Exploring Oxford Colleges

Ell  met us at Heathrow and we joined the evening rush hour traffic to Oxford. We were looking forward to seeing our daughter and son in law and renewing our acquaintance with some of the UK. Because they were living in Oxford in a very small flat….in fact it was much smaller than I imagined, we found a reasonably priced B&B just a 5 minute walk away from their digs in Summertown, a suburb of Oxford.

Oxford tends to be a very expensive part of the UK to stay so we were delighted to find “The School House” run by Sadie. We would recommend it. Sadie has only two rooms, but they are very comfortable, with a private bathroom across the landing and a simple but adequate breakfast. A traveler herself, we had many interesting conversations over breakfast. With the shops and bus stops just at the end of the road it was a great location.

Oxford Shopping

We were keen to explore Oxford, and Ell loves to show family and friends around the colleges, where he had done a post graduate year studying. We were rather lucky as Marita worked in one of the university departments and as a member of staff had 4 free passes for guests, while Ell had 2 as a past student. But the entry fees are not too much, and each College has their own history and interesting architectural features.

The names of the colleges conjure up pictures of Harry Potter and his wizards. Many a mystery movie has been filmed in these hallowed halls.

Some of the Oxford Colleges We Visited

View Over Oxford College Spires

Radcliffe Square

Each College offers different degrees including many post graduate courses for students from all over the world. There are 38 Colleges and the first were established as far back as the 13th century .Several have museums, libraries, chapels, or bookshops attached.

Some of the Colleges we visited included

• Ashmolein Museum - established in 1683 and one of several university museums in Oxford it  is the oldest museum in the UK
• Trinity College, Bodleian Library – Dating from 1602 this historic library is considered the best in Britain

Bodleian Library - Oxford

All Souls College - Oxford University

•  Brasnose College
•  Queens College, Lincoln College
•  Exeter College
•  Hertford College.....bridge of sighs
•  All Souls College, Merton College
• University College

Sheldonian Theatre

New College

• Sheldonian Theatre
•  Radcliffe College
• Balliol College
• Wadham
•  St Johns ...........the list goes on.They are all close together and within walking distance…..but it took the best part of a day to go through them all and wander the grounds. Typical stone architecture centuries old make Oxford an inspiring place to explore.

Oxford Traditions

We were in Oxford during a week when many of the students were sitting their finals exams. As tradition demands, they spend the week dressed in their university black gowns with pink carnation button holes.The men also wore the high colored white shirts with bow tie. It was quite fascinating to see bunches of young people wandering the town dressed in this old world garb….but they had recently asked the students if they wished to continue this tradition…..and they did.

Croquet at Magdalen College

The Turf - Famous University Pub

As we wandered around we watched young men playing croquet on the front lawn of their College, climbed towers for expansive views beyond the town to the outlying fields, admired immaculate gardens, meandered across courtyards through archways and climbed rickety stairs to bell towers and upper corridors, listened to the beautifully bell like voices of a choir practicing behind a closed door and admired the rowing teams practicing on the river.

There is definitely a special atmosphere in this very English, revered university town.

We also visited the market and searched out the bus and train stations for future reference.

Punting on the Cherwill River - Oxford University