is an older and smaller church near the Isis. DD did climb the tower you are referring to, and reported that she could see 'lots of pointy buildings'.
Sartoric: your comment made me laugh. Yes, these people have a totally different time frame.
Stokebaily: yes, I am back in Dubai and patiently plowing my way through all the e-mails waiting for my attention.
Mathieu: I do think it is high time that you treat yourself with a visit to your UK relations again!
Historytraveler: you took 45 minutes? Wow, this just shows you much we have dawdled!
Hi again Latedaytraveler: I always smile a bit when tourists look down on tourists!

DAY 1 (continued some more):
The combination of jet lag and sun and a long walk and the white wine can have only one result: I need a siesta!

Much later I venture into the streets again: this time to wander around, just to look and absorb the beautiful buildings of central Oxford. I go up Broad Street and down Turl Street, find Brasenose Lane and High Street and Cornmarket Steet. The purpose here is just to discover what and where ... just to get the feel of the place. I spend a very enjoyable two hours getting lost repeatedly, then I have had enough.

DD and I go for dinner at Joe's in Banbury Road near the guest house. We go here at the recommendation of people who work in Tesco's, and we are not disappointed. Joe's is not for people who want to dine, it is for eating. It is noisy, friendly, fairly affordable. The food is nothing out of the ordinary, but it is nice, the service is good. I hear no foreign accents except ours. Burger or fish costs between £9 and £12.

It's nice to dawdle. I'm working on it.:). Kovsie, you're right, churches called St. Mary's are especially numerous in this area. The one in Oxford centre is known as the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin. I believe its tower is late 13th or early 14th century. St. Mary's Iffley is 12th century and represents the period known as High Romanesque but in England is commonly referred to as Late Norman.


As you discovered, Oxford has a number of small streets making it a fun place to explore. I'm afraid most tourists miss out on this.

not your typical trip report and a wonderful one - just to add that today's NYtimes Travel Section has a detailed article on Oxford:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/23/tr...ford.html?_r=1

Thanks for more info on the dates historytraveler! I loved the church in Iffley, but did not care much for the one in city centre. Maybe it was just the fact that at least three tour groups were being entertained by guides striving to be both informative and witty in the university's official church.

To climb the tower of the University Church of St Mary ... costs £4. Do not attempt if you have mobility issues or if you do not like narrow confined spaces. The view is said to be spectacular. For an excellent description, see PalenQ's link above.

DAY 2 - SUNDAY
The highlight of today is our visit to Magdalen College where CS Lewis worked for so many years. Just keep on walking up High Street until you find Magdalen. It opens from 2pm until 6pm or dusk (whichever comes first). Entrance £3. This college was started outside the old city wall in 1458 (!). My favourite part of the buildings is the Cloisters. I am struggling to describe the feeling of walking right into a previous age, the stone passages echoing slightly, the arches open to the green lawn in the centre, the simplicity striking. Behind a door a choir practice is going on - young voices singing a cappella. Oh my!

Leaving the Cloisters, you see the New Building (started in the 18th century). This is where CS Lewis had his rooms.

Outside the new building is the most beautiful old tree, surrounded by a carpet of small blue flowers (not bluebells as I hoped, but still pretty). This tree was planted in 1666, and moved to Magdalen in 1801. DD sighs theatrically, throws up her arms and enquires: "Who the heck transplants a 200 year old tree??" Her math is out, but the question remains valid. The tree must have liked its new location, because it is still growing dignified and strong. And I think: when Lewis walked these grounds, he would have seen the same gnarled branches. Just maybe this is the picture that Tolkien had in mind when he created the Ents.

From the New Building we enter Addison's Walk, and follow it all the way around. Walking where two of my literary heroes walked and argued is a good experience. No purple and white flowers (sorry about that dear Fodorites), just daffodils and green grass and white blossoms. There is one moment when I sit on a stump, a profusion of white blossoms reflected in the river, the sun shining on the water ... very Narnia.

A perfect way to spend a Sunday in Oxford. Loved your Narnia moment on a stump. Sounds like something I'd do.

Too early for blue bells or indeed the "purple and white"
Still Addisons is a sure cure for a hangover. :-)

Hi Bilbo! I thought of you when I left Magdalen having seen neither fawns nor fauns! The deer were not in the meadow that you see from Addisons, and I did not have time (or energy) to walk the other way to where they probably were.

'Addisons a sure cure for a hangover': I presume you speak from personal experience;)

'Too early for blue bells and the purple and white': yes, I was sorry about that. I wondered if the terrible rain and flooding that you had, had anything to do with it. From my other thread I rather thought I would see more flowers. http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-in-oxford.cfm

Hi Kovsie, still enjoying your report very much. However I'm sorry and puzzled that you didn't see too many flowers. Perhaps they were just not in the area you were in ?
Throughout March and even just today (Mar 25th) friends and fam in England have been posting beautiful pics of the Spring flowers on FB. Everything from garden varieties to larger shrubs and parklands. Again, sorry that you didn't see more as it's a real treat and sight to behold. However, it is another reason to return to England again.

If work wasn't keeping me so busy I'd be making plans for another visit as you so rightly suggest. The aunt I spoke of has a special birthday later this year so maybe a quick celebratory visit in the Fall might be in order.

Hi Kosvie,

Just love your descriptions and your ability to linger and savor your literary surroundings so carefully. If I recall, CS Lewis ended his career teaching at Cambridge. The Oxford crowd was resentful of his many commercial successes. Oh, well.

Look forward to reading more…

Mathieu! Quite possibly I did not look in the right places - I had the river walk, Magdalen College with Addison's, a few college gardens, and suburban gardens in Summertown near our guest house. I also took a long walk in the nature reserve near CS Lewis's house. Unfortunately I did not have time for the Botanical Gardens. In the college gardens I could see that the wisteria would be glorious in a few more weeks ... the twisted branches (some up to 2ft or even thicker), were beautiful against the weathered walls. I can just imagine what it will look like when it is in full bloom. I LOVED the daffodils and green green grass and white blossoms.
I always joke that I am pork deprived here in Dubai. But I have realised that I am a bit colour-deprived and nature-deprived as well. Don't get me wrong - Dubai is a unique and stimulating place to live and work in. But never in my life will I see a daffodil again without thinking of this week in Oxford!

LatedayT -- I have wondered about this itch in me to try follow in favourite authors' footsteps. In the end it is their books that speak for them. But yes, it is still a privilege to see Tolkein's college or Lewis's house, even to walk down Baker Street!

DAYS 3 - 7
During these days I have to focus on my reason for coming to Oxford at all: WORK. We meet in Harris-Manchester College, and for a few days I have free access to an Oxford college. Manchester is a 'new' college from the 19th century.

The walk there every morning gives me joy: the bus stops next to St Mary Magdalen Church with its graveyard with sunken grey stones and daffodils, bicycles chained to the fence. Then the walk down Broad Street, past the History of Science Museum and the Bodleian, catching a glimpse of the Bridge of Sighs, spend a moment at the windows of Blackwell's (the bookshop of your dreams), carry on in Holywell Street past the New College, turn right into Mansfield Road and there you are!

I grab in-between moments to see a little more of Oxford. During lunchtimes I wander down Holywell to the old city wall, or pop into Blackwell's for a while.

At the corner of Holywell and Mansfield is a (currently) white house with blue window frames. This is where CS Lewis spent his first night in Oxford. He describes how he asked a hansom to take him there, and he writes about the man from Cardiff who spent the evening before their admission exams with him in this house:
"He terrified me with his great learning. I had never seen him since."
I had read this sentence in one Lewis's books, but never thought I would be standing at the very same street corner!

One afternoon I go to the History of Science Museum (free admittance, open from 12 noon). Note the old old steps up to the imposing doors. Once inside, go down the really beautiful staircase and turn left, against a wall you find a smallish blackboard with Einstein's writing. He gave lectures in Oxford in 1931. After his first lecture the board was just cleaned, but after the 2nd one somebody had the presence of mind to save it. Today it is behind glass in this museum. Nice to see!

:) I am also direction deprived. Before somebody corrects me: from Holywell you turn LEFT into Mansfield, if you turn RIGHT you would enter New College.

I am wondering: does anybody know where Flanner is?

Not seen Flanner for a bit, maybe worry; but he was talkiing about going to Venice some time.

Little moments:
a bicycle with a severely bent wheel still fastened against a rail. Attached to the wheel with reams of Sellotape: "I am very very sorry, please phone me at ..."
A woman wants to get on a full bus with an old-fashioned pram. She has some words with the driver, he refuses her ticket. She is furious, and spits an immense globule of saliva right on to the bus window. I walk past the pram. Inside is a huge, old-fashioned doll. We drive away, with the woman walking in front of the bus, belligerently showing rude signs to the driver, the pram forgotten on the pavement.
A mother and her student long-haired son from the USA eat fish and chips in the Eagle and the Child. They have come all the way to salute the author of Lord of the Rings. The son says: I can't believe we are really here, after everything. He lifts his glass to his mother.
My DD meets me accidentally in Broad Street, smiling, full of the joys of discovery.
The tattooed lodge keeper at Magdalen College seriously asks a 5 year old girl how many deer she had seen. She says slowly in the real British accent: "One hundred". He nods and says: "You have missed one then...".
Three students are learning to punt near Magdalen Bridge. They do not quite get the hang of it, because they laugh too much. One says: "do you think we can just get out and push the thing?"

Adorable, kovsie. There'll always be an England.

Once a woman in a full US Greyhound bus (or coach, if you'd rather) told me her baby was sleeping in the seat next to her, obliging me to squeeze next to a sweet guy of softly overflowing, mostly horizontal, minimum 350 pounds. After I settled in, the driver came back and ordered her to clear the seat for one more passenger. The baby turned out to be her bundled up jacket, which she shoved under the seat.

I have time for two more pubs. Just next to Blackwell's is the White Horse. It seems so narrow and small that I initially wonder if it is part of Blackwell's. But no, it is definitely its own unique little place, and also known as a watering place for Inklings. (look, they lived most of their lives in Oxford, so they must have used all/most of the existing pubs). I enter this 500yr old pub one busy rainy afternoon, and I am lucky to find a round stool to perch on, with the smallest, slightly rickety, table. A nearby similar table accommodates 7 men with hardly space to put down 7 enormous beer mugs. The ceiling is low, the rain is beating against the window, 3 friendly people seem to manage this very busy pub effortlessly. The name board outside, with a frisky white horse, had me already decided that this may be the Prancing Pony. Being inside strengthened this perception. I can just imagine Strider smoking in the corner in the back, hat drawn low. I also remembered that Winston Churchill (another Strider??) liked to visit here. I have a nice chicken Korma (less than £10), and thoroughly enjoy my time here.

The next 'Inkling pub' is scarcely 50m away: The King's Arms. This pub, right opposite the famous library, claims to have the highest IQ per sq ft in the world. It has a warren of rooms, where oxford tutors sometimes took classes. I visit in the middle of the day during univ holidays, and it is filled to the brim with tourists (myself included). The queue of people trying to place a meal order at a counter is rather long, I do not have much time. In the end I use the time looking around, taking in the photo of the queen drawing a pint, then I leave. I pass it several times each day, and in the late afternoon and in the evenings, the outside tables are filled to capacity. It does have a nice vibe.

Of the three pubs I focused on in my (not extensive) research, I prefer the White Horse. It is also the smallest, so the most difficult to find a seat.

Charming report, thanks.

In re flanner: a few weeks ago some fanboy or girl made a rather unusual request, that everyone try to piece together exactly who flanner is. The editors promptly and quite rightly removed it, but perhaps the damage had been done. I'm sure most people would regard it as an invasion of privacy, and wonder if perhaps their time would be best spent elsewhere.

Kovsie,

You wrote;

“I have wondered about this itch in me to try follow in favourite authors' footsteps. In the end it is their books that speak for them. But yes, it is still a privilege to see Tolkein's college or Lewis's house, even to walk down Baker Street!”

Agreed! In recent years I have taken a Paris Walk of the Moufftard area of Paris (Hemingway, Joyce, Orwell) and a London Walk of Bloomsbury (T. S. Eliot, Virginia Wolf etc.) Loved seeing Faber & Faber publishing where Eliot labored for decades. I also walked down Baker Street once and visited the tacky Sherlock Holmes Museum (knew it was tacky before I went) but loved the area.

That was a lovely description of C. S. Lewis’s digs. Is the house open to the public at all? I know that the property was very dear to the author’s heart. Although I am not a Narnia fan, I enjoyed a biography I read of him last year: C.S. LEWIS, ECCENTRIC GENIUS, RELUCTANT PROPHET – A LIFE by Alister McGrath. Much of it deals with the politics/jealousies/betrayals prevalent in academic life.

Again, great report…

Fra: I don't think that would have sent flanner packing. The thread was pulled before that many saw it and flanner is a tougher nut than that :)

I do hope it is only that they are off enjoying a holiday in Italy.

That was a particularly lame thread and I'm glad it was pulled. It was started for no good reason and then one of our particularly difficult 'contributors'. Responded w/ some totally erroneous information.

BTW - unless something was posted that I didn't see, flanner's actual identity was not revealed in that thread.