Oxford Summer 2008

Update coming soon

2008-08-01T05:02:00.002-04:00

I know, I know, I have been bad this year about keeping up to date. Things have just been chaotic around here, but I should have some time either this afternoon or early tomorrow to post. But a quick update:

Last weekend, Friday through Monday was the trip to Scotland by train. Arrived late Friday, then on a bus tour of the Highlands on Saturday and Sunday, then in Edinburgh on Sunday night (with a ghost tour) and then the castle on Monday before an afternoon train home.

Tuesday was back to classes, but I went out to dinner to Jamie's Italian, a restaurant owned here in Oxford by the English chef Jamie Oliver (aka the Naked Chef...and no he is not naked).

Wednesday was off to Stratford for Shakespeare's Hamlet, starring Patrick Stewart (Captain Picard from Star Trek, Dr. Xavier from the Xmen movies) and David Tennant (the new Dr Who) and it was quite good.

Yesterday was the last day of classes and much grading. Today is finals in Civ 2 and more grading. Tonight is the final dinner with the students. Tomorrow lots of people are off and about for the day, but I am staying in Oxford to get some souvenir shopping done and some touristy stuff.

Sunday morning its off to the airport and home on Sunday evening.

Until a more complete post, with pictures I finally uploaded to my hard drive on my laptop, that should bring you up to date.

Matt

A Brief Update, Friday 7/25

2008-07-25T03:20:00.002-04:00

Only a little more than a week to go. A week from Sunday we will be flying home and its quite amazing how quickly time has passed this summer. It seems to have passed by so much faster than last summer and with too little time to really get everything done that people want to do. However, we are off to Scotland and the great city of Edinburgh today. We are taking the train this year instead of flying like we did last year, so it is going to be a 7 hour long ride. We should be into Edinburgh Waverly Station around 8:30 or so tonight.

Last year I was looking forward to leading my first trip. From the blog last year and from student's reactions, it was one of the best trips of the whole summer for the 12 people who went (including myself). We spent the entire weekend in and around Edinburgh, though the Locurcio's did take a day trip out of the city on Sunday. This year, we arrive late, then head out tomorrow morning for a driving tour of the Highlands, overnight at Loch Ness (or near there), then more driving on Sunday before arriving back in Edinburgh on Sunday night, then taking the train home on Monday afternoon, arriving in Oxford around 11 on Monday night. The only real time we have in Edinburgh is tonight (after everything closes) and Monday morning before the train travel. Frankly I don't think its enough time to see anything besides the Castle and perhaps the Royal Mile, but I am not in charge of this year's program.

However, I did take a my History of Science students (plus 2 other students) to London yesterday for a late afternoon field trip. We left by coach (the Oxford Tube) and drove to London around 1 pm, arriving eventually at the Science Museum around 3:15. It was quite warm yesterday so the Underground was a zoo and massively crowded with delays and breakdowns. However, we did spend the afternoon in the museum. I led a brief tour around to the highlights of the museum, then let the students go explore on their own, primarly because my History of Science students had to find some sort of exhibits to talk about for their final paper due next week. After that, we left the Museum around 5:45 and headed out for a group picture.

The Tube was packed with congestion, so at one point we just got out and walked to where we were going to have dinner. Holborn to Chancery Lane, through the Inns of Court (where we saw a graduation ceremony for new barristers taking place) to Fleet St, then down Fleet St to a restaurant I have not failed to eat in during any of my trips to London. I managed to keep a tradition alive once again.

Everyone was starving when we left the museum and we were discussing dinner. I know some of them are kinda hurting for cash, but I offered up a great little restaurant, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese. Historic, a haunt of both Dr. Johnson and Dickens, rebuilt in 1667 after the great fire, the students jumped on the chance to get some dinner in such a local. The food is not too expensive (nothing more than 10 pounds on the menu) and everyone enjoyed the locale and the food. It was a great meal and after 2 hours or so, we headed back to the Tube and then the bus to Oxford. We got back around 11:15. It was a long afternoon and evening, but it was a lot of fun for one and all involved. So far, many of them said it was the best experience they have had other than their trip to Ireland.

I'll take that as a great compliment.

Well I need to get my morning started. Early class today because of the trip to Scotland.

I will write more and finally post a bunch of pictures on Tuesday.

Matt

The Big Round Up

2008-07-23T01:56:00.002-04:00

Well it is Wednesday morning, early and a brutally short week is ahead of me. So much to do with organizing and getting ready for the next part of my grand adventure. All I know is I have to do laundry early tomorrow morning because I won't have a chance to do it Friday morning before I leave for Scotland and I don't have any time other than tomorrow morning. So reset the alarm clock for being up before the students (probably 7 am will do) and then get laundry going first thing.

So what does the rest of the week look like? Tonight is dinner at Jesus College, though not in the normal hall, but elsewhere on campus. I am not sure why exactly, but I am guessing it has something to do with the Nebraska students arriving (there are more than 100 of them this year). It is okay, but I do admit the food in college has been a little variable this year. The first night's impromptu meal wasn't bad, the big welcome dinner was better, the second week's wasn't so good, the third came back strong and was quite good, so who knows what tonight's meal will offer. Thursday afternoon I have a small impromptu field trip to London for my History of Science students to go see the Science Museum in London. We are leaving about 1 pm on Thursday and probably will be back around 9 pm or 10. We will try to hit the Science Museum so that they can have enough time to find exhibits to discuss for their final project. It should work out. Friday it is off to Scotland on an afternoon train ride. Like last year, I am not bringing my laptop so no updates until Monday evening when I get back. That will be the last week of the semester which is equally busy, including off to see a play in Stratford. I can't believe we only have about 10 days left here.

So what has been going on? Well other than the usual drama starting to build after 33 students have been together for 3 weeks, its been quieter than last year for the most part. Knock on wood. No real drama with people threatening others or not bathing. Just interpersonal drama that all college students have. Oh and the smoke detectors going off a couple more times and fewer late night entries to rooms since I instituted the "pay as you unlock" plan.

So what have we been up to?

Paris mostly. Thursday last week was spent as a normal college day, with a bit of pre-trip running around to supermarkets etc. Friday morning it was up quite early, 6 am, to get on the bus to Dover and the Euro Tunnel. We had to come back after going about 5 miles up the road for one of the students who called and had missed the coach, but after that it was pretty smooth sailing. We arrived with less traffic than expected, so we had about an hour lay over at the Euro Tunnel complex, then on the train and 30 minutes later--France. Then a 3.5-4.0 hour drive to Paris. Due to the later train and the driver having to make his mandatory 45 minute stop after 6 hours of driving, we arrived in Paris a bit later than last year, around 4 o'clock CET. Some of the people went off to dinner, but about 18 students and myself, plus General Locurcio and his wife, Ingrid, all headed out to dinner about 6 pm. We stopped in a small restaurant around the corner and down the street from the hotel. It was a great meal, and I tried the house special, which was mussels and fries. Add in two beers and free desert (Ralph and Ingrid bought dessert for all the students) and it was a wonderful night out. By that point it was getting late, around 8:30 or so (though it would still be light for a while) and I headed back to the hotel. However, once I got back to the hotel, I was dragged out by a couple students to give an impromptu tour of Paris. So we got on the metro, went to the Arc de Triomphe, walked down the Champs Elysee (where most of the shops were open to either 10 or 11) and then to the Place de la Concorde. By this point it was dark and close to 10:30. We had walked more than 2 miles, so we made a slow turn back to the hotel along the opposite bank of the Seine, in time to see the Eiffel Tower light up at 11 pm with their light show. The tower is blue this year due to the French president also being the EU president for the next few months, which is an odd and eerily beautiful sight. However, by 11:30 it was time to return to the hotel and bed.

The hotel was the Mercure Sufferen, about 3 blocks from the Eiffel Tower and next door to the Hilton Paris. The rooms were a little on the smaller side, but more comfortable than last year's too hot room. The a/c seemed to work well enough and remarkably this was the first trip in which I wasn't sick in Paris, ever. Oh, I might be fighting a cold, but I seem to be doing alright now. Some of the students though are getting sick and one girl is fighting a very nasty cold. The one down side, okay two, were the closet for the separate toilet, which really was a closet in size and somewhat claustrophobic. The other was the daily cost of internet access, which was 20 Euros a day. I had to have it for all three days as I am working against a deadline for a project, so internet access was a business expensive. I usually worked about 2 hours a night, so I could justify it, but that was about 35 dollars a day! You know, I bitch in the us when it is 10-15 dollars a day at some hotels, but $35+ is a lot. C'est la vie.

Saturday morning was bright an early for the Louvre. We broke into two groups and had a good tour guide take us to see the highlights of the museum over a 90 minute tour. He also didn't put up with any crap from the group, keeping them together and interested. I have to say that despite being a bit pushy, he was informative and the students largely kept their attention focused on him. Oh they might have other comments, but compared to the guide from last year, he was open and warm. After that, groups began to break up for the day. I went with a small group of people on another walking tour to see the other side of the river before heading to Notre Dame. But at that point, I was getting complaints of starvation and fainting...okay, they were hungry. I could go through the day without eating that much, but they needed food. So we went to the Latin Quarter and got lunch from a souvlaki/gyro pita stand (there were a few, but this was the only one with a line). It was cheap and filling, probably the best meal in Paris that did both. What was we all got? A small batard of French bread, filled with tatziki, lettuce, tomato, shaved chicken and topped with frites. Sounds fattening but it was remarkably light and filling. I intended to go back again, but didn't.

Then we went back to Notre Dame, but the line was too long and everyone was hungry. So...back to the Metro and back to the hotel for a nap. This turned into a mini tour of the metro because the main route back was being serviced by buses and I wasn't quite sure how the bus system worked. So we hoped on the metro and took a series of three routes to bypass the closed section and reach our hotel. It was a bit longer, but we were back by 3. I needed a rest as well as my feet were hurting at this point. Then a large group assembled at 6 pm and headed out again with myself and the Locurcio's to the Rue Cler, a pedestrian street filled with shops, restaurants and food sellers. We ate at a small restaurant the nearly 17 of us this time, and I had duck this time which was pretty good. Then a slow walk back to the hotel around 9, and upstairs to do some work. Then I wanted to go out and take some pictures of the Eiffel Tower at night, but I ran into a bunch of students and we chatted/then griped and complained, until about 11:30. It was a bit cold, but I played big brother and they felt better afterwards. There wasn't much I could do to make things better, but be sympathetic.

Sunday morning was off to Giverney (Monet's house) then a wild ride through the countryside to Chartres to visit the cathedral. We were taking a short cut to get to Chartres with Ralph Locurcio navigating for the driver down a lot small back roads. It was fun and interesting, though one or two of the students were getting motion sick as we drove this twisting back roads. But it actually saved us about half an hour. However, it was by 3 at this point, and everyone was hungry. Ralph, Ingrid and I (later joined by two students) went off to a restaurant recommended by one of the locals, the Serpentine. It was a 19th century tea room that also served meals. Here it was that I had a true French experience. Ralph and one of the students, Jesse, ordered steak and frites, a traditional French meal, Ingrid had pasta, and Keir had pasta with smoked salmon. After talking to Ralph, who speaks French a bit better than I do, but we both read and understand French at the same level, I decided to try one of the house specials, Andouillette des Troyes. We both figured it was a type of sausage made with a natural casing. Heck, I have had andouille in Lousianna and it is good. Let's just say I managed to eat half of what arrived on my plate, while Ralph, who has a cast iron stomach couldn't even eat part of it and Jesse chewed and chewed and spit it out. I am not sure he liked me.

It wasn't so much the taste, it was the smell. If you don't believe me, type in the name of the sausage online and read the reviews. The sausage, which was grilled and covered in a light mustard sauce (which did nothing to cover up the smell, but frankly, it was okay to taste) is grilled pig's intestine filled with chopped and folded pig intestine and stomach. One of the kind reviews said it smelt like a "rotting pissoir". I have to agree and since smell is a big part of taste, I am proud that I managed to eaten half of it. I pushed the rest to one side, Ralph shared a small piece of steak with me, Keir gave me her smoked salmon which she didn't like, and desert more than made up for it. The waitress, and apparently a lot of other Frenchmen, loved the sausage that smelt horrible, and with your google search, there are fan appreciation clubs for it.

God the smell was bad enough, but when it also caused a bit of gas and you had to "taste" it over again, it wasn't very nice.

Then after lunch it was a brief jaunt into the cathedral itself, but honestly, while it is beautiful, it was Sunday afternoon and mass was going on. I felt more than a little awkward wandering the halls. I was glad that lunch took as long as it did and we headed back to Paris about 5:15. Then Heather took the group on one of the Seine River cruises before calling it a night. I wasn't hungry, so Ralph, Ingrid and I went for drinks in the hotel bar. It was tres expensive, with 3 drinks costing 24 Euros. Not something we would do on a regular basis.

Monday morning was a quick pack, get stuff on the bus and see more of Paris. They wanted to see the smaller version of the Statue of Liberty that is in the movie, National Treasure 2. So we walked there, then took the metro. I took the group to the Army Museum afterwards. I originally wanted to go Cluny Museum of medieval art, but the students were "Meh", so we went to the army museum. Four guys and one girl, and they all had a good time. I acted as tour guide after having an initial scare when two of my credit cards didn't work. Turns out it was the stupid machine the people were using at the museum not my cards since they have worked since then. We went and saw Napoleon's Tomb as well, but by the time we finished it was after 1. The students wanted lunch and decided that since the Rue Cler was nearby, they would eat there. I dropped them off and headed back to the hotel, since I had a 2 o'clock late check out. I had to get my room key reactivated, but got my computer and passport from my room. Then it was downstairs to wait with Ralph and Ingrid, and a number of students who eventually arrived. A brief jaunt off to the supermarket for food for the trip (which frankly, I never really ate) and then on the bus at 4:15.

I sat up front for much of the journey and talked to the coach driver, Ray. He and I had briefly talked about his tours of World War One battlefields, but we talked about all sorts of things on the way home, and shared an interest in discussing old episodes of the British car show, Top Gear. Anyway, it was back to the Channel where we got a train 30 minutes earlier than normal, and then back to Oxford where we arrived slightly after 11:15 BST. Then it was unpack, deal with some minor crises along with one student claiming he had money stolen while he was gone. He had left 20 pounds out and next to his towels and the scouts had come in and cleaned while we were gone. All I could do was shake my head and offer some sympathy, but privately, if you leave money next to towels, who is to say what exactly happened to it.

Yesterday, Tuesday, was something we almost forgot about, but was a tour of Bodelian Library. It was something I had never done before and I found it fascinating, but a few of the students said it was a "library". We did have a few screws ups never show up despite their entrance being prepaid, but about 27-28 people did show up for the two groups. Then it was back to my flat to get ready for class. Last night was a quiet night in my room grading papers, making a couple phone calls, including to the university to deal with computer issues that have to wait until I return.

Ah well, like is exciting, isn't it. I think I have filled in most everything. Today is back to a normal schedule for classes, then dinner in the hall. The students are going to a concert afterwards but I have some work I need to finish. It might also be a good time to do some laundry, but we shall see.

I will post pictures later on today.

Back from Paris

2008-07-22T16:43:00.001-04:00

I am back from Paris and I know I am a bit behind with these blogs, but I will post tomorrow morning a giant update of the Paris trip and everything else.

Matt

Wednesday, July 16th

2008-07-16T09:52:00.003-04:00

Okay, there hasn't been a lot going on of late. Monday through today have pretty much been classes, grading papers and midterms, and more classes. Monday I did manage to get a haircut here in Oxford, but that is something I will try to have happen next year. It was 12.50 for the haircut, 7.50 for the beard and mustache trim and 3.00 tip. Make that all in pounds and double it, and its about $46 US. Hell, in Melbourne I have been going to the same barber for the last 10 years (remember I moved here in 1998!) and I haven't paid more than 20 dollars for the same thing, with tip included. Okay, at Xmas time I might leave a bigger tip, but that's about it. Just another case of sticker shock.

The one hassle has been the students and their locking themselves out of their apartments or bedrooms within the flats. I have so far been woken or asked to open doors (I have a master key) 16 times since we moved into the flats on Friday. The record was 7 times on Monday. Heather suggested I start charging 3 gbp to do so, and I said in class that I would start charging 2 and 5 pounds if it was after midnight. What do you all think?

I am trying to arrange for a field trip for my 7 History of Science students to head to London to go to the Science Museum so they can do some work for their final projects. However, I would need to leave at 1pm to make it work and that means taking four students from one class (and one from another) that are before my History of Science class at 3:15. If we leave at 1, we would make to London by 2:30 and hopefully make it to the Science Museum by 3, giving us about 2 hours before it closed. Not much time, but because the bus takes so long to get there (and the train is so expensive) its the only way it can be done.

The weather so far this week has been nice, in the low to mid 70s, though a front is coming through to cool things off once more. It will be in the mid to upper 60s for much of the weekend, and unlike in Paris, it will remain around the same temperature rather than be in the 80s as it was last year.

I will try to write more, but other than chores and limiting some money expenditures, its not been much different from what I would do in Florida when I am not teaching.

Warwick Castle Part 3

2008-07-13T15:27:00.003-04:00

Part of the 17th century drawing room in the main part of the palace. This area was being remodeled and restored to try and present the castle when it was once again lived in after 1604.

Another part of the main drawing room, this time dating from the later 1680s. It is a companion image to the one above.

A street leading to Warwick Cathedral. It's called Castle Street and its one of the medieval streets still in existence in the city.

This was originally a market in the city of Warwick dating from the 15th century. Today it is used by the city government.

A Tudor (16th century) original structure on the streets leading to the castle.

English Civil War era cavalry armor. If you notice the dimple in the front, it has been shot and there proven to be "bullet proof." In reality all it meant was that it had survived a single pistol shot and probably was not truly bullet proof.

One of the only three sets of children's armor in all of Europe.

Part of the 16th century great hall. This is where the Earl and Countess of Warwick would have hosted parties and receptions in the 1600s.

From Madame Tussaud's original display at Warwick Castle, the wives of Henry VIII. His first two wives, Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn are furthers away from the king in the center.

More of the wives, but from the opposite side to get the last three in the picture.

Warwick Castle, pt 2

2008-07-13T15:20:00.003-04:00

When Madame Tussaud's took over the running of Warwick Castle in 1978, they made a series of changes. In the 1990s, one of the things they did was to recreate a party weekend in the 1890s when Daisy, the Countess of Warwick was a well known society figure. Using the famous wax work figures, they recreated a day in the life of the household during this important event. Here are few of the pictures from the exhibit. It was crowded, but I took my time and tried to get good pictures despite the crowds. If you want more, send me an email.

The main reception hall. In the front is the Countess of Warwick who has returned from riding while the main are in the drawing room waiting for dinner. The figure on the far right is the young Winston Churchill.

Entering in the upstairs parlor, a hired singer and an Italian pianist are entering guests of the countess before dinner.

The countess herself getting ready to head down to dinner and the dancing that would follow.

The gentleman's chamber. On the right is Prince Edward, the future King Edward VII who is attending the party. The man on the left is a make guest.

Here is the Earl of Warwick preparing for dinner in his bedroom.

Warwick Castle, pt 1

2008-07-13T14:56:00.005-04:00

The largest trebuchet in Europe, this is a monster device that we arrived to see do a test firing. It was pretty impressive. This is it before it is loaded.

The trebuchet armed and ready to fire. The wheels had visiting students in them trudging about to pull down the arm and raise the counterweight. It took about 20 minutes of trudging by four teams of students to achieve this.

The trebuchet just after it has fired. I tried to catch them firing the test boulder, but my camera was just not fast enough.

The oldest part of the castle is this 11th century motte and bailey. The castle wall atop is 13th century, but the hill itself was built from spoil from the old moat around the castle in 1086 under orders of William the Conqueror to protect a crossing on the River Avon.

Looking up the motte and bailey from the bottom. Its pretty steep, but you can climb up to the top and walk along the wall if you wish.

A door on a lower path leading to the castle. It is interesting and partially hidden, which is what made it cool. I wish I knew what was on the other side.

On the way into the castle. An archer does exhibitions outside in this recreated 15th century military encampment.

More of the main entrance to the castle. Much of what we see was recreated by one of the owners in 1604 after the castle had lain in ruins for several decades.

An entrance to a wonderful exhibit on the castle during the year 1471 when the Richard Nevill,e the 16th Earl of Warwick, known as the "Warwick the Kingmaker," was killed. Previously, he had helped overthrow the English king Henry VI and put King Edward IV on the throne of England during the War of the Roses. See...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Neville%2C_16th_Earl_of_Warwick
if you want a brief overview of his life.

Looking up at the main part of the interior of the castle.

Stonehenge

2008-07-13T14:47:00.003-04:00

Stonehenge.

A group photo of most of the students and Andrew, Heather and Ben Cudmore. General Lucurcio and I are taking the pictures. It was sunny this year, unlike the rainy time we had last year.

See, even I get pictures taken of me on my own camera. Don't you love that expression? I am probably telling some story about the stones and their history. Or just asking, "Come on, take the darn pictures already. What's the hang up?" I think the former is more likely though...

More Stonehenge. One of the girls thought they were arranged by dinosaurs. She had not been listening to me. Or she was easily swayed by one of the other students pulling her leg. The later in this case is more likely true. Names withheld to protect the naive.

One of the many Neolithic burial mounds that surround Stonehenge. You can see two more among the trees in the distance.

Pictures from the Roman Baths

2008-07-13T14:40:00.002-04:00

A picture of the Roman Baths taken from above. The baths were used from 43 AD or so, but abandoned in the early 19th century when the city fell out of favor and other spa towns became more popular. The waters aren't cleaned and there are lead plates lining the bottom of the pool. Despite signs everywhere not to drink the water or touch it, we saw one kid drink a handful and an old man put his hands in it.

Part of the underground source of the water, a hot springs more than 20 feet beneath the current street level of Bath.

Part of a reconstructed Roman bathing chamber, though the stonework is original, the walls are not.

Two of my students, Alex and Aaron, standing with two Roman slave bath attendants at the museum. Both were offered jobs, though they refused. I wonder why?

Part of the original Roman temple complex to Minerva Sulis, the goddess of the sacred springs. These are the ruins of the temple that would have led through the doorway on the left to the baths themselves.

Pictures from the Town of Bath

2008-07-13T14:25:00.003-04:00

Sally Lunn's house is the oldest house in Bath. The foundations are quite old, Roman some think, though the current house dates from the 15th century. Supposedly she made Sally Lunn Buns, a type of very large and doughy roll. A specialty supposedly, but if you ask me, its just a big roll! You do get a souvenir box for it though.

Sign from outside the house.

Just an interesting pub sign from Bath.

An archway behind the Roman Baths. The archway dates from the remodeling of the baths as a Georgian spa town in the 18th century.

My friend Tim complained that my pictures never have people in them. They are just empty of life. Well Tim, here you are. A very crowded day in Bath looking up the main shopping street filled with tourists and a few locals.

Looking over the walls of the Roman Bath towards Bath Cathedral, called the Window of the West due to its massive amount of clear glass windows. A beautiful cathedral with an intricate fan roof. It survived Henry VIII's dissolution of Catholic churches and monasteries to remain one of the few Catholic churches in England not destroyed. Though it is Anglican today, it is still a fine example of a late Gothic structure.

Just an example of a small 18th century square with surrounding homes and shops in Bath.

Pigs like these are everywhere in Bath. They are on display throughout the city until October when they will be auctioned off for charity. Each pig is adopted by some group or another and decorated. I didn't get a picture of the jockey pig, but if I can get one from one of the students, I will post it here. According to an early medieval legend, an ancient prince became a leper. Forced to the countryside by his father, he became a swineherd. The pigs contracted leprosy as well but when they drank from the sacred spring that feeds the Roman baths, they were cured. When the prince bathed in the waters, he was cured. The prince went on to become king and pigs were a sacred animal during his reign. Thus the pigs everywhere in Bath.

Blenheim Palace Pictures

2008-07-13T13:44:00.003-04:00

This is the front of Blenheim Palace, built for the first Duke of Marlborough in 1704. Winston Churchill was born here, though he never lived here. There is an extensive Winston Churchill memorial and display of his life in the house, including his Honorary US Citizen passport. The 11th Duke and his wife still live in the palace on the east wing (that is the left side of the palace.)

The gardens at the side of the palace. The grounds stretch for nearly 6 miles in each direction except for the town of Woodstock which is just a mile away from the house. It is still a crown estate on perpetual loan to the duke and his family as long as they provided a small "rent" to the crown each year in October.

This is looking towards the house from the sheep meadow half way down the hill from the monument. In the distance are a line of coaches, including ours, so you can see how far away I have walked already.

This is roughly halfway towards the monument, ie about the same position as from the last pictures, except I am walking up a side road. The side road actually only allowed me to cross over about a 1/4 mile past the monument. I couldn't just climb the fence anywhere because it is electrified. I didn't do the hike last year and I was the only person to do it this year. I must be insane.

Another shot from beyond the coaches showing the monument in the distance. It doesn't look that far from this picture, but let me tell you, its uphill and a workout. It's also a potential minefield.

This is the text on the Blenheim Memorial. Hard to read, but I wanted to prove that I actually made it all the way out to the memorial.

These little lambs were my constant companions. I think I saw over three hundred of them during my walk. They all ran away whenever I got close.

This is just a small sample of the "minefield" I had to cross through the fields and then back to the coach. Remarkably my walking shoes cleaned up very quickly with little fuss or muss. I wouldn't recommend doing this walk in sandals or open toed shoes.

Sunday evening, 7/13

2008-07-13T13:24:00.002-04:00

General Update:

Okay, it has been a long, long weekend, and quite a busy one. Friday was moving day, which went off largely without a hitch, though one student remained behind because he was not able to be woken up. It seems he had been out a bit late, until 4:30 in the morning, and had a bit much to drink. Anyway, the bus was late leaving Jesus College, thus we were late getting to Steven's Close, but we still made it in time (10 minutes early to be exact) for our appointment at Blenheim Palace. After about three hours there, we went off to Burford, a small Cotswold town for a brief lunch, then on to the Cotswold Wildlife Park. While our stay at Blenheim and Burford was largely a dry one, it became a blistery, blustery cold and wet stay at the wildlife park. It certainly put a damper on many people's activities and enthusiasm. We then went grocery shopping, and returned back to Steven's Close around 8 pm.

At that point, it took over an hour for me to unpack my groceries. Since this was the first night there, and it was cold and wet, I was constantly answering questions. "Where is the laundry room?" "Do you have extra blankets?" "How do I turn on the heat?" "I lost my key already, can you let me in?" etc. The last happened the first day when one the girls lost her key to her room and I still need to check up and find out what happened with that situation. We also found out that more than half the student's electronic passcards don't work for the entry and exit gates to the complex, so they are going to have to get them reprogrammed tomorrow at the Porter's Lodge. Also, do to the extremely large size of my Western Civ class, we can not hold class at Steven's Close as we did last year, which means I need to take a trek into town every day for two hours. That is a good thing: it gets me exercising, allows me to run errands, and I get into central Oxford on a regular basis. Which reminds me I need to visit the Central Market and the butchers to pick up some meat pies (homemade) and some sausages for dinner this week.

Saturday was another early morning, this time off to Bath and Stonehenge. We left Steven's Close around 9 am and returned about 8. Our return was delayed by one of the student's needing an emergency rest break. Bath was fun as usual and I managed to pick up my first gift for myself: a Bath Rugby Club polo shirt for 30 pounds. It looks nice, its a unique souvenir, and its something I wouldn't ever find anyplace else. I thought about getting one last year, but I didn't. I am glad I did this year. Stonehenge this time was under pleasant weather, with a slightly cloudy sky, so it should result in some fairly nice pictures I will post later. Then it was a quiet night back in my flat before going to bed fairly early. However, there were another dozen or so constant interruptions and a small review session with some of the students last night who are taking my Civ midterm on Monday morning.

Sunday, today, was another early morning. This time I went off to Warwick Castle with General Ralph Locurcio and his lovely wife Ingrid. I hadn't spent a lot of time with them this year and I had gotten to know them quite well last year during the Scotland expedition. Today was a good, warm and extremely crowded day visiting Warwick Castle. Run by Madame Tussaud's, the restored medieval castle has a bunch of interpretive events including a ghost tour, a falconry expedition (jousting is in May and June), a trebuchet firing demonstration, and a recreated 1897 weekend party held by the Countess of Warwick. It was good, but one day I would like to go back when there are less crowds. While they learned the trick from Disney of having a gift shop at the end of every "special exhibit" they need some serious lessons about crowd control and crowd management. Four windows to buy tickets meant that there was a 30 minute queue to get in, and the ghost story, by ticket entry, was another 30 minute queue. For a nice Sunday, the train journey there was fine (the train back I stood while the older Locurcio's sat for the 30 minute ride from Banbury to Oxford) and went through beautiful countryside.

Anyway, tonight I have some work to do. I may still head off to a trivia contest at 8:30 at a nearby pub, but I am pretty beat. I am going to post some pictures for you all to see. Hopefully you will enjoy them second hand as much as I enjoyed shooting them.

Tomorrow its back to the usual grind. My Civ students have a midterm and my History of Science students have a pub trip to discuss brewing in the Industrial Revolution. I also need to get a haircut in the afternoon, which is not necessarily something I am looking forward to doing. But it is becoming necessary.

Talk to you all soon...

Sorry for the delay

2008-07-13T03:12:00.002-04:00

I will have a bigger post tonight or tomorrow. It's been a hectic few days, with moving on Friday morning, then off to Blenheim and a rainy afternoon at the Cotswold Wildlife Park. Grocery shopping was the usual interesting experience and eye opening once again at the differences in culture and tastes. Yesterday was off to Bath and Stonehenge with a latish return to Oxford. Today it is off to Warwick Castle with General Locurcio and his wife Ingrid. He is one of the other professors from Florida Tech. Lots of the students are off to London for the day, while others are staying around Oxford to save some money and get caught up on work.

I will post more of the adventures and some long awaited pictures later today or first thing tomorrow.

Just a short post telling you I am still alive and well. Need to get running even if it is just 8:15 my time (3:15 for most of the readers of this blog.)

Matt

Rain, rain go away...

2008-07-09T04:47:00.002-04:00

Not much to update today. Its been raining on and off for the last couple days. Mostly yesterday and especially today it has been raining. Cold, damp rain as the temperatures are in the low 60s today so it feels a bit more bitter than it normally would. Not much you can do either outside so I have been spending my free time trying to get ahead of things for the fall. I have been reading a bunch too, just finishing Michael Palin's New Europe, which is the companion book to his latest travel series (available on BBC video and it shows up on the Travel Channel from time to time). I am about to start a new history book, The Plot against Pepys, which from the blurb on the back is about why Samuel Pepys was arrested in 1679 and imprisoned. Pepys is famous for writing an intimate diary throughout the 1660s, which gives us some of the best insights into the court of Charles II. However, he was also a government minister and he was imprisoned on rather spurious charges. So I am going to throw myself into this before I take up one of the fiction books I brought with me or finish book 3 of the late David Gemmel's Troy series.

Yesterday was back to classes, then off to dinner for two of the girls who had birthdays. We ate at the Noodle Bar which is a fairly inexpensive and filling new age Asian restaurant. A bunch of people headed back to the campus pub that was open last night for a pint or two before they called last call at 10:30 and I was in bed by 11:30. Nothing like waking up to pouring rain...cold, pouring rain, enough to consider putting the heat on. But I haven't resorted to that quite yet though all the windows are closed at the moment. Tomorrow it is off to do something I haven't done before in Oxford: get a haircut and beard trim. I am pretty sure I am for some serious sticker shock, but it is necessary if I am not to look like a bush man before I return home.

Friday is moving day, so we are headed off to Steven's Close for the last three weeks. It is also the day we head off to Blenheim Palace again and this time I think I am going to take the walk into the village of Woodstock before rejoining the group when we head off to Burford and then the Cotswold Wildlife Park.

Will write more soon...

Tuesday Morning

2008-07-08T04:02:00.005-04:00

After running around London on Sunday (and the explorations on Saturday) I was one tired camper yesterday so I spent the day in Oxford not doing much of anything. I had been planning on going off to Warwick Castle, but I think I will do that next Sunday when I have another official day off. Yesterday was laundry day (before the kids who went off to Ireland got back) and work in my room on grading the last of my final exams. I did run off to the supermarket, but I decided to eat in last night with sandwiches after spending a bit too much money so far on the trip. Well probably far too much money during the first week, but I can budget it out for the rest of the trip and still be okay. I knew the first week was a big expense, it always is, and this eating out two-three times a day can get expensive. It's why I ate ham and English cheddar sandwiches and watched Dr. Who's last three episodes of Season Four online at BBC One. That included the two part season finale and the episode before that (which I think will air this week on SciFi in the states).

Anyway, since nothing much happened yesterday of import, I am going to post some more pictures for you to enjoy. I forgot to take my camera to London on Sunday so there aren't any pictures from that day, but there should be enough other pictures for you to enjoy. I still have more to upload, but I will do that later on in the week.

Holywell Music Rooms. This is not far from campus and they hold concerts throughout the year. This is the first purpose built music hall in the world dating from the early 18th century.

New College Lane, looking down one of the medieval streets leading to New College (actually one of the oldest colleges at Oxford.)

More of New College Lane, further down the street past where the last pictures were taken.

Near Merton College. I had never seen this plaque before, but I thought it was interesting.

Rhodes House. This is the center where Rhodes Scholars meet and study when in Oxford. The bird on top is the national bird of Zimbabwe (well when it was Rhodesia.) The complex is much bigger than this single building, however, and stretches well behind it in a newer structure.

Sunday night...late-ish

2008-07-06T17:34:00.002-04:00

Okay I have just returned from a day in London about 30 minutes ago. It has been a weird weather day: cold and rainy when we left at 8 this morning (and the French Market wasn't yet open for breakfast), the more rain and more cold blustery weather when we got to London, then it cleared up for a bit, then got cold and rain, then sunny and quite warm for about 30 minutes, then cold and wet on and off until we got back to Oxford. It pretty much was a rehash of last summer's weather. Still it did not ruin the day at all...

We took the 8:38 train to Paddington Station, which is a journey of about 75 minutes or so. The students then got Tube passes and I used my Oyster card (a pay as you go refillable card) and we headed on the Circle line for Tower Hill Station. When we got there the lines were tremendously long, about 20-25 minutes and it was raining. I told the students I would go and check out the member services building (I bought a year's pass last July and it has paid for itself already) and the very nice lady allowed me to buy 5 student tickets there without any line. I paid with my credit card but then got the students to immediately pay me back. We headed inside and for most of the tour of the tower everything went right: we got into the Jewel House in between lines (at one point the line was probably close to an hour to get in) and saw the crown jewels in about 5 minutes. In the three hours we were there, I pretty much acted as tour guide and we saw everything there was to see except some of the live reenactments and inside the chapel of St Peter ad Vincula (where Anne Boleyn is buried) due to religious services taking place. By the time we finished the students were exhausted, but ready for more...

So onward ho! Through the pouring rain we walk back to the tube station and then travel to Westminister. When we got out right next to Big Ben, the rain stopped. But by this point, close to 2, everyone was starved. We ran into a local Tesco Express (a neighborhood version of the larger Tesco Supermarkets) and got lunches. We ate outside under a covered portico before heading to Westminster Abbey (which was also closed on a Sunday afternoon). We then wandered over to Whitehall to see the Cenotaph (the memorial to WWI dead), 10 Downing Street (the Prime Minister's residence), Whitehall Palace's only remaining part: Banqueting House, Traflagar Square, the outside of the National Gallery, then walked up Haymarket to Picadilly Circus. The students wanted to see something else that was free, so we went to the British Museum. I showed them the Elgin Marbles, the Rosetta Stone, and then left them to explore for an hour while I went and took a break as well as running a few errands in the area. We all met up around 4:45 and then took the tube back to King's Cross Station to find the famous Platform 9 3/4ths from the Harry Potter books. Much rejoicing from the students and much picture taking was done.

Then we went to Chinatown for dinner. It was good and simple, though I ran into the first issue of students with limited budgets (not that mine is depthless) so we had limited choices from the menu. I could have indulged myself but I decided to eat simply. We stopped by a Chinese bakery for some take away desert and then headed back to the tube to go back to Paddington Station. However we took a little diversion to Baker Street to see Sherlock Holmes alleged address at 221 B Baker St. However it was a sunday night and close to 7, so everything was closed. We got to Paddington Station about 7:20. Three of the students had open tickets, so they took a slightly earlier train back to Oxford. Myself and two others had confirmed seats on a specific train that did not leave for an hour. We sat around and talked and then got on the train for the ride back to Oxford.

Its been an exhausting two days, so tomorrow is a stay at home and rest day. Yesterday I got up early and ran around town with one of the students, Mark, the only one to make the 10:30 am meeting time. I later found out that two of the girls and one of the guys here in Oxford had staid up to like 2 am watching movies and then didn't wake up on Saturday until noon or so. Mark and I decided to explore all of Oxford, and especially wandered along the canal paths on the banks of the Thames. It was intentionally a day to get lost and though that didn't really happen, I did manage to go down lots of streets and avenues I had never seen before or new existed. It was a good chance to see parts of Oxford that existed in the central city but that I had never explored last year. We then ran to the Farmer's Market where the French Farmers were visiting from across the Channel. It was something new, they didn't have it last year at all. Anyway, I had a crepe with apples and calvados (a brandy) that did not burn off and was a fairly potent portion. It was good, but a little too alcoholic for food. After that it was more wandering of another part of the city, taking lots of pictures before calling it an afternoon around 4. I was exhausted, and we guessed from a map later that we had walked close to 5 miles or more throughout the morning.

In the evening the London group went to dinner at O'Neils, a chain restaurant that serves Irish and English food. Its not that expensive and the food is good (though services that night was slow for the two of us who ordered fish and chips.) However, after that we returned back to the college and watched movies in the Junior Common Room before I decided to call it a night around 11:30.

Anyway, I have firmly decided to stay in Oxford. I have some reading to do, its time to start laundry before everyone from Ireland returns tomorrow night. The weather is supposed to remain wet, so we shall see what happens. I will also post some pictures tomorrow once I find the cable to connect my camera to the computer.

Hope everything is going well with you folks...

More Pictures from my Perambles

2008-07-04T10:50:00.013-04:00

Some flowers abloom in a garden at Christ Church on a nice summer day.

Looking across Christ Church meadow towards spires of Magdalen College.

One of the Tudor residence houses at Christ Church College.

This little narrow lane now contains a 17th century hotel (rooms are on both sides of the street) but it was originally an area where Flemish weavers set up shop just outside the city walls. Through the back alleys is the Turf Tavern, set in the area where the medieval privies at the base of the city wall used to be. It's been voted the best pub in Britain, but its more famous as the place where Bill Clinton "didn't inhale."

The inside and main floor display area of the Pitt Rivers Museum.

A series of different animal skeletons on parade in the Natural History Museum. They include and African and Asian elephant in the rear and a giraffe.

A display on the real life animals connected to the Alice and Wonderland stories.

The outside of the Natural History Museum and also the entrance to the Pitts River Museum which is at the rear.

A little "hobbit sized" door and residence at Wadham College. People actually live here and just after I took the picture, the postman arrived to slip letters through the door. Yes he had to bend down to do so.

Looking down Turl Street towards the High. Jesus College is behind me. The steeple belongs to a church that is now part of Lincoln College and used as their library.

Part of the medieval wall that remains in Oxford. I believe those are the buildings of Pembroke College just beyond the tops of the wall.

This is Brewer Street and to the left is the medieval wall, one of the easiest sections to see that is not within one of the colleges. Where I am standing taking the picture is the site of the Littlegate, one of the medieval entrances into the walled city from the south.

Happy July 4th!

2008-07-04T10:28:00.009-04:00

While Independence Day isn't celebrated on this side of the pond (though I think one or two restaurants do have some sort of American themed festivity) and there will be Americans out and about cheering (all the college kids in town) it should be fairly low key. Myself and about 6 or 7 students remain in Jesus College with everyone else off this morning for Ireland. They had to get up and leave around 4:15 am but luckily for me they seem to have all made it and some I am sure did not go to sleep at all. It will be a long day for them.

For me, it was my first day off. I decided to head off to the Natural History Museum and the Pitts River Museum after running an errand for one of my students. I couldn't get their problem solved, but I did find out what it was and what needs to be done. She will have to handle it when she returns from Ireland on Tuesday. I am glad I headed to the Pitts River Museum because it is closing on the 7th of July until late next spring for renovations and to undo some 1960s "improvements" to return the museum back to its 19th century appearance and modernize it in other areas. I never made it to the Pitts River Museum last year, and I will have to go back next year when the changes are made (a whole level was closed). You know how they say that the Smithsonian is the "Nation's attic"? Well the Pitts River Museum is the nation's house of oddities and eccentricities. Look it up on the internet to find out what I mean, but I did manage to get three shots or so I posted to show you what it is like.

After that I wandered through the city, to some of the colleges that were open, down alleyways I never went down before, and tried to see new places from new angles...instead of crossing Christ Church Meadow from St. Aldgate to the High, I did it from the High and Rose Lane to St. Aldgates. It is such a beautiful day out and some of the pictures I am quite impressed with. The ones I see as the most fascinating, I am going to post in a bit. Let me know what you think.

Tomorrow I think it is just a quiet day, though I am going to London on Sunday with a number of the remaining students. I got train tickets already for myself and one other student I knew was going and we are leaving early Sunday morning, but it should be fun if we can all get there. I have to talk to the other students this evening to try and make sure we can all meet up at least.

Anyway, Happy 4th of July. Enjoy the pictures!

This is a shot out of my living room window onto the second quad.

My bed. There is another closed in fireplace in the room.

View of my bathroom. One of the few ensuite rooms in the college. Usually meant for tutors during the academic year. My room is on the second floor in the second quad which is in turn part of the second addition to the university built in the 17 th century.

The view outside my bedroom window to the Covered Market. The source of the morning noise!

This strange hook is in the 17th century beam in my ceiling. The maintenance men told me it was originally meant for an escape ladder to be attached to and thrown out the window in case of fire.
Either that, or to hang a student who was in trouble. I think they were kidding...

My bedroom. With a sink in addition to the one in the bathroom. To the left is my bed.

Part of the living room of the suite. My desk and computer station. You can see the closed in fireplace to the left rear of the picture.

Thursday morning, 7/3

2008-07-03T05:20:00.002-04:00

Good morning. Sorry for the lack of a post yesterday, but it was one of those hectic days we occasionally have here in Oxford. The classes were cut shorter yesterday, so I didn't really have time to write and we didn't get back last night until after midnight. What caused the chaotic day? We went off to London last night to see Wicked, which was much better than last year's Lion King. A retelling of the Wizard of Oz story to explain why the Wicked Witch became wicked, it was funny, well put together and a quite impressive stage performance. I was impressed with the play and it might be one of the few plays I actually go to see again if I ever get the chance.

Before we went into the theater I took a small number of students off to see Buckingham Palace which was only about a 10-15 minute brisk walk from the theater. The students who went off and took pictures were genuinely pleased to see the palace. One of the guards was even changing with one of the others so it was interesting for them to see a very minor part of the show.

This morning I went off to the small Oxford Farmer's Market. I know when I am living in Steven's Close I am going to have come down here to get fresh bread, cheese and meats. This morning I picked up some fresh fruit scones, an almond croissant, and two pre Nazi German reichmark notes. I have some ones from 1923 that I use in my Civ 2 classes to show what it meant to have 100 million reichmark notes that were worth about $1 dollar at the time. Today's notes were a 1920 10 mark note and a 1922 1000 mark note. Both would be useless in 1923. They cost me 3 pounds for both, which is not a bad price for two pieces of history.

Other than that the weather has been highly fluctuating the last few days. It was quite warm for Oxford on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the temps in the upper 70s and lows in the upper 50s. Yesterday was the first day it really began to rain on and off and right now it promises to rain a lot more. The clouds are sort of black and huge white puffy clouds at the same time. It's both quite amazing and kinda freaky at the same time. Nothing much is planned for today only because the students are getting ready to head off to Ireland tomorrow at 5 am. I am kinda glad I am watching over the 6 or so students who are staying here, but they are a very eclectic group. I am not sure how many of them want to come to London on Sunday, but I am going probably right after breakfast.

I have a bunch of grading to finish, so I will be busy tomorrow working on getting that taken care of and then I should have my weekend free until Monday night when everyone returns back to Oxford. I am thinking that on Saturday I might head off to Warwick Castle which I haven't been too in more than 15 years (since I was living here in 1992). I will also start taking some pictures from the college and of Oxford. I need to carry my camera around with me more often.

Anyway, I need to get read for another day of classes...

Tuesday Night 7/1

2008-07-01T17:04:00.003-04:00

Alright, time to slow down on my expenditures a bit, but I know that the first few days I am here it is always more expensive than I will hope as I had to pick up bits and bobs here and there to get my life set for the next few weeks. A bus pass for a week (15 pounds); more money to my cell phone pay-as-you-go account (20 pounds); a calculator (I still have grading I have to do for my first set of summer classes); a file folder; some books (18 pounds); a fan (9 pounds) as it was close to 80 today and I find I can't sleep very well without the white noise from the fan; and so on. I have probably spent close to 90 pounds in cash, and maybe another 30-40 pounds in my credit card. That's in just three days...

Oh, well that doesn't include dinner tonight when myself and four students decided to try a new-ish sushi place here in Oxford. It's a chain of places in England called "Yo Sushi". Modeled after a traditional Japanese sushi fast food restaurant where you pick up individual color coded sushi plates as they circle around on conveyor belts and then pay for each bowl at a set price, it was fun. It was also far more expensive than any of us thought it would be. While I originally agreed to pick up the tab in whole, something I tend to do at least once on a trip for some students, the 90 pound bill with tip added was a lot more than I expected (though I guessed closest to the amount before hand). Basically, I broke the tab in half, with me paying half the bill (though I placed the whole thing on my credit card) and the students splitting the other 45 pounds among themselves. A lot of food for about 11 pounds each, which for them was about the cost of sushi out in the states (though I think they might have gotten a bit more). All of us agreed that three things stood out: pumpkin tempura (sounds odd, and I think it was squash more than pumpkin, but damn good), shrimp grilled and panko crusted (which was good enough we all split 3 plates of it) and as I was the only one who ordered desert, mochi, it got split too. Now I have had mochi before and its Chinese equivalent: sweet red bean paste dumplings. Mochi is a sweet desert of sweetened pressed rice around a ball of sweet red bean paste. I let the students each try a piece and while they didn't think they would like it, they ate my desert. So we ordered more and they shared one plate while I ate the other (only 4 smallish pieces).

The group that came out to dinner was a good group and culturally diverse. Mark and Kier are from Trindad, both very good students that I have had in my classrooms in the past. Keir is a brilliant and talented young woman, though probably a bit too academically intense at times. I have had her in four of my classes, including one here at Oxford and she is a molecular biology major so she doesn't have to take that many humanities courses. But she is smart as a whip. Mark is a bit more laid back, but also intensely smart and funny and will eat just about anything. There was nothing left on any of the plates at the restaurant. Shannon is a young woman from New Jersey who is also Mark's girlfriend and they make a very interesting pair. AJ was the new student of the group, kinda quiet (though I have him in my Civ 2 class) but he was pretty cool too. A good group of people I am sure I am going to spend a bit more time with over the next few weeks. Besides they all promised to buy me lunch at some point for treating them to a good portion of their dinner.

However, we all agreed that we have to eat some place cheaper next time. It appears cheap sushi is non existent in Oxford for the moment.

My university mailbox is filling up with exams from Florida Tech students I taught during the first summer session. I will be working on grading most of them tomorrow during the day and Thursday. Tomorrow night we are off to see the play "Wicked" in London. I am looking forward to it and to the student's reactions to London. On Friday a good portion of them are off to Ireland for a four day weekend, while I am once again remaining behind in Oxford. I will probably head down to London on Sunday morning and I might even spend the night, though I am not quite sure yet what I am going to do.

Anyway, that's it for tonight. I am still waking up by 6am (the sun comes up before 5!) mostly because of the Covered Market and the deliveries made in the morning. So far for the last two mornings somebody has dropped a lot of glassware and begun cursing around 6 am. I thought I understood English swearing, but this one went on for almost two minutes unbroken!

I know I still owe you pics, but I haven't taken too many. I will do so on Friday and more over the weekend, especially as I wandered about Oxford for two days. I want to get some pictures of places I haven't been and do some things I didn't do last year (especially free things to watch the money). Hopefully I will have some interesting ones for you all to gaze at and enjoy...

Early Monday morning 6/30

2008-06-30T02:34:00.002-04:00

Okay, I have learned two things from last night's semi restful sleep. Admittedly I did sleep pretty well until about 4:30 when nature required I get up, but then back to sleep until 6 or so. Not too bad considering I fell asleep around 10:30 or so last night. But the two things are important and I will try to rectify them this morning after breakfast or between classes this afternoon, depending on when shops open this morning. 1) I need a source of white noise (ie a fan) because there is too much background noise from the street both late at night and early in the morning and 2) I need a set of ear plugs, for the same reason, but when things are really bad. My bedroom faces onto a street the college shares with the famous Oxford Covered Market, and the market people start bringing in supplies and setting up around 5:30 am or so. Rattling glass bottles, delivery trucks, etc all add to a slight cacophony of sound that I am sure I will get used to in the long run, but may take a bit of time, and time I don't necessarily have this week.

Yesterday was one of those odd and surreal days the longer it dragged on. I honestly could, by the end of the day, feel myself not quite connected to things and certainly feeling things through a bit of a haze. After writing yesterday I grabbed a shower and wandered about town, getting some lunch (a BLT, chips and diet soda) from Boots: The Chemist (an English pharmacy chain) for like 2.99. Picked up a magazine (The Economist) and showed some students I ran into on the street where the shopping mall was and the major Sainsbury grocery store. Then I stopped by my cell phone provider but they were a bit swamped, so that is a stop for later today. It felt strange and comforting to be wandering around Oxford and seeing things that were both extremely familiar and to notice the changes that were taking place with new developments and construction.

We went on the standard bus ride tour of Oxford for an hour or so, starting around 3 pm. I had seen it all last year, so I spent a bit of the time catching up with Ralph and Ingrid Lucurcio. Ralph is one of the other faculty members here, teaching a civil engineering leadership course. He is a retired brigadier general from the Army Corps of Engineers, so the students, with his playful encouragement have taken to simply calling him "The General." One of my students did come up to me and ask me if his real first name was General or not, which I found amusing and I still have to share that anecdote with Ralph later on today. They it was off to the King's Arms for a pint with the Lucurcio's and which ever of the students were still awake enough to function. After that a brief walking tour around the area where the pub was, then back to Jesus College for dinner. Dinner was something simple: sole tourine, roast chicken, roasted potatoes, string beans and chocolate cake. Good and free food.

I went back to my room to rest and nearly fell asleep before I got a phone call from Heather who had returned back to Oxford after escorting the board of trustees group to Bath for the day. We had an orientation meeting with the students from 8:30-9, then I took some students out for the last time (about a dozen remarkably) for G&D ice cream. The store is a bit of an institution here in Oxford, and while not exactly cheap (about 2 GBP for a scoop) it is darn good homemade ice cream. I think a bit more of the students would have gone if it wasn't already getting very late and very cold (into the mid 50s I think by that point).

Today is the first day of classes, so its time for me to go grab a shower. Two classes: Western Civ 2 (with about 22 students) and History of Science 2, with about 7 students. The Western Civ class is the largest course we are teaching, and it will be nice to have 2/3rds or so of the students together at least once a day. We are going to take advantage of that situation by taking them to the Bodelian library for a tour one morning, required for my students, highly encouraged for the others. Then this evening is the formal dress up dinner with the president and provost of Florida Tech and the visiting board of trustees, then hopefully another quiet night before starting the day all over again. I will have some pictures to post later today as I forgot my camera for most of yesterday and only this morning deleted the pictures from last year so I have space on the sim card.

Ah...its good to feel at home, though I do miss the sense of everything being so...new.

Sunday night, June 29th

2008-06-29T13:58:00.002-04:00

Tired is an understatement, but I still have a couple hours to go before I can decide to call it a night. Looking at my watch, its about 2 pm right now, and I have been up since 7 am on Saturday morning. I got about 2 hours of constantly interrupted sleep on the aircraft (this time the longest stretch was about 45 minutes). Our plan was late an hour due to weather here in the UK and was then an hour later when we were grounded by a thunder and lightning storm that did not allow us to depart for another hour after we had already gotten on the aircraft. So I think our flight finally got off around 8pm when it was supposed to leave at 5:50 and we got in this morning about 8:45. The coach was there to meet us and we got dropped off at Jesus College.

My room this year is in the 2nd quad, and I will take pictures tomorrow when I am more coherent. My room is very different from that of last years: I have a faculty room originally built in the 1600s (the ceiling beams are that old) with an ensuite bathroom, a sitting room, and a bedroom. Hopefully I refridgrator will be delivered tomorrow. For lunch this afternoon I had a BLT, a bag of crisps and a diet coke. Dinner was simple and provided by the hall which consisted of chicken, ravioli, seafood turine, salad and chocolate cake. I did manage to head off to a pub for a pint with a bunch of students and the Locurcio's. Tonight it is a meeting with Heather and then we are going to find some ice cream before calling it a night.

I will let you know tomorrow when I am more fully awake. Its going to be tough to make it to 10.

Ciao for now...

Saturday, June 28th

2008-06-28T09:34:00.003-04:00

Well my little break in Orlando has been a good one. I got to spend a few days at a hotel to rest and relax as well get my batteries rejuvenated after one of the more stressful weeks I have had. The car issues have been taken care of with Eric agreeing to drop the car off on the 22nd of next month to be repaired and ready by the time I return. I need some new body work, painting and a new front bumper cover as it is called (covers the entire front of the car) which all together will run about $1500 bucks. More than half, of course, is the cost of labor. So these last two days have been interesting way to relax before heading off to the airport later this afternoon.

I will be at the airport around 3 pm (the flight leaves around 6) because we are a large group and hopefully everyone will be there between 3 and 3:30. I am pretty sure I can arrange for a group check in, and then we fly from Orlando for London Gatwick arriving around 7 am tomorrow morning (or 2 am EST). Then a two hour drive from Gatwick to Oxford, settling into the rooms at Jesus College, before heading out for a tour of the city and trying to keep everyone awake for an 8 pm group meeting, and then turning everyone free for the day (and sleep for a bunch of us). I have class at 11 on Monday morning, so I need to make the adjustment fairly quickly. Knowing the my past adjustments to jet lag, it will be about Wednesday or Thursday before it hits me that I have to adjust.

The weather, at least according to the BBC, is going to be a bit up and down. Tomorrow should be write around 70 or so, with lows in the 50s. However it is supposed to warm up to the upper 70s by Wednesday and low around 60, before cooling off 10 degrees back to the 60s the next day. The usual up and down on an English summer and hopefully it will stay on the cooler side then the warmer side since A/C is pretty darn scarce in the UK.

I am both looking forward to going because I know what to expect but also a bit of trepidation because I have a bigger role that last year and I am lacking the two to three days of pre trip adjustment I had last year. I am in charge of about 25 students though I will have a bit of help from the husband and son of the program director.

Anyway, that's it for now. Time to pack up the computer and get things together for the trip. I will update tomorrow at some point once I am settled in Oxford. Probably in the evening when things have calmed down.

Ohh good news too!

2008-06-26T06:50:00.002-04:00

I almost forgot. I went into my office yesterday afternoon before class and then off to check mail in my department mailbox. In there was an official university envelope and despite the momentary twinge of "what the hell is this about?" it was good news. Inside was a notation from the provost that I received "equity pay" to try and bring me up to par with the rest of the faculty and the recent new hires (who all make more than I do). This is going to be my 9th year at the university (though 8 by their calculations due to my being an adjunct for a semester when budgets were being slashed in 1999) and finally I qualify for the equity program. It comes to about a 6% increase to my base salary. So good news finally...

Okay, now it is time to get ready for work this morning.

Thursday 6/26

2008-06-26T06:34:00.004-04:00

Well its been an eventful pre-flight week, but not always in a good way. Monday night I was picking up a friend from Orlando International Airport and was driving home in light rain and complete darkness. I noticed as we were approaching a toll plaza under construction that the rear hatchback light was intermittently coming on, which meant that the hatchback hadn't been closed properly. I went through the toll plaza and put on my directional to pull over and close the hatch. Crash... I collided with another car speeding through the toll plaza e-pass lanes (the automatic toll payment system). The Florida Highway Patrol were called, and while no one was hurt, there was damage to both cars, more to his then mine. So I have been spending my time talking to insurance companies and the body shop, getting the mess straightened out as much as I can before I leave town on Saturday afternoon.

Add in the chaos of finishing up classes and grading quizzes, getting finals prepared, and somewhere in the middle of that packing, and well you can imagine how chaotic it must be around here as well as entertaining my friend who came into town for the week and their birthday. Today is the last day of summer classes at the university for me. I have some quizzes to grade after I give them this morning, notes for the Oxford courses to round up, stop by the bank and head to the auto body place to arrange a date my car can be dropped off and fixed so that it is ready on the Monday morning after I return. Then it's off to Orlando for the next few days to rest and relax before leaving for the airport to be there at 3pm on Saturday.

I have all the paperwork in place for Oxford's arrival (flight details, where the coach is going to pick us up, etc) to try and get everything in place so that when I am nearly brain dead from lack of sleep and jet lag, I can at least semi function as I deal with immigration, customs, luggage collection and then taking it all to the the coach for the 2 hour drive from Gatwick to Oxford. Once in Oxford the program organizer (who is herding a bunch of the university's Board of Trustees on a trip) will be joining us and things fall into her hands. I don't expect many problems, but with 22 people and myself, who knows.

All my packing is done except for my computer bag and some last minute bits and bobs. I have brought along the two suitcases I had to buy in Oxford last year, splitting the clothes roughly equally between them so that if one gets lost, I at least have the other for a couple days. However, one bag is more full than the other, so I have plenty of space to bring things home. The larger bag gets left behind in Oxford while the smaller one accompanies me to France and Scotland. I also have to pack my messenger style bag that I wear around as my portable briefcase (the computer bag is too damn bulky) in one of the suitcases as well. Should be fun trying to get it all together this afternoon.

Ohh and my passport too...can't forget that.

Keep your fingers crossed!

Oxford Mailing Address

2008-06-23T16:47:00.002-04:00

Here is the mailing address for my summer stay, in case you need to mail me anything. I will be in Oxford from June 29th through the morning of August 3rd. About 5 and a half weeks.

Professor Matthew Ruane, Florida Tech
c/o Jesus College
Turl Street
Oxford, England
OX1 3DW
United Kingdom

Pre-Trip Post 6/23

2008-06-23T16:21:00.001-04:00

Welcome to my summer 2008 travel blog. Like last year's experiment, this blog will recount some of the important events and odd occurrences that take place during the 2008 Florida Tech Summer Oxford program. Once again we will be staying at the centre city campus of Jesus College, Oxford for the first two weeks and then moving to flats about a mile north of town at Steven's Close (off campus housing for the college). The trip will include four day weekends in Ireland, Paris and Scotland, as well as day trips to Bath and Stonehenge, Blenheim Palace and the Cotswolds, and my super special outing to London at the beginning of July to see the Tower and a few other exhibits in the process. It might even involve me spending a few pounds (actually a lot of pounds) and staying overnight before coming home to Oxford the next day.

Besides my thoughts and views on the trip, I will post some of the pictures I take to help you visualize what the day's events are about.

Invite anyone you know who might not have received an invite to read and participate in this blog. Feel free to comment if you have a blogger account. You can always send me email at the usual addresses and I welcome feedback positive or negative.

Now its off to run last minute errands, teach the end of my summer session here in Melbourne, then spend a few days in Orlando before flying out on Saturday afternoon. At 3pm Saturday, June 28th, my duties as assistant professor and assistant coordinator of the Florida Tech Oxford summer program begins.

Wish me luck!