1) Photos from Radcliffe Square
2) Photos of my room
More importantly...
3) Pictures from the EAGLE AND CHILD
4) Tolkien's Grave in Wolvercote Cemetery
The Oxford Special Extended Edition Blog Post
This is the Radcliffe Camera ("Camera" means "room" in Latin), which is the reading room of the Bodleian Library. It's one of the most iconic sites in Oxford.
This is Radcliffe Square, the home of the Camera, Saint Mary's Church, Brasenose College, and All Souls College (elite graduate school).
Saint Mary's Church, where C. S. Lewis delivered his "Weight of Glory" sermon.
These are the stairs leading up to my room.
This is my bedroom.
Shots of my living room. It was a very, very nice room.
Brasenose Lane as seen from my living room.
The Eagle and Child
I went there a total of three times. The first time was a just a walk-through on the way to the Trout Inn. I went back with some friends on Tuesday night after dinner.
The legal drinking age is 18, but I just ordered a Rose Lemonade (which tastes just like Sprite, 7UP, or any of the spin-offs). I asked the bartender if Rose Lemonade had any alcohol in it.
"Oh yeah, mate. Loads of alcohol."
"Alright then."
"You know, you're not in America anymore. You can drink alcohol."
"Yeah, I know."
So I can back to my table and told them I had a drink with 20% alcohol in it.
That explained a lot.
Tolkien's Grave
On Wednesday, I went to visit Tolkien's Grave in Wolvercote Cemetery, which is north of Brasenose College. I took a bus to "Wolvercote" and had to wander my way through the town after being dropped off in a neighborhood. After managing to not get hit by cars or buses at the roundabout (no stop signs for pedestrians to cross), I asked for directions at a BP Gas Station and went down the road to the cemetery.
Once I got to the cemetery, it took me about 30 minutes to find Tolkien's grave. I thought I knew where it was from an online map, but the map or my memory was wrong. I finally went back to the entrance of the cemetery, and that's when I found the first of many signs pointing to his grave.
It was profound (or profoundly silly of me). I spent so long looking for the way, and the directions were there all the time.
Tolkien fans have paid homage to him over the years.
If you're unfamiliar with the tale of Beren and Luthien, it's very similar to the romance between Aragorn and Arwen. The two are parallels, and aspects of the Beren-Luthien relationship foreshadow Aragorn's and Arwen's relationship, adding tension to the situation.
Luthien and Arwen were both immortal Elves who gave up their immortality to marry mortal men. If you are unfamiliar with any of this, then you need to read or watch The Lord of the Rings.
Suffice to say, it's very romantic for Tolkien to place "Luthien" under Edith's name, and "Beren" under his own.
Someone left a copy of The Fellowship of the Ring at his grave.
It was very touching to visit The Eagle and Child and Tolkien's Grave. A memorable and emotional time that I will never forget.
On Wednesday, I went to visit Tolkien's Grave in Wolvercote Cemetery, which is north of Brasenose College. I took a bus to "Wolvercote" and had to wander my way through the town after being dropped off in a neighborhood. After managing to not get hit by cars or buses at the roundabout (no stop signs for pedestrians to cross), I asked for directions at a BP Gas Station and went down the road to the cemetery.
Once I got to the cemetery, it took me about 30 minutes to find Tolkien's grave. I thought I knew where it was from an online map, but the map or my memory was wrong. I finally went back to the entrance of the cemetery, and that's when I found the first of many signs pointing to his grave.
It was profound (or profoundly silly of me). I spent so long looking for the way, and the directions were there all the time.
Tolkien fans have paid homage to him over the years.
If you're unfamiliar with the tale of Beren and Luthien, it's very similar to the romance between Aragorn and Arwen. The two are parallels, and aspects of the Beren-Luthien relationship foreshadow Aragorn's and Arwen's relationship, adding tension to the situation.
Luthien and Arwen were both immortal Elves who gave up their immortality to marry mortal men. If you are unfamiliar with any of this, then you need to read or watch The Lord of the Rings.
Suffice to say, it's very romantic for Tolkien to place "Luthien" under Edith's name, and "Beren" under his own.
Someone left a copy of The Fellowship of the Ring at his grave.
It was very touching to visit The Eagle and Child and Tolkien's Grave. A memorable and emotional time that I will never forget.
I am jealous.
ReplyDelete