The Last Tours of Oxford

Friday… last day for some Bread Loaf students and the perfect day to walk around. Nichole and I started at Christ Church Meadows, where we stared (for the last time this year) at her favorite gargoyles until the bell of the church chimed ten times. We cut leisurely through the park, chit-chatting about the highlights of the summer and what each one of us learned.

Nichole was a person I had instant chemistry with and who, upon knowing her better, stirred within me feelings of adventure, risk-taking, passion, strength and (last but not least) an appreciation of the transitory moments in life (that if properly noted) can make for a hardy chuckle. She chuckled through the six weeks… at my accent, her imitation of my accent, things too small to remember now but that seemed immensely beautiful when she pointed them out. I wanted her to know how I felt before she went away, how much respect and value I have for our friendship. She reminds me of a mischievous cat that enjoys the brief patches of sunshine on a cloudy day and rubs against a stranger’s shin sneaking past his/her surprise directly into their heart. Just like cats, Nichole has that way of jumping off of high places and always landing on her feet.

We met Mike Mayo, a colleague, at the entrance of Lincoln College and continued on our personal tour of Oxford. Nichole took us to New College where we climbed the “mound” and walked through the chapel, noting the numerous statues and carvings on the cold cement floor. Then we visited St. Edmund’s Hall (one of the oldest and smallest colleges) that not only boasts a good rugby team but also a crypt within its college grounds. The tour ended at lunch time, when we met the rest of the Bread Loaf stragglers for one of the last meals. In the afternoon I walked to University Parks where lay in the grass, reading and just thinking) for a couple of hours. My reverie ended with a short game of Frisbee with Matt, Amelie, Marlene and Sophie after which I returned to my room and got ready for dinner.

Dinner was followed by another tour around town, this time lead by Augustan (the Monk) and focusing on the local ghost stories of the city. About twenty of us congregated on the entrance of Lincoln College and followed the Monk for the next hour and a half through the dark streets of Oxford, listening to the tales of the ghosts that haunt each cemetery, street corner and (yes!) college. Our own campus is haunted by a troop of parliamentary soldiers that were imprisoned in the wine cellar during the civil war, all of which suffocated because they jammed so many of them in such a small place. Augustan (in conjunction with Mike White, our computer specialist) wrote a small book about ghosts last summer, which will be available to the public next year! The tour made for a great ending to a very interesting summer!