As Dorothy said…
Today is day four of our adventure in England starting out in Oxford. We’re here due to the 2023 European Developmental Biology Congress hosted by the British Society for Developmental Biology. As Connie is the Editorial Assistant for the peer reviewed journal Developmental Dynamics, she and her Editor in Chief have a booth to promote the journal to new audiences.
I get to tag along…and the perks are pretty spectacular. The University of Oxford has 36 colleges which are independent and self-governing, having a charter approved by the Privy Council, under which it is governed by a Head of House, elected and appointed by the governing body directly. This particular conference is in Keble College, built in 1870, and it’s a stunning Neo-Gothic structure. Since we’re staying in dorm rooms with single beds, Connie and I each have our own room across the hall from each other. Here are a couple images from my bedroom window.
Although Keble has produced many notable Anglican leaders, it is no longer formally tied to the Church of England. The Chapel is open to everyone and the Chaplain provides pastoral support to all members of the College community, and is often available for people to drop in for a chat. He also runs a program of social and discussion activities for the whole College. The images below don’t come close to the experience of walking in there. All of the murals that circle the interior are made with small mosaic tiles. Simply stunning.
Our first walk on Sunday included the Radcliffe Camera, an iconic Oxford landmark and a working library, part of the central Bodleian Library complex. It’s not open to the public.
And on the walk to the Radcliffe Camera we passed the east side of Trinity College, one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1555 by Sir Thomas Pope, on land previously occupied by Durham College, home to Benedictine monks from Durham Cathedral.
We also walked by Wadham College. Founded in 1610, the College is one of the largest in Oxford with 250 graduate students and 450 undergraduates.
Did I mention we get breakfast every morning? It’s not Bobo’s but it will do…
We have also taken in the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, the Pitt Rivers Museum (which houses three stories of the most incredible and comprehensive collection of artifacts I’ve ever seen in one location), the Ashmolean Museum, and a couple pubs best known for being watering holes for CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien. I need a nap…
But first…
What an incredible trip!
The dining hall looks like it could have been the inspiration for the dining hall at Hogwarts. Cool!