It was another three-bus kind of day, folks. I got up at 6:45 to catch the 7:25 bus into Canterbury; my bus to London left at 8:10 and got into London around 10:30. Because my bus to Oxford was not National Express, I got to run around the surrounding streets of London for a bit until I found the correct bus stop, but I did! And bus #3 left at 11, getting into Oxford just before 1.
I move on to Trinity College, and what did I find? More bikes. Who was surprised? Not me. Well, maybe a little. But just because of the sheer number of the things!
I began my Oxford tour with Christ Church College since that's where they filmed the most scenes from Harry Potter (obviously). Unfortunately, both the Great Hall and the cathedral were in use so I couldn't see them, but that meant my ticket was significantly less expensive! Just look at these grounds:
Incredible. When I told the people at the entrance that I was studying in Canterbury, they told me I should exit through the Canterbury Gate, which is where some of the pilgrims used to begin their pilgrimage! How excellent? Most excellent.
I also saw more bikes in this city than I've ever seen probably in my entire twenty years of life. THEY WERE EVERYWHERE. So obviously I used the opportunity to take artsy pictures. Seriously, it had a basket and everything. That sucker just wanted to be photographed, and I happily obliged.
From there I moved through the University Church of Saint Mary the Virgin (that's a mouthful) to the Bodleian Library, where they filmed other various scenes from different Harry Potter movies. Close by, I found an adorable covered market. By this point, though, my backpack was getting heavy and if I'm being honest, I seriously needed a restroom, so I took a pit stop in a caffe nero to grab some quick wifi and plan my next move. Thanks to the wifi, I saw Robin's comment on my last post and, lo and behold, Jesus College was right behind me! Unfortunately it was closed to visitors, but I took a picture through the gates for you, Robin!
From there, more bikes. Which maybe belonged to a lot of people who can't read.
YOU ARE ALL SO HEALTHY! Finally, I ran into my best friend in the middle of the city! It was great to see her again.
I forgot that everything closes so early, so I ate dinner at a cute little place called Art Cafe. I stayed there until about 6:45, then went back to Caffé Nero for some wifi until it closed at 7:30. My train didn't leave until 9:09, so I waited in the station for a while until it left.
Good news: I caught my first train, no problem. Bad news: the station where I was supposed to switch trains had completely lost power earlier that day. Good news: power was back on! Bad news: because of the power failure from earlier, my first train ran really late- I was supposed to catch my second train at 9:37, and we got into the second station at 9:40. Good news: the second train was late too! Bad news: I was told there would be taxis and wifi at the Stratford-Upon-Avon station, and there were neither. Good news: after walking in the general direction of the hostel but having no way to look up a map and knowing it was a 52 minute walk from the train station, I stopped in a restaurant and the very kind manager called me a cab. Bad news: apparently I accidentally booked the hostel for the wrong night..... GOOD NEWS: it wasn't a problem because they had a lot of free beds! What a roller coaster of emotions. Who needs Six Flags when you live my life, am I right?
Another slightly bad news is that I didn't get the wifi password for the hostel when I got my key, and because I realized the mistake around 11:45, I decided I would just post this tomorrow when I ask for the password. Sorry mom- I know you're probably nervous, but I am definitely fine, and will be asleep very, very soon.
Tomorrow, Shakespeare!
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