getting lost

I knew that to really get a handle on Oxford, I would need to go out and get lost on my bike. My goal was to start at our home and eventually reach the Radcliffe Camera (rad cam) as that is where a good deal of my books will be. It also stands smack in the middle of most everything and is right next to the Bodleian (the bod), which is where at least one copy of all the books published in the UK and Ireland are kept. Not to mention first editions of Shakespeare and the like (!!!).

The weather was perfect...crisp from the cold, clean from last night's rain, and bright from patches of warm sunshine.

I ended up on a little street edged with tall stone buildings and which terminated right under the bridge of sighs. Rad Cam is right around the corner from there.

These three pictures are taken from the same spot right next to the Bodleian (and therefore Rad Cam).

I then headed down towards the Eagle and Child with the goal of reaching Wycliffe hall by 10:30 for morning tea (my second cup of the day). I ended up missing the turn though and went on a jaunt through some beautiful little neighborhoods, one of which was made up of a solid wall of flats* painted in dozens of differing pastel colors. Each with a door, a mail slot, and a tiny little car next to the pavement.** I ended up coming out right in front of Wycliffe. I have no idea how that happened or how to do it again. All I can say is that it's a wonderful thing that the spires of Oxford are so high so I could at least steer towards city center.

So the adventure was a true success.

...

*apartments/condominiums

**sidewalk