For the winter holidays this year, my brother visited from the States. He’s also a Duke medical student, currently on his third (research) year. We did a bit of local touring in Oxford and London with Evan and her sister Lena, had Christmas dinner with Elo and Richard, and then set off to visit our cousin in Italy. Pictures from Italy will be in a post to follow, but below are some of the Oxford and London adventures.
This autumn and winter so far have been weather adventures. The story of autumn was one of flooding. Heavy rains throughout Michaelmas term in addition to construction at Hinksey Weir lead to consistently red and amber flags for most of the term. Just as things were starting to calm down in time for Christ Church Regatta, heavy downpours on already-saturated ground of the northwest Thames catchment area lead to flooding more extreme than that seen in 2007. Many boathouses were flooded, and even University squads had to find alternative places to row.
December so far has been dry but beautiful: an early dusting of snow combined with unseasonably cold temperatures have lead to a winter wonderland feel in northern Oxford, including the University Parks. Unfortunately the centre city area remains mostly snow-free, so no pictures of glittering old colleges this time.
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Each year, Wolfson College hosts a lovely Winter Ball. This year the theme was Venetian Masquerade, and the evening included a formal dinner, live bands and dancing, various bars and food, laser tag, and silent disco. The ball is always a magical evening, and some of it was captured by the official ball photographers, Phill Brown and Tom Rackham.
Every once in a while, minor adventures arise that result in some good pictures that aren’t quite enough to warrant their own entry. Read on to see some pictures of a visit to Bath, touring Blenheim Palace with visiting friends, the “trashing” of a friend finishing her last exam, and a couple of snapshots of Oxford.
After my parents enjoyed a bit of Summer Eights action, we set off to see my birthplace. My father was stationed at RAF Lakenheath when I was born, so I lived my first several months in Suffolk, England. With my parents as guides, we explored Lakenheath, Mildenhall, Newmarket, Stow cum Quay, and Cambridge. I was glad to see the places I’d heard so many stories about, and finally see the hoards of ducks I’d had so much fun feeding as a toddler.
We also took the chance to see The Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables on the West End.
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One fateful night in February, a huge (by UK standards) storm dumped several inches of snow on Oxford. Unable to contain our excitement, several small troupes of Wolfson students ventured out into the night to build snow-creatures of all descriptions. The next day, we returned to the great outdoors to get a glimpse of snow-covered Oxford before it all melted away.
| Over the winter, I had the chance to visit the East Coast for a couple of lab meetings at NIH.
This also gave me the opportunity to catch up with friends and family and make a couple of quick stops in New York City and Philadelphia. |
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For Bonfire Night this year, Wolfson College had not only its fantastic annual fireworks display, but also marked the groundbreaking for its new academic wing. On its completion, the wing should provide for much more communal academic work within the college, leading to collaboration of students and fellows between departments.
I watched the fireworks from a 2nd floor balcony, and was able to snap a few pictures of the college as it is rarely displayed.
In preparation for the Wolfson Winter Ball this year, some friends and I wandered Oxford taking pictures. The initial thought was that some could be made into posters and hung as backdrops to make the college bar and other areas feel a bit more festive. In the end, we made other decoration plans, but a few of the photos are here!
A favorite pastime at Oxford, Croquet is a lawn game that involves using mallets to hit balls through hoops on a flat lawn. Oxford takes this pretty seriously, and hosts the largest croquet tournament in the world each year. Below are photos of one of the many friendly matches that happen on Wolfson’s croquet lawn.
