Today was the first full day of our touring, apart from the
snippets we caught between family obligations in Suffolk, and what a day it has
been. We were up before the other three
campers were, but not before the farm horse, who seemed delighted with my
caresses whilst Chris was emptying some of the grey waste.
We set off anti-clockwise around the M25, the mist low and
the day dim, the latter condition later explained by the fact this part of the
world was experiencing a total eclipse of the sun. We stopped at the
Beaconsfield Service Centre soon after turning west off the Ring Road, were
delighted with the extent of the fast food restaurants, the small supermarket
and the book shop but not the price of the diesel, ten cents more expensive
that found later up the road. Chris was also delighted to happen upon the last
few overs of the quarter final of the International Cricket, Australia and
Pakistan, to see the former come through on top.
We pressed on to Oxford, heeding the advice of our guide
books, that the city was most unwelcoming of all vehicular traffic. We found the
Park & Ride on the south end of the city’s Ring Road, parked and caught the
shuttle bus into the centre, a distance we could have walked had we known
better and felt fit.
There we alighted and spent several hours walking around and
about this marvellous university city, starting with Christ Church and the
meadow of the same name, down to the convergence of the Isis (the river known
as the Thames elsewhere) and the River Chervil.
Arriving in the city we could not help but notice the large
car manufacturing factories along the Ring Road, something that is often forgotten
when one thinks of this university city. Oxford, with a population of about
140,000, owes much of its economy to the factories of Cowley to the south of
the academic centre. And although the industry has suffered its ups and downs
over the past few years, it is still vitally important to the area.
Oxford started late and did not really gain an identity
until the cathedral was constructed in Norman times. The origins of the
university are obscure however it is understood that the reputation of the
Scholar King, Henry I helped attract students in the early twelfth century,
their numbers increasing with the expulsion of English students from Paris in
1617. The first colleges, and there are thirty nine of them, were founded
mostly by rich bishops and most still share common architectural features, the
rooms, both communal and private all arranged around quadrangles. Although we
were not granted access to any of the colleges, it was evident just from the
street view that this was indeed a beautiful spot and a must-see for those who
can.
We found our little camp for the night much easier than the
previous night, but then we are learning how to use the Caravan Club directory
and more importantly, our great-niece’s navigational device which we have
nicknamed Mavis (a Navman with a female voice – Nav – Mav – Mavis). This camp is
little more than a field beside the road, with a water tap and a wooden box
where we can leave our rubbish. Our 6 GBP will probably have to be left in the
letter box given the absence of the farmhouse dweller. Tonight we have no mains
power so Chris is cautioning my electricity use; time to sign off.
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