Oxford weekend

It was with a little trepidation that I attended my old college law society dinner after at least a 25 year hiatus. I made sure that I had at least one friend from  my vintage attending so I would have someone to talk to. But as it turned out he arrived late, left early and though we were sat together we didn't chat much. As of course there were lots of others who also had turned up and were looking for conversation. And while others may not fancy the idea of chatting to elderly lawyers, it suits me.

Anyway, was nice to get dressed up, the food was very good, the wine flowed freely and so did the conversation. All very jolly. And then came the speeches. All I can say of the guest speaker is, if those were his best anecdotes from a career in academia, I'm glad I picked pensions law. Yes that bad. Actually the rest of the room laughed politely on cue, but our little corner of cynical old codgers just swapped grimaces. Maybe we have just heard too many people who are good at this game.

Then afterwards, back for more drinks, and a chance to mingle with some of the undergraduates. Who were of course totally charming young people. Don't worry the future is in safe hands, safer I suspect than in ours.
A kind offer to attend their late night bop was sensibly turned down by yours truly. Obviously I would have been rather a hindrance, would have felt an idiot and of course my previous week's unexpected night of excess was still on  my mind. So I toddled off back to my friends on the Cowley Road. Luckily I had been given a spare key.

It was just such a nice weekend I had to have a little wander around the City. In the sunshine, its rather hard to imagine a more lovely place. It all went so fast when I was an undergraduate. There were more pressing concerns than just aimless wandering and contemplating the surroundings - like work and socialising. But at my age its rather easier to take it all in. Anyway, as I say lovely, and frankly, do any modern university buildings look anything near as fine as these? Go on, I dare you to say yes. Lets start with the High Street and Magdalen Bridge.

Not convinced? Well what about the Radcliffe Camera? Difficult to come across a more striking form, in nicer surroundings.

Ok then, what about the old Bodleian library, with Wren's Sheldonian theatre attached, and the Bridge of Sighs across the road?

Not enough? There is more.

You see not bad, eh? And such a lovely spring day. Buskers were out in t-shirts, and being Oxford its not just an old tramp with a guitar...

And even warm enough to go out punting. Bliss.

And after a walk around town, a little trip into the lovely refurbished Ashmolean museum. An excellent varied collection, really the British Museum on a smaller scale.

But in addition to the collection it has been a very successful marriage between the old listed building and striking views between levels inside with the extensive renovation works.

And of course there is more to the area than just the city. With my friends and their kids we went out to the White Horse at Uffington, a neolithic horse carved into the chalk hillside. But frankly not something best observed close up. Uffington could do with a 40 storey block of flats in it, just to act as a viewing platform. But might not go down too well with the National Trust. On the other hand, there is the iron age hillfort on top which is great to appreciate up close, just for the scale of the endeavour.

We heard the chirrupping of birds, so tried to identify them afterwards. If you want to know, the place is a nesting ground for Meadow Pipits, which we identified by means of 3 books, a cd on birdsong and a dvd on bird identification. Felt like Poirot must at the end of a ticklish muder investigation.

Although the real joy was watching their two rather adorable kids play in the open space. Cheerful, non-bickering little kids who just couldn't be sweeter.

 And practice their "flying"

Time for lunch at the Fox and Hounds, and a quick nose around Uffington village - quaint church and a tiny (closed) school museum.

Which left one further visit for the day, Great Coxwell Barn. "Barn" doesn't do it justice, as in many ways a wooden cathedral is a better description, built around 1300, a terrific example of carpentry skills in the Middle Ages, in a delightful setting. Or for the kids a great place to play hide & seek. Well, the finer points of medieaval joinery are perhaps for a later day.