Oxford

Oxford is moew or less how I expected it. A smallish town with a bustling city center. Nothing built after 1800. Plenty of old churches and towers and bells. O a walk one day, I went into the Oxford Botanic Gardens. Not as stunning or aesthetically pleasing as the gardens in Denver, but it has an atmosphere of constancy and stability. You walk in and are overcome by the history of the place. It must have looked just like this up to 400 years ago.

I came upon a particularly ancient tree. A sign informed me that it had been planted during the English civil war in 1645. I walked on and noticed stone pots with intricate carvings that, due to the forces of nature, were now only suggestions of the things they once exemplified. The smells were vibrant and alive.

Oxford University, as best I could tell, stretches across the better part of the town. Different schools and colleges are around virtually every corner.

The people are young and bicycles abound. There is also a great live theatre scene in Oxford. I had the pleasure of seeing both "The Laramie Project" and "The Pillowman" by Martin McDonagh. It was dark, like most of his, but this one was far more chilling. Mary Schuttler and Matt Lang will love it.

In Oxford, I had the pleasure of staying with Liz White, who is a great friend from UNC. We acted together in several plays, most notably, "Tartuffe" and "The Laramie Project".