A Study of Oxford

We came across some photos from the day we went to Oxford, and thought we better post them for your enjoyment. Unfortunately, we were unable to find an original blog title, so we stole the one from Cambridge - maybe we should combine the two together and call it "A Study of Oxbridge".

These pics were taken a few months back, so the significance of some of the locations has been forgotten. Mostly we are standing in from of one historical college or another - there were lots, and by the way, don't ask us how to pronounce Magdalen College.

The one thing that we do recall is how many bikes there were chained up or lying about - many of which look to have been forgotten by their owners, who had either graduated, or had one too many at the local and forgot how they got there. It's a bike thieves paradise. Conveniently for us - we drove by car, and so weren't tempted to make off with a stray.


The gates to the Oxford Botanical Gardens, I seem to recall.


A tower belonging to a college - quite possibly Magdalen.


I believe the building featured here (behind our model) is Oxford Castle - now partly a trendy hotel.


The visitor centre at the castle one of these chain up the prisoner thingies... always a fun photo opportunity.


The castle tower (and Lucy)


A street in Oxford - the name of which escapes me right now


A gate in Oxford - the significance of which escapes me right now

Lucy posing in front of the Radcliffe Camera. Obviously it's a building rather than the type of camera used to take photos.


More posing in front of the "Camera"




Like Cambridge, you can also punt in Oxford


Lewis Carroll used to live near us in Guildford, but obviously he spent some time in Oxford as well, judging by the number of Alice in Wonderland shops.


No prizes for guessing the name of this pub - very popular on a Sunday


And here's a shot of the High Street - good shopping in Oxford too, in case you were wondering.

Caiti's Sports Day

Caiti had a sports day at her nursery (a.k.a pre-school or kindergarten) a while back. It was action packed with all the usual races such as the 15m sprint, but also had a few lesser known events such as the Doll Push and the Shoe Gather (definitely an event designed for females). She looks like a sprinter in the making - winning two of her events, although she might need to put in a bit more work on the Shoe Gather, where she tried to make off with the shoes rather than win the race! Enjoy the pics.


Here she is getting ready for the first race of the day - the 15m sprint.


She got off to a good start. The start is crucial in this event.


Some last minute instructions before the shoe race.


First shoe up.


Second shoe up, shoes in box, now let's nick off with them.


Runners ready.... Dollies ready... On your mark...


Edging ahead at the half-way point


Winner!

Out and About

We've got lots of pics waiting to be downloaded from our camera.... the problem is, we have one of those mega-huge memory cards that you never have to download. Anyway, we'll get around to it sooner or later, but in the meantime, here's a few pics from more of our adventures from a few months back....


Right then. This first lot are from the day Keezee had to drop Jo and her mates off at a charity run for cancer in Guildford. The girls had a lovely time and raised a few quid for a good cause. But while that was all going on, Keezee took the opportunity to try out the walking paths around nearby St Martha's Hill. The countryside around Guildford is very nice for a walk and Keezee thoroughly enjoyed his, taking a few snaps for good measure.







And next we have a few shots of one of our favourite spots to visit, Waverley Abbey, from the day we visited with Nanny Dawn. It was a hot one actually.... check out the red faces on the girls....



How's the serenity?







That was some type of WWII bomber that sailed over our heads while we were there... not sure what type, but it flew by pretty close.

The Sound of Music

These pics are a bit old - from back in May - but Lucy would be devastated if we didn't show you our adventures from the day we went into London to see The Sound of Music.

Lucy and Nana were the lucky ones with the tickets, the rest of us spent the afternoon wandering the streets looking for interesting shops (Jo), museums (Keezee) and large statues (Caiti). A good afternoon was had by all despite a gross navigational error by Keezee, as he tried to find his way back to the London Palladium Theatre for the pickup. (Let's just say, we have now seen Goodge Street tube station from every direction).



Let's start at the very beginning (a very good place to start). Here's the girls all done up like Austrian Fräuleins, getting ready to go.


We love going into London for the day, getting a good seat on the train, reading the paper and then taking a photo of it all. These are a few of our favourite things.



Nana's probably not happy we've posted this pic, because she wasn't looking at the camera.... she was looking up at Big Ben, checking we weren't going to be late.


We bumped into our old mate, the bloke on the horse again.



A typical London shot... the cab, the Union Jack and the garbage truck.


We made it to the theatre with plenty of time to spare, and were delighted to find that Australia's second favourite son (after Jack 'Ruki' Baillieu), Simon Burke, was starring as The Captain.


We walked from Waterloo, but it would have been quicker to get a cab.



Keezee dragged the girls all through the British Museum, but they kept smiling regardless.



Caiti and her big statue. For the record, after this shot she decided to scream "Rooaarr" for the rest of the afternoon - brilliant!