Greetings all! If you’re reading this then either A.
Congratulations! You’re thinking about studying abroad in Oxford/England, or B.
You’re my mother who’s managed to find yet another way of keeping tabs on me
while I’m abroad. Hi, Mom. Yes, I’m eating well. No, I’m not coming home with a
British fiancé. Yes, we can Skype later.
It’s only been
about three weeks since I’ve arrived at the Centre for Medieval and Renaissance
Studies (CMRS, which is associated with Keble College), but I’m already quite
familiar with the streets of Oxford and I’ve even gotten a chance to explore
London for a weekend! But more on that later—let’s go back to day one.
I was the second person to arrive in my dorm, so I was
able to unpack and start exploring early in the day. The first thing I noticed
was the wildlife. In other words, PIGEONS. PIGEONS EVERYWHERE. They’re such a
problem that we have to have spikes on all of the windowsills after a
particularly adventurous birdbrain sauntered right through an open window into
the kitchen in search of a snack. They’re not as devious as the Elmhurst
squirrels, but they definitely have them beat as far as their ability to
organize an aerial attack. I really wish I was joking, but let’s just say,
after arriving in England your first order of business should be investing in a
quality umbrella… and not just because of the rain…
Speaking of which, we’ve been quite lucky here. It’s been
sunny the past couple of weeks which is unusual for Oxford. It has been raining
on and off but nothing more than a light sun shower here and there. But remember,
your umbrella will be your best friend while you’re here. That, and your Bod
card.
The Bod card is your way of access to the Bodleian
Library, which is perhaps the biggest and most beautiful library in the world.
They receive something like a thousand new books every single day, so if you’re
a bookworm like me, a trip to the Bod is like reaching Nerd Nirvana. Unfortunately
they don’t allow pictures inside, but if you’ve seen that one scene in Harry
Potter where Harry’s sneaking through the library in the middle of the night,
then you’ve seen the Bod.
Another connection to Harry Potter—my head tutor, Dr.
Bernard Gowers, worked on the set while they were filming in Oxford! He was the
official owl sitter. He’s also a delightfully quirky person who really goes out
of his way to make sure everyone is adjusting smoothly to life in Oxford. In
fact, that’s been consistent with all of my tutors here. They genuinely care
for their students’ mental health just as much as they do for their academic
success, if not even more so. It’s definitely a change from the states, where everyone
lives to work. Here, people work to live. They take the time to actually relax
during meal times, and finding a balance between work and pleasure is highly
valued in British culture. Don’t get me wrong, the tutors here expect a lot
from you (they ARE Oxford professors, after all), but they also don’t want you
to be so work-oriented that you miss out on exploring the incredibly beautiful
city.
Of course, you cannot go to England without visiting
London. I could easily write five more blog posts about my weekend there, but
I’ll keep it short and sweet: don’t miss out! Take a bus and just adventure for
the day! Exploring the city was like living inside a postcard; everywhere you
turned there was another historic landmark, another fascinating discovery, and
another prime photo op.
Whew, I would love to go on, but I’ll stop here. If you
have any specific questions, don’t be afraid to ask! Good luck on your pre-study
abroad journey. It can be stressful, but believe me, it’ll all be worth it.
XO Isabel
