A very fulfilling day-trip

This summer i took a massive (8,600 mile) road trip across America. On this trip, i drove every inch of the famous highway 101, which goes from Tacoma, Washington to San Francisco, Ca. The most beautiful feature of this drive is the famous Oregon coast, which is where the road snakes along the 50-100 foot cliffs and drops off into the sea. What i saw last friday put this to shame. For my free day, i decided to take off by myself and head down to the Southeast corner of England and see the White Cliffs of Dover. It took me a while (and a good bit of money for the train ticket) to get there, but as i arrived in Dover, my excitement began to grow. This is because as the train got closer to Dover, i began to see small outrcroppings of the famous white cliffs and the train would actually tunnel through them in places. Dover itself isnt that much to speak of. It wasn't the cleanest city, but i think that is beacsue it has a huge harbour that appears to be used most for industry. Needless to say, if you plan a trip to Dover, i would recommend only staying one night at the most, but the cliffs are worth the trip.
In order to familiarize myself with the bay, i walked out onto the longest peer i have ever seen in my entire life. I think it went almost a mile out into the bay, and offered a great view of the beginning of the cliffs and the city of Dover. I ran into an old ship captain who was fishing off of the pier. He told me of a little footpath that would take me up out of the bay and onto the top of the cliffs. i got pretty excited about this, so after a brief lunch of very fresh fish and chips, i began my hike. I really didn't know what i was getting in to.
The ascension of the cliff was a little tedious, i was not wearing any of the right clothes for a hike, but once i got to the top, i was breathless for the next 4 hours. I struck out on what looked like an ancient sheep path that walked me right along the edge of the cliffs. The sea was thundering below me against the chalky cliffs, and the sediment it eroded made the whater i milky green color. i had never seen anything look like it before. The entire time there were gulls screaming over my head and inland were herds of sheep grazing on the very green grass. I began to understand a little more the ideas of the Romantic poets. I too felt, without looking for it, rather overwhlemed by the landscape surrounding me. I felt quite small and insignificant surrounded by such incredible views. The cliffs were literally blindingly white, and i think the hike for me reached its peak when i stumbled across an old white lighthouse overlooking the English channel. My imagination ran wild with thoughts of how long it had been there and how many people had stood where i was for centuries and overlooked the Englsih Channel. This excursion proved to be quite the experience and i would recommend it to anyone. Thanks for reading the blogs, and maybe i will be able to tell some of you about it in person...

Home-Safe and Sound

Our traveling is completed and everyone is safe and sound back in the country. I must say that it is bittersweet. Everything--the beauty of the cathedrals, the greatness and antiquity of the architecture, the smell of the rain and chill of the wind, and the sinful delights of the food--was so enchanting in England; I miss it. Yet, the familiarity, comfort, and love for home and family make me pleasantly content to be back.

Two days of class remain and my last Interim term at Wofford College is over; by far it has been the best and most memorable. I have studied at Oxford, visited numerous cities, buildings, museums, the theater, and even a zoo, shopped at Harrods and side-street markets, rode on the subway, and made lasting friendships. However, perhaps the most significant “souvenir” from England is the impact that this Interim’s many situations, experiences, people, and relationships have had on my walk with Christ. I feel that my personal relationship with Jesus has been strengthened; I have a better understanding and more clarity of God’s will and His working in my life. Who could want more?

- Kimberly

London Calling

No disrespect to the Clash for stealing the name of one of your better songs, but guys, your song was aptly titled (not so much for the bitter and cynical reasons you listed in your anthem decades ago) because I think London definitely keeps calling to me!
Despite the fact that this entry is being described days after the actual events transpired, I really have to describe the impression London made on me on my first day trip into the city. It’s simply so gorgeous, so cosmopolitan, so diverse and so wonderful to wander through. Thanks to the foresight and planning of fellow classmate and Hayes Modlin, we got a fair deal on a bus to the London, and had the whole afternoon to enjoy the sights. Thanks to Hayes we got superb seating for an evening showing of Wicked, a musical about the lives and times of the witches of Oz. Hayes had wanted to see it ever so much (does that sound appropriately British?) and I’d wanted to see it ever since I read the book long ago. I’m sorry to say that in the transition from book to stage many of the more delicate themes from the novel have disappeared- no hints of religious fundamentalism, atheism, McCarthy-esque politics or other intriguing topics to tickle the cranium. But no matter- the performance was so beautiful and light-hearted, the ultimate play to see with a friend. I can’t say who enjoyed seeing Elphaba and Glinda belt it out more- I was enthralled, and Hayes hardly said a word the whole time, he was so psyched! The production design was such a highlight- All the sets and props had a mechanical aesthetic- as if inspired by the “tiktok culture” of Munchkinland and the grotesque, duplicitous, mechanized Grommetik. And the singing, oh wow, I can hardly describe it- just imagine Elphaba cast in a green and eldritch light, decrying the hypocrisy of the citizenry of Oz as she rises up in the air, broomstick in hand, winged monkeys dancing, singing in an impossibly beautiful, enchanting voice….incredible!
As much as we loved Wicked, the real highlight was for me our trip to the National Gallery. As an art history major, museums are always an understood prerequisite for any major travel experience- I’m pleased to say I had my fill of masterpieces at the Gallery. I gazed slack-jawed at della Francesca’s Baptism of Christ, I drooled over da Vinci’s cartoon of The Virgin and Child with St. Anne and John the Baptist, and generally spent three hours enjoying all the pieces in the museum. It was definitely not a bad way to start the first trip to the city!

Written by Leland Wood

Christchurch Cathedral

Canterbury is a really beautiful town to experience. The streets are quiet, the people are nice, and the Three Tuns pub has suddenly entered my top ten restaurant list, if only because the walls had quotes from Chaucer written into the woodwork. And then oc course there is the church…
Yes, I think I’ve become decided on a very momentous and possibly life-altering decision- I’m going to move to England and live in the wooden rafters of Canterbury’s gorgeous and august Christchurch Cathedral. I haven’t yet worked out the smaller details yet- How will I break into the church? Where will I sleep? How do I haul groceries, bed linens and personal items up an eight-story stone column? For that matter, how will I get myself up those massive columns? Well, no matter, I’ll learn and in no time I’ll be showing up Quasimodo with my awesome wall-scaling skills and gargoyle-communications expertise. Granted I don’t think the church has any gargoyles to talk to, but there are plenty of statues by the tombs to talk with, although I doubt they’ll have much to say…
Impracticalities aside, there is one very good reason that visitors to this sacred space never want to leave- it must surely be one of the most beautiful spaces in England, and is older by far than any sort of institution we have in the states- Our guide Paul mentioned that the church has existed in one incarnation or another since around 600 B.C., although only the quire of the church existed for sometime, until being expanded with the nave in 1377. Still, the very idea of something existing for so long, in so many forms- we have nothing so comparable here at home, nothing so grand or august- it can make a person feel very small and insignificant, just standing in that hollowed space and realizing that are institutions that have outlasted and will outlast human lives for many years. Cool stuff.
It took music to really appreciate the religious aspects of the space however, which is why I’m glad our class chose to stay for the evensong service. I admit to not being overly familiar with religious hymns, but sitting next to the choir in the carved wooden benches it was impossible not to feel a sort of spiritual emotion at the moment as the beautiful voices of the uber-perfect boy’s chorus filled our ears. Now I know why you always hear boy’s choruses in all the award-winning soundtracks and film scores- when you’ve experienced it, nothing can possibly top it. Combine the chorus with such a beautiful and solemn setting like the church and the experience becomes so moving. I felt to overwhelmed I could hardly leave my seat at the end of the service, not that I wanted to, of course. Maybe I'll just sneak back into the church one day. Beckett's dusty bones might need company!

Written by Leland Wood

Hilary's England Top Ten: Part 2

So I thought my blog entry would be relatively short since I was just listing my top ten favorite parts of my trip to England. However, I soon realized that my short blog entry had turned into a short novel. There are so many exciting things to tell about my favorite experiences, so I decided it might be best to split the blog entry in half. Now here are my top five favorite experiences from England.

5. King’s College Chapel, Cambridge

King’s College has the most elaborate and magnificent chapels of any of the colleges at either Cambridge or Oxford. Even thought it was a college chapel, it looked like a cathedral with all its intricate architecture and stained glass windows. The day was quite sunny, and we visited the chapel at the perfect time because the sunlight shone brightly through the stained glass that lined the chapel casting colors on the walls.

4. Wicked

On my last evening in London I went to see the musical Wicked with Matt Watts, Emily, and Matt Low. The show surpassed my expectations and was absolutely phenomenal! The voices and music were unbelievable, and I was so glad that we decided to spring for the tickets even though they were a little expensive. I also couldn’t help myself and bought a t-shirt after the show. It had flying monkeys on the sleeves - how could I resist!

3. Canterbury Cathedral

As I wrote about in an earlier post, the Canterbury Cathedral was absolutely amazing. All of the historical significance in such an impressive cathedral made my visit there a breath-taking experience.

2. Paul Sinclair, our fearless leader

Our trip would not have been nearly as amazing without the guidance and assistance of our guide, Paul. He knew everything about everything and made all of our class excursions much more interesting and informative. There were so many things he showed us that I would not have known to look for, and his history expertise made our experiences much more fascinating. Although I’m sure our crazy class surprised him at times with our random questions, he was always helpful and made our trips much more fun. Thanks, Paul!

1. Jane Austen letters and the St. John’s College library

My absolute favorite part of my trip to England was the opportunity to see a few original letters written by Jane Austen that were kept in the library of St. John’s College. This experience was only possible because of Paul. After discovering that a few of us were interested in Jane Austen, Paul arranged access for us to the library to see the letters. He was able to do so because he had graduated from St. John’s College and had connections with the librarian. It was an absolutely amazing experience, and I am so thankful for Paul’s generosity in going out of his way to allow us to see something so remarkable. The library itself was beautiful, and we got access to a restricted section to look at the letters. When I say restricted, I mean restricted as in there was an invisible beam on a timer that we couldn’t cross! We weren’t allowed to touch any of the books in the restricted section, of course, because they were hundreds of years old, but Paul showed us some of the more interesting ones. Jane Austen is my favorite author so seeing her original hand-written letters was incredible. Paul told us some of the interesting things about the particular letters that we were looking at (letters to her niece), and we spent a while looking at them and deciphering her handwriting. It was such a cool experience for me, one that I know I will probably never get again.

Written by: Hilary Phillips

London Zoo

In a city like London, with so much history and tons of attractions, it's a little overwhelming to try and narrow the list down to fit into just a few days. My list included popular sites like Big Ben, the London Eye, and the Palace. Also on my list of to-dos in the city was shopping (of course!). Well, I and several others decided to venture to London on Friday for our free day, and I got to see almost everything on my list that day, so I was kind of scrambling to figure out what to do with my Saturday in the city. Kimberly Smith and I decided we wanted to go shopping on Oxford Street and have High Tea at the famous Harrod's around 4 or 5. Well, when we first got to the city and got our luggage taken care of, we were given a map of the city to use by a fellow classmate. On this map there was an ad for the London Zoo. I LOVE zoos! I was immediately interested in trying to find the zoo (and a little surprised the thought hadn't crossed my mind before then), but a little worried that Kimberly, my travelling partner, wouldn't share in my enthusiasm. I mentioned the idea to her, got the general location from the man at the hotel desk, then dropped the subject.

A little while later, while we were on Oxford Street and had already done a little shopping, Kimberly said out of nowhere "let's go to the zoo." Of course I was all for it, but I was worried she was just saying that to make me happy, not because she actually wanted to go. After she reassured me that she really wanted to go, we headed for the nearest tube station. So exciting! Once we got there (after a brief detour through the Camden Town Market) there were a TON of people in line! We got our tickets, and headed inside. Immediately the beauty of the zoo was obvious. It was far enough out of the city that almost no buildings were visible. There was a green park to one side and kids soccer fields on the other. All of the habitats for the animals were nice, as well.

The first exhibit we headed for was the Gorillas, which was a new exhibit. There was a landscaped trail from which you could observe the gorillas in their habitat walking and eating and everything. Further down there were viewing windows that the gorillas could actually walk right up to (and they did!). It was really awesome to be so close to such beautiful and powerful creatures. Other animals we saw were lions, tigers, and bears -- oh my! These were all great. The lion was one of my favorites. He was so beautiful, and we couldn't help but think of Aslan. There was also an aquarium, penguins, giraffes, zebras, PEACOCKS! (I think they're so pretty), and many more. Being an animal lover, I was like a little kid the entire time, running from exhibit to exhibit with a huge smile on my face. It was definitely one of my favorite activities from the trip.

Being in the presence of such diverse wildlife and such beautiful colors and grace just makes me stand back and marvel at how awesome our God is! What a creative imagination! I'm thankful He loves us enough to give us the opportunity to observe and appreciate His masterpieces and praise Him for it. This entire trip was such a wonderful experience. The places we saw were so rich with history. I got to know a lot of new people and built relationships with people I already knew. Several friendships that were nurtured by this experience will, I believe and hope, last far into the future and have a great impact on my life. It was a wonderful group of people to travel with, and I can't imagine the trip any other way! Also the works of Lewis that we read were thought provoking and inspiring. His ideas and analogies, especially in Mere Christianity, were so basic but so great! I know that book has already touched so many lives, and it gives me a new way to reach friends who don't know the Lord but are critical of traditional ways of presenting Christian ideas. I look forward to reading much much more Lewis in the future, and also to re-reading many of the works we read for class in order to find new insights and pieces of inspiration I may have missed the first time.

Posted by Kelly Jones

Coming Home

It was time to go home.

We boarded the plane in Gatwick International Airport which is located right outside of London. We had said our goodbyes to Oxford already, and now we were saying our goodbyes to London and England. I was ready. I had a great time in England, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else in the world, but I was ready to get back to Wofford. I was ready to see my other friends again; I had about nine of them with me in England and made many others.

As I sat in my seat on the plane, I began to talk to my neighbor. Her name is Hazel, and she is an African-American woman who was raised in New York but spent most of her life in London. Hazel and I were talking about many different things when I noticed that she had a New Testament with her. I was pleasantly surprised considering how we had learned how few believers there are in England. I told her at once how I came to be in England and how we were studying C.S. Lewis in Oxford. She was very excited and we began to talk about a great number of things about Christianity in detail. We had a very long and good conversation.

As soon as our plane touched down, I began to bounce in my seat with excitement. I couldn’t wait to get off of the plane and drive back to Wofford. I said goodbye to Hazel and told her that I hoped she enjoyed her time in the states. She, in turn, told me to always carry The Message, that that should be my highest goal. I agree with her. That should be the highest goal of all Christians.

Hayes and I drove down the road from Charlotte to Spartanburg having an upbeat jam session to Dave Matthews and contemporary Christian tunes. We made it to Wild Wings for our friend Daniel West’s graduation/man party since he’s graduating after interim. We excitedly and joyously embraced our friends that we hadn’t seen in nearly two weeks, or for those who were abroad for interim, nearly two months. The chatter and swapping of stories went on for quite a long time, and it continued to Wofford when we ran into more people.

Finally I was back in my room, and I began to think of how I could stay awake long enough so that I could adjust to the time here. I realized that I didn’t want to stop seeing people, so I gathered up the gifts that I had bought and set out from Marsh, my dorm, to find the people to give to them. It didn’t take my long to find one of them because Matt Watts was standing right outside of the dorm talking to Drew Bryan when I walked out. Matt was on the trip as well, but I found a 1899 Bible in a secondhand book store and thought of no one who would appreciate it more than him. Of course he would not accept it at first, but after I talked him into taking it, I could tell that he really enjoyed getting it. This, of course, just made me enjoy giving it all the more. I got a much more enthused reaction from Mark Reynolds. Markitos, my nickname for him, is one of my best friends at Wofford, and I got him a keychain that had his family crest on the front and a short history of his surname, its meaning, and motto on the back. Mark immediately started bouncing around shouting, “It’s my keychain with my name on it! Check this out! ‘God-favoring.’ Heck yes I am!” Of course it made me all the happier that he enjoyed his gift. “Come here you!” he said to me, and as I embraced my friend I realized that C.S. Lewis was quite correct to value friendship so highly. Positive human relationships are one of the greatest things in this world and friendships are of the best of those.

I thanked God for giving me the opportunity to travel overseas, for the opportunity to deepen my faith by learning more about His servant C.S. Lewis, for getting me home safely, for the many and good friendships that he has given me at Wofford, for cleansing me of my sin through His son’s salvation that I could have friendships, and for ensuring me a place in His kingdom through that salvation. If I tried listing everything that I should be thanking God for, then I don’t know if this blog would ever end.

-Posted by Will Prosser

Hilary's England Top Ten: Part 1

Since I’ve been back, I’ve been telling my friends about all of the wonderful things I’ve done and seen in the past eleven days. I realized that I always choose the same memories to talk about, so I decided to blog about these highlights of my trip with a list of my top ten favorite England experiences.

10. Buildings and “cool old stuff” in general

One of my favorite things about Oxford and all of England in general was how beautiful the buildings were. It was amazing to me that so many of the buildings were so old yet still functional. Some of the buildings were built as early as the 13^th century!! Bath looked basically exactly as it would have in the late 18^th century, which was beautiful. I think I loved the oldness of the buildings so much because you could just see the centuries of history in their walls.

9. Scones!

The scones were delicious! One afternoon we stopped to have tea in a café. I ordered some scones with my tea, expecting them to be like scones in the U.S. (not very soft), but I was pleasantly surprised. English scones are warm and soft and wonderful! I didn’t think I would miss any British food, but I will definitely miss those delicious scones.

8. The British Museum, London

The British Museum was a history major’s dream. It was huge! There was no way that we could possibly see everything in the short two hours that we were there, but we did see some cool stuff. First, we went straight to see the Rosetta Stone, which was amazing. Then we explored more of the Egyptian artifacts, finding Cleopatra along the way. We also ventured through Greek and Roman history and a bit of Medieval England. As a history major, I was like a child in a candy shop, completely amazed by everything around me. I only wish we would’ve had more time to explore the museum.

7. The Royal Crescent, Bath

The Royal Crescent was a semi-circle of houses that were built in Bath in the late 18^th century. However, they weren’t just ordinary houses, they were tall, three-story, beautiful limestone buildings that had housed the affluent British citizens of Bath since the late 1700’s. Besides its architectural grandeur, the Royal Crescent also held significance for me because many parts of Jane Austen’s novels took place in Bath and some of the characters lived at the Royal Crescent. It was really interesting to me to see a specific place that Jane Austen (my favorite fiction author) wrote about so often.

6. Punting in Cambridge

You may be wondering, what is punting? Well, a punt is a long, often rectangular-shaped boat in which a person uses a tall pole to propel the boat through the water. As someone put it, punts are “like Venetian gondolas just without the singing.” We took a punting tour down the river in Cambridge that passed by many of the Cambridge colleges. I think what made our punting experience most fun was that our guide, Justin, was very talkative and willing to joke around with us – he didn’t seem to feel too awkward by our ridiculous questions and random comments.

Written by: Hilary Phillips

Visiting Jack’s Old Stomping Ground

On Tuesday, our class was lead by our dear and faithful guide, Paul, to The Kilns, Lewis’ home, and Holy Trinity Church, where he and his brother were faithful members. Reading Lewis’ essays and letters while we were still in Spartanburg helped me to get a grasp on his beliefs and even his personality. Yet seeing his home and where he worshipped was very special to me. We were guided around his house by a lovely lady from North Carolina (it was so refreshing for our class to hear another Southern accent!). She pointed out where Lewis wrote many of his correspondents, the pond Lewis bathed in every morning, even in the freezing weather, what rooms his wife, Joy, redecorated upon moving into the Kilns, and the little garden where they visited on countless afternoons. Being able to walk around his home and sit in the same pew that he did every Sunday morning allowed me to really feel connected to this great man. Hearing countless examples of how Lewis affected his audiences’ lives, and even seeing his impact on our class and me personally has been one of the most rewarding parts of this class. Being able to physically walk around where he worked and lived on a daily basis was surreal. C.S. Lewis, better known to his friends and family as “Jack”, was a profound writer who led a simple life; witnessing that lifestyle was truly a treat for me.

Written by: Leanne Brinson

Our Story to Tell

So, we’re back from England (so sad!! I’m already excited about visiting again!), and I can’t help but smile and laugh about our different adventures from the trip. As Mrs. Perry (aka Mama Bonnie) said, “When things go wrong, we always have a story to tell.” Well, we definitely have some stories to tell… Our first free afternoon, Katie, Jeff, Will, Chris, and I took the train from Oxford to London. Once we were in the city, we had to take the Tube from one side of London to the others. We managed to do this successfully all afternoon, but at the end of the night, we were late getting back to Paddington, the train station to send us back to Oxford. Needless to say, after literally running around the station for half an hour trying to decide which train was the right one for us, I got upset. We probably looked like the family from “Home Alone” running through the airport trying to make their flight. But the guys finally found the right train and we were on our way to Oxford. To top off the night’s excursion, the buses back to the Logan House were no longer running when we returned. Poor Valerie (who had gone to Basingstoke to visit a family friend) had been standing on the street corner for what seemed to her an eternity… especially after guys asked her why she was just hanging out on a street corner… waiting for us and a bus to the house. Well, after waiting with her for awhile, the girls and Chris decided to take a cab, which was thankfully only a few pounds, back to the house, and the other guys hiked the distance. I was never so excited to see the front door of our dorm.

And while that night ranks high among our adventures, it doesn’t compare to the girls’ hotel in London… our bus from Oxford to London (which departed Oxford at the bright and early time of 7:30 a.m.) dropped the boys off at their hotel first. They were excited to see a four-star hotel decorated with chandeliers, flat-screen TV’s, two double beds per room, etc. And we were happy for them for about… two minutes. That’s when the bus drove up to the girls’ hotel. From the outside, it didn’t look too bad. But when we walked in, we were directed down a flight of stairs about two feet wide (our suitcases barely fit) to store our luggage in a basement restaurant since our rooms weren’t ready. The restaurant was beautifully decorated with glitter paint on the walls and ripped, sheer “curtains” along one mirrored wall. After a long debate of whether or not it was safe to leave our luggage, we finally ventured out of the hotel and into London. A few hours later, I called my roommate, Valerie, to see if she had checked into our room. She had. Valerie was excited to tell me we had a super-king sized bed (a double and twin bed pushed together), a refrigerator (a step on the fire escape outside our window), a mini bar (the shelf in the window where we kept our water bottles), and tons of space for our luggage (about 16 sq ft since our room was only as wide as the length of the beds). Once our bags were opened, we had about 2 sq feet since Katie’s, Valerie’s and my bags all “threw up” our clothes everywhere. But, I can honestly say the accommodations didn’t spoil our fun. We made the most of it and had one of the best nights of our trip. After an evening full of London nightlife, yummy food, perfect fellowship, and millions of laughs, we settled down under our furry, yet threadbare blankets for a wonderful night of sleep. I only wish we thought to take pictures of this lovely establishment…

Written by: Leanne Brinson

Woodstock Mafia

Sorry about the lateness of this blog, but I hope you enjoy it all the same.

On our free afternoon on Wednesday, Becky, Jessie, Alyse, Hayes, Dr. Swicegood, and I decided to go see Blenheim Palace. “That’s where Winston Churchill was born!” as Jessie was prone to repeating throughout the day in her excitement. Blenheim lies on the outskirts of Oxford (so much so that our bus passes are not supposed to be able to get us there but the bus driver didn’t so anything so we didn’t either). After our lecture we went to the city center to find a bus stop that would take us to Woodstock, the section of town that Blenheim is in. After Alyse, the class mom for the trip, found the bus stop, we waited for and got on the bus after it arrived.

As we got on the bus, I noticed that there was a mother in one of the seats holding her little boy, who I guessed to be around eighteen months old, and I heard Jessie remark about how cute he was. After we had ridden the bus for five minutes or so, I was jerked out of my reverie by the child’s laughter. His face was the epitome of happiness as he gazed beyond me at the object of his merriment, and I looked back to see what it was. Hayes was playing peek-a-boo with the little boy by hiding his face in his trench coat and then suddenly pulling out of it again. This went on for a little while when for some strange reason the child turned his face towards me in what seemed to be an invitation to play. I broke out in the biggest smile I could muster, and the little boy rolled with peals of delighted laughter (apparently my smile is funny, haha). Then I gave him a face of surprise, which just amused him all the more, and I could hear Jessie and Hayes amused chuckling behind me at my playing with the child. Suddenly he pulled away and put his face on the other side of his mother’s, and then he came back to the side facing me squealing with joy. I realized with a start of amusement that he was playing peek-a-boo with me, so the next time he put his face on the other side of his mother’s, I went with him with a smile. I thought his laughter would roll on forever, and I continued to play with him until our stop came just so I could hear it. As we got off of the bus, I heard Dr. Swicegood say, “There is no more wonderful sound in this world than a child’s laughter.” I couldn’t agree more.

After we got off of the bus, we began asking the locals about the “super duper secret passageway” which just amused them. After a few repeated tries with no success, I stepped into a quaint restaurant called the Blenheim Guest House and Tea Rooms. I went to the kitchen, and asked where we could find the Black Swan, the pub that is supposedly beside the passageway. I was quickly informed that there was no Black Swan, but then told how I could find the Black Prince. I came out to tell my companions how to get there, and they had decided while I was away to have lunch in the Blenheim Guest House, which was fine by me.

We soon sat down at a table and ordered our meal, and started doing what all friends do while sharing a meal, making conversation and cracking jokes. In between the laughter and the sharing of stories, I quickly realized how much I enjoyed these times of fellowship among friends on this trip. They came so easily, and there was no pressure or demanding involved in them. I could see how the highlight of C.S. Lewis’s week were those nights he spent with the Inklings in the pub and his rooms at Oxford. I understood why Lewis described those moments of enjoying a child’s laughter or time with friends as simple joy with no pretensions. Those things are God’s gift to us to show us how things will be in his kingdom in heaven.

To drive this point home, a group of about a dozen elderly women walked through the door chattering excitedly amongst each other. Dr. Swicegood mentioned something about this probably being the “red hat society,” implying to the effect that they came together often. “How great would that be,” I thought, “to spend your days just hanging out with friends.” The ladies began pulling tables together so that they can sit with one another, so Hayes and I got up to help them. The women were extremely delighted with us, for it was obvious that getting help from complete strangers was something out of the ordinary for them. “Would you care to join us? Would you care to join us?” they jokingly asked us.

As we were getting up to leave, Jessie looked at Hayes and I and said, “Ask if you can get a picture with them,” so Hayes and I did so. This amused them to no end, and a very brusque one asked me, “Young man why exactly do you want our picture.” After I explained to them about the blog and our trip, they were very flattered. I asked them, “So who exactly are you?” One of the ladies answered, “Well we are called the Golden Girls of Woodstock, and we come together to have lunch and chat about once a week. Just a little informal society. Yes, we used to be called the Woodstock Mafia, but we lost our dark glasses. Now we are the Golden Girls.” We took the picture and the Golden Girls of Woodstock wished us well on the rest of our trip. As I walked out of the Blenheim Guest House, I realized that the afternoon had been memorable and well spent, and we had not even reached Blenheim Palace yet!

-Posted by Will Prosser

Reflections on Oxford

I was really surprised at how people cared about American politics. Paul knew much more about US politics than I did and I would not be surprised if he knew more than any one person on the trip. Will, Matt, and I had a interesting conversation with him over a pint about some of his views in comparison to ours. He claimed to be liberal in many ways but I was surprised to find out that he did not think we should model a health care system in the US after the UK's. He thought that all Americans should have health care but at the same time he did not have an answer to the problem. He threw out the statistic that the health care system in the UK is the second largest single employer in the world next to the Chinese army. This statistic is scary. What would a universal health care system in the US with many more people turn in to?

One night we had dinner at a pub and Becky, myself, and others were lucky enough to have a long conversation with a guy who claimed to be named Robert. He had many interesting stories and it was fun to compare life in the US with his. He talked of some feelings some people have toward Americans but he was more interested in literature. Becky was definitely able to impress him with her interests and knowledge in that area. I am glad that job was not left up to me. Once he learned I was a finance major he told an interesting story about JP Morgan and how he inherited his initial fortune. Robert was an interesting guy. I got the feeling he was from old money in England because he did not claim to really have a job and his great grandmother donated the original building for the US embassy.

I was really impressed with the overall trip and the way in which were able to focus on C.S. Lewis acidemically and also have a very enjoyable experience. We had a really great group and in my opinion we all got along well. This was my first time traveling to Europe and I would have to say I am glad I went. It was only a taste of what Oxford has to offer and I look forward to traveling back in the future

Christ Church

Will, Allison, Alex, and I visited Christ Church one afternoon for what we thought was going to be a quick walk though but it ended up taking over three hours. When we first arrived the dining hall was closed because it was lunch time. This was supposedly the biggest attraction since it is where Harry Potter was filmed but after visiting I was more impressed with the chapel and the rest of the grounds.

We walked around the Chapel at Christ Church for a few minutes and Will and I sat while the girls talked to a lady who was working on something in the back. Will and I decided to finally go pull the two girls away from the conversation but we soon realized that the lady was actually working on a tapestry over 500 years old. It was really interested to see how she worked to maintain the original form of the cloth. She actually took us up to another workroom where there was more of the same tapestries that had been redone. After we told the ladies in the workroom about our interests in C.S. Lewis and the purpose for the trip, one lady sat up and told us that we had to meet Caroline. Caroline is the daughter of the priest who married Lewis and Joy in the hospital. Caroline appeared to have dementia of some sort but she did recall meeting Lewis on one occasion. Meeting Caroline made the excursion to Christ Church worth while and it was also a beautiful campus.

Afternoon in London

Jeff, Will Mann, Leanne, Katie, and I traveled to London for the first free afternoon. It turned out to be a quick but fun afternoon. A side note about traveling to London for the day- aways take the train and make sure that it is a day pass for the tube (subway) as well. In addition, travel in groups of 4 because the discount is worth it.




Jeff, Leanne, Katie, and I decided to take the tube to Westminster while Will did some quick shopping. We all made fun of Will for shopping while in London but I have to admit he did find a deal and I actually bought some clothes for myself when we went back. Upon arriving, we were all in awe because as you exit the tube Big Ben is roughly twenty yards on your right and the river is not far on the left. I think we took over 30 minutes just taking pictures when we first arrived. The first activity was The London Eye. It was pretty fun and Jeff and I were able to talk Leanne and Katie into believing that we could see the Eiffel Tower from the top. Jeff was also the subject of a joke when a security guard told him he thought he had a gun. The eye is well worth the money.

Will rejoined us and the group decided to do something less touristy. We all visited Parliament for a brief sitting for the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The guards were overall very rude. It was interesting to see how they could be so polite and rude at the same time. In the House of Commons they were debating the issue of the stole laptop computer that contained all the security information for hundreds of people. It was neat to see what they had to say since we had all heard of the stolen laptop on the news a few days earlier. In the House of Lords they were debating an aspect of stem cell research. It was hard to understand but I think it dealt mainly with the use of the diseased for research who had given consent to donate their organs.

The night ended with a nice meal at an Italian restaurant.

Airport Entertainment

(no names were mentioned in order to protect the identity of certain individuals—but check out the picture!)

It seems that as college students we are not sure what to do with free time. We are not used to having it, you see? Normally, our days are full of classes, studying, complaining about Burwell, clubs, sports, and sometimes on occasion sleep. This made the few hours of free time that we had in the airport before our flight left London-Gatwick to Charlotte quite an interesting experience. After many of the students had done all that they needed to do to prepare for the flight, such as 1) drink as much coffee as possible in order to stay awake or the alternative of taking enough Dramamine or Simply Sleep to make sure that nothing could bother them on the flight back 2) make sure they had gone to the restroom at least twice to make sure that they would not have to use the dreaded airplane toilet until it became absolutely necessary 3) spend every last English pound on anything and everything—even it was completely ridiculous, like four pounds (or $8.00+) for a pack of mints! With all that said, since we arrived at our departure gate a couple hours ahead of time, there was still plenty of time to waste. Unfortunately, as Wofford students, we are ill trained when it comes to free time, and I imagine that some of the native Brits just thought we were nuts. I have to admit, though, that it was probably a legitimate assumption seeing as there were six students playing a game called “Hot Potato” with a bottle of Sparkling water, which became somewhat violent. Then these concerned natives scanned the terminal for the “responsible adult” in charge of the students who were about to cause some major damage to the airport if not to each other. What they found instead was more interesting entertainment. The “responsible adult” and three other students had their heads in a kiddie play boat and were holding themselves upside down. At this sight, most of the Brits shook their heads and turned around, giving up all hope of trying to find the slightest bit of sanity in any of these American students and professors. In conclusions, a note to all Wofford professors: keep the work coming. Otherwise, you never know what the Wofford Ambassadors will find themselves explaining when they are giving tours to prospective students!


Written by: Valerie Tyndall

London Here We Come!

After spending over a week traveling and exploring the areas around Oxford, we spent our last two days in London. Friday morning a group of us woke early to catch the train to London. After an hour train ride we finally arrived in London and bustled onto the tube to Westminster Abbey – my first tube ride ever, very exciting! When we walked up the stairs out of the station I turned around to find Big Ben towering in front of me. Big Ben resides on the corner of Parliament, which was probably my favorite building of the whole trip. The grandness and intricacy of the medieval architecture here in Britain has absolutely astounded me. When you walk into the Canterbury Cathedral or Bath Abbey you are staggered by its beauty. The Parliament building definitely exceeded my expectations as well. Not until we walked onto the bridge to take pictures could we see how massive the structure really was.

After taking pictures of Big Ben we walked over to Westminster Abbey, which was also spectacularly beautiful. Here the group decided to split. Dr. Swicegood, Becky, Alyse, Kimberly and Kelly wanted to explore the inside of the Abbey, while Matt Watts, Hilary, Jessie, Will Prosser, Hayes, Matt Low and myself walked on to see Buckingham Palace. I was quite disappointed not to see the infamous guards with the funny hats standing at the gate, but we still got some interesting pictures. If you want to know what I mean by “interesting” you’ll have to ask the boys. We then took a lovely stroll through the park on our way to the British Museum. The British Museum absolutely amazed me! The enormous museum housed artifacts from almost every time period and from every continent. My two favorite exhibits included the Rosetta Stone and mummified Cleopatra. We only had a couple of hours to explore, so we were only able to get a glimpse of the museum’s treasures. We had to leave London fairly early that day to catch the train back to Oxford in time for the farewell dinner IES hosted for the class. After a pleasant dinner at St. Clare’s we made our way back to Logan House with full tummies and heavy eyelids. That night I packed my things and soon went to bed because the bus was scheduled to pick us up at 7:30 the next morning. Saturday was another busy day in London. After dropping our luggage off at the hotel, Matt Low, Jessie, Leland and I took the tube to the London Eye. For those of you who don’t know, the London Eye is very much like a gigantic ferris wheel, but instead of having small cars, the London Eye carries passengers around in large glass pods. There were about fifteen people in our pod, but there was plenty of room to maneuver. The London Eye gave us a spectacular view of London. I don’t think I realized before how huge London actually is! After our thirty minute ride around the London Eye we met some others at the London Bridge. All I could think of while crossing the bridge was the children’s rhyme, “London Bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down…” I couldn’t help thinking to myself, I sure hope the London Bridge doesn’t decide to fall down while I’m standing on it! The London Bridge itself is not that exciting, but standing on it provides an excellent view of the London Tower Bridge, which is quite beautiful.We then took the tube to Camden Town where we grabbed a quick bite to eat. Camden Town was an interesting experience. The streets were lined with booths and tents of merchandise, mostly clothes, hats, and the occasional body piercing shop - we didn’t feel the need to explore those any further.

Saturday night was perhaps my favorite evening of the trip. Hilary and Matt Watts had spent most of the morning searching for tickets to the musical Wicked, which was extremely generous of them! The tickets were a little expensive, but completely worth it! As Hayes has already described, the show was amazing. The set was dazzling, and the music inspiring. Every time Elphaba sang I got goosebumps! I found the storyline very intriguing as well. All four of us (Hilary, Matt Watts, Matt Low and myself) enjoyed the show immensely and I would recommend it to anyone interested in musicals!

Sunday morning we awoke quite early to make our way to the airport. The bus picked us up around 7:00 AM and took us to Gatwick Airport. The airport was enormous and quite crowded. We didn’t have any trouble getting through security except when Hilary and I both set off the metal detectors. I have no idea how we managed to set them off, but we did, and the consequence – frisking. That’s right folks, Hilary and I were fully frisked by a strange British woman. I’m not going to lie, I felt a little bit violated, but at least it makes for an interesting story! Following the frisking we sat around in the airport until our flight left at 11:40AM. After almost nine hours in flight, we finally arrived back in the States. Traveling to England gave me an unforgettable experience, but I am very glad to be home!

Friday, January 25th (this was written by Leanne and Jeff)

On Friday, We (Jeff and Leanne) had a much different adventure than many of our classmates. Jeff had an interview and a tour with a Reinsurance company in London. We ventured to London and took the Central line to the Aldgate station where we were greeted by Mr. Vince Rossi, a broker for Arthur J. Gallagher. We first took a small tour and visited with members of the Gallagher office, but soon after Mr. Rossi decided to take us to Lloyd's of London. Lloyd's is an interesting building because it houses many underwriters that write insurance risks for other brokers. Essentially, Lloyd's is the stock market of insurance. Lloyd's is not a company itself, but house many desks/cubicules/sections in which other insurance companies (Catlin, AIG Europe, etc..) place underwriters. This is unique because it is a method of business that is still very personal and face to face, in which many other places in the world do this method of business electronically. After witnessing a transaction between a Mr. Rossi and an underwrite, our tour of Lloyd's had concluded. Not to soon after we met with a Reinsurance broker of Arthur J. Gallagher, Danny Driscoll. Mr. Driscoll and Mr. Rossi took us out to lunch where many different conversations took place (from Insurance/Reinsurance information to some awful trips and flights that they had been on). After our long lunch, Mr. Rossi parted with us to go back to work, and Mr. Driscoll decided enough with insurance talks, and showed us around London. We ventured to St. Paul's, the Bank of England, and other sections of the City of London. This was a lot of fun and made for a full day. Needless to say both of our feet hurt badly because Leanne was in high heels and I was in dress shoes, so all the walking was quite painful but well worth it. We soon later departed from London to go back to Oxford for a farewell dinner at St. Claires. The dinner was very enjoyable and it was the first time we both became saddened that our trip would soon be coming to an end. To end the night we decided to go to a pub one last time and say goodbye to Oxford in proper fashion. Cheers!

Written by: Jeff Parrish and Leanne Brinson

Second free afternoon, Wednesday 23rd

After a short class session, I decided to venture into the City Centre of Oxford by myself for a little while. I think this day was important for me. To walk around a place by yourself allows you to view things with a different perspective, and can lead to new adventures or discoveries. I walked through many alleyways and streets that I had not been down yet. After some time of walking around, Leanne met up with me and we went into the Asmolean museum. Seeing the artifacts and fossils from Ancient Egypt were very interesting, and it made me realize that my favorite part of our trip is seeing firsthand the age and history of so many different things (from architecture to individual artifacts). After the museum Leanne and I ventured up to the top of one of the towers of one of the churches (St. Mary's? name?), and from there we could see so much of Oxford. After that it was a pretty relaxing evening and ended with a fun filled night of Trivial Pursuit at the Logan House.

Written by: Jeff Parrish

January 21, 2008 First Free Afternoon

After a short class discussion, Leanne, Chris, Katie, Will, and I were the first people to venture to London. This was quite an interesting experience starting with the train station. When we arrived in Paddington station, we were all excited, but caught off guard by its size and activity. Once we actually figured out how to find the underground tube (which believe should not have been a long process but was), we headed towards Westminster. When we arrived at Westminster we first "minded the gap", and headed towards the way out. We chose the exit that went towards Parliament, and what we saw next was quite a sight. We were all talking as we went up the stairs and the first thing we saw straight in front of us was the the Westminster bridge and the London eye. Both really neat, but not near as beautiful as a sight as the large structure directly behind us. We all turned in awe as we were staring at Big Ben and Parliament not but 100 yards behind us. We all agreed we would ride the London eye first, but it took thirty minutes for us to even cross the bridge as we stared and took pictures with Big Ben in the background. After riding the London eye, we decided to see if we could enter Parliament. We went through security, and listened to debates in the House of Commons and the House of Lords (both of which we quite an interesting process). After that we had dinner at an Italian place (which was great!) and then we walked around Picadilly Circus and wound up in a pub for a little while. Everyone was friendly and it ended up being a great day.

Written by: Jeff Parrish

Reflections on my first trip to England…

As I wrote in a previous post, my only regret was not bringing my laptop. I feel that it would have been much easier to write more detailed posts if I had been able to do it the same day. However, I think the trip was filled with many firsts and many memories I will never forget. Before this trip, I had never even flown without my family, so it was a completely new experience for me. Also, this interim exposed me to another side of C.S. Lewis; one which was completely unknown to me before January. As a child, I read The Chronicles of Narnia, and I thought (ignorantly) that was all there was to C.S. Lewis. His knowledge of literature is the one thing that completely astonishes me. The fact that his primary academic work was on medieval literature shocked me. Who wants to read that stuff anyways? Visiting Oxford and seeing the college where he tutored and lectured allowed me to understand more about the academic and social influences under which he wrote. I found Dr. Tonning’s lecture very interesting because instead of focusing solely on Lewis, she focused more on his academic and intellectual influences. I think she gave us a better idea of why he wrote in a certain manner and why he approached difficult issues in a certain fashion. Instead of trying to analyze and break down his work, she presented our class with possible reasons why he wrote different books. In the bigger picture, I thought it was crazy that we were able to hear lectures from two different Oxford professors! How many people who don’t attend Oxford are actually given that opportunity? At the beginning of interim, C.S. Lewis was a complete enigma to me. I couldn’t understand how all his works fit together, and I didn’t know why his range of writing was so broad and seemingly unconnected. I certainly don’t think I have all the answers now, but I have a much better understanding of the way Lewis’s mind worked. The books, lectures, and my peers’ insight have all allowed me to see his work in a completely new light. I learned that Lewis wrote to evoke the senses and to appeal to the masses. Of course, I don’t mean that in the Hollywood sense. I mean that he wrote in such a way that most anyone could read his works and understand his thoughts and perspectives. While I very much enjoyed learning about C.S. Lewis, I also greatly appreciated our free days and free afternoons. I loved going into London and exploring the city. I also enjoyed our excursions to both Canterbury and Bath. I have always wanted to see Canterbury Cathedral in person, and I was finally given the opportunity on this trip! While I admit checking into our London hotel was quite an adventure, it brought many great stories with it!

Written by: Katie Brown

An afternoon in Oxford…

As a huge Harry Potter fan, visiting Christ Church in Oxford was at the very top of my to-do list. The dining hall of the college is used in the Harry Potter movies as the dining hall of Hogwarts! The “houses” in the books are based on the different colleges of Oxford. After our morning lecture, Valerie and I headed back to Logan House to change clothes and layer up for the cold and windy day. We got on the bus and made our way to the city center. After doing a little shopping, we decided to get a bite to eat at a restaurant called All Bar One. After our delicious lunch, we walked to the entrance of Christ Church. We first tried to sneak in a different entrance without paying the admission fee, but our plan was quickly foiled by a guard. The first highlight of the tour was the dining hall! The dining hall and its secret corridor also served as inspiration for Alice in Wonderland! It was unbelievable to think that college students actually ate in the dining hall because it seemed more like a museum than a functional dining facility. After the dining hall, we visited the cathedral. A choir from a university in the United States was performing, so we stayed for a bit to listen to them. After the cathedral, we walked around the campus and saw all the different buildings. After leaving Christ Church, we decided to visit Blackwell’s. Blackwell’s is one of the biggest and most well known bookstores in all of England. From the outside it doesn’t look very big, but it’s really overwhelming when you walk inside. There are three floors full of books on every subject you can think of. The top floor is filled with second-hand books that are available for a reduced price, as well as a few leather chairs for those who wish to relax with a good book. There, we ran into Dr. Swicegood, and he directed us to a shelf with a few of C.S. Lewis’s books on education. Some other people from our group had found all the good books the previous day.

Written by: Katie Brown

Our first adventure in London

I would have to say that my only regret from the trip to the UK was deciding not to take my laptop. It might not be the most ideal situation, but my blog posts will all be made from in the U.S. Although I'm currently back at Wofford, sitting at my desk in my cube, I would like to reflect on one of my favorite and most memorable experiences of the trip to England. Our first free day was Monday afternoon, and I really didn't have any plans until after our morning lecture. Leanne, Jeff, Chris, Will, and I decided to venture into London for the afternoon. Little did I know how much of an adventure it would turn out to be! Right after lunch, we made our way to the train station, which is about a ten minute walk from the city center of Oxford. There, we purchased our tickets and decided we would probably return around 10:30 or 11:00. After looking over our maps and Frommers' guides, we decided to center our visit on Westminster and the London Eye. After arriving at Paddington Station, we made our way to the "tube" for the first time! At first glance, the map of the tube seemed like some sort of complicated geometry. I'm directionally challenged, to put it lightly. However, we did make it to the correct stop at Westminster without any major problems. As we emerged from the underground, Leanne and I saw our first glimpse of sunlight since arriving in England. Of course we were excited to be in London, but we were even more ecstatic that we wouldn't have to break out the umbrellas! The view of the city as soon as we reached the top of the steps was absolutely overwhelming. Behind us stood Big Ben and Parliament, and directly in front of us, across the bridge, was the London Eye. After getting over our initial shock, we bought our tickets for the London Eye. The view from the top was astonishing, and we could see almost the entire city. We then visited Parliament and sat in on a session of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. While I wasn't very familiar with the issues they were debating, the fact that we were sitting in on a session of British Parliament was awesome! Westminster Abbey was closed, so we decided to head to dinner after taking a few pictures. We took the tube to Piccadilly Circus (or maybe Oxford Circus, I can't remember) and had dinner at a very nice Italian restaurant. After dinner we walked around and decided to visit a nearby pub. Around 10:45, we decided to leave for the train station in order to make the last train to Oxford. Unfortunately, we didn't remember that we had to make 2 changes on the tube. We frantically ran from location to location and finally reached Paddington only to realize that the train had just left. Imagine the looks on our faces when we realized the consequences! However, luck must have been on our side because we talked to a man who told us that one more train would be leaving for Oxford that night. It's always interesting to me that the most challenging and difficult circumstances make for the best stories, but I'm glad we weren't left on our own to find another way back to Oxford!

Written by: Katie Brown

CHECK OUT MORE PHOTOS!!!

Yes, they have arrived! In addition to these great epics and stories we have a collection of photos to show you a little more of our experience. Here it is:

http://www.woffordoxfordphotos.blogspot.com


ENJOY!

-Matt Watts

A Real Live Exorcism, and Fairy Tale Heroism!

Warning: if you have a weak stomach or are easily disgusted by bodily fluids and functions, please continue to next blog.

This is a true story!

Once upon a lovely afternoon, Dr. Swicegood, Kelly, and Kimberly dined together at Turf’s Tavern (THE pub of Oxford). Dr. Swicegood ordered a delicious steak and ale pie which he graciously shared with his “little duckies”. Kimberly ordered a jacket (commonly known to you Americans as a baked potato with cheese and beans) sharing it with both of her companions as well. Kelly indulged her taste buds with a ham, chicken, and leek pie—quite delicious. Dr. Swicegood and Kimberly split an apple pie a la mode.

(picture of the wonderful dessert!)
Upon hours of shopping and site-seeing, a ferocious demonic presence was sensed within the walls of Logan House and a real exorcism ensued. It was obvious that Kimberly was filled with the evil-blood and her body had to be purged of her inner demon. “Move” shouted the rasping little devil as it body-slammed Kelly away from the bathroom door…”Sorry” squeaked Kimberly as she braced herself against the cold prison-like walls. As the demon violently burst forth from the pit of her stomach and out into the world through her pale chapped lips, Kimberly’s strength was ripped from her frail body. She collapsed onto the floor whimpering and gasping for air, but was soothed by the cool cloth provided by her guardian angel (aka Kelly, who had by now had wrestled her way back to the aid of the damsel in distress). [20 minutes elapsed]. Thinking that all was cleansed, Kelly and Kimberly joined the group for a movie; little did they know that the night had just begun. It was then that Kimberly, shaking and shivering, could no longer contain the remnants of the barbaric beast. Nearly dying, she was ushered back to her room to be buried in blankets and drugged with Pepto-Bismol, ibuprofen, and black tea. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to the group, Dr. Swicegood was battling the demon himself and sacrificed his own health for the wee little ducky, praying that the demon would leave her and inhabit his own body…


IT DID!!!

For three days, the battle drug on with no signs of who would come out victorious. Just when all hope seemed lost and Mama Bonnie was prepared to the aid of the town’s leading healers, Dr Swicegood emerged the champion warrior. He saved her life and gave her world-renown fame all in one; the beast was too much of a burden for the girl to carry alone and so Dr. Swicegood shared it with her. He also enabled her to infamously and proudly proclaim “I barfed in CS Lewis’ toilet!” during their next Oxford exploration. In conclusion, be assured that all demons are no longer present, all food is being processed and enjoyed (except for the occasional irritations brought on by Cornish pastry smells), and Kelly Jones inevitably is an ironclad goddess gladiator of the evil demon spirits of the British underworld and unaffected by all attempts at human defeat. (Of this last statement, Kelly suggests it might be a slight “bending” of the truth).

Stay tuned for the next installments of Wofford Oxford Interim Blogs!

Posted by Kimberly Smith and Kelly Jones

Wofford Oxford Photos!

See more of our students' TOP 10 Photos from our trip at:

http://www.woffordoxfordphotos.blogspot.com/

Thanks!

-Matt Watts

Alex's Favorite Photos

After a fun-filled trip and a very full memory card I thought it would be a good idea to compile some of my favorite photographs from the U.K.


The funniest picture ever...Bath Abbey.


Tree lined road in Canterbury.


Valerie and Christine being silly at our farewell dinner in Oxford.


My favorite part of the trip, Paul Sinclair.


In turmoil on the London Eye.


Big Ben and the London Eye in London.


The first day we saw light shine through stained glass windows. King's College chapel in Cambridge.


Harry Potter dining hall at Ch. Ch.!


The ceiling of Ch. Ch. Chapel in Oxford. Here Allyson, Will, Chris and I met the daughter of the man that blessed the marriage of C.S. Lewis and Joy after Joy had been diagnosed with cancer.


Tom Quad at Christ Church College (or Ch. Ch.) in Oxford.


Christ Church College in Oxford.


Chris enjoying the Lewis life at The Kilns.


C.S. Lewis's garden at The Kilns.


Canturbury Cathedral at night.


The "quadrangle" at St. John's College in Oxford.