Where Literature is Born
A few days into our trip, we took a bus into Oxford, home of 38 prestigious colleges, including where J.R.R. Tolkien taught as a professor (where Justin is standing) and wrote his famous “Hobbit” and “Lord of the Rings” books.
He wasn’t the only one either; numerous well known authors were students (turned professors) including Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (aka “Lewis Carroll”) who was inspired by the playing fields by Christ’s Church to write the croquet scenes for Alice in Wonderland (Alice also being the name of the Headmaster’s daughter at the time, whom he had a crush on). Another famous author who roots in Oxford is C.S. Lewis of “Narnia” fame, who was also a close friend of Tolkien. They, and many other members of their exclusive “Inkling” club used to frequent a pub called “Eagle and Child”, which we went to. Justin asked what Tolkien used to eat or drink. The waiter said, “Gin”. So we got Mac & Cheese instead.
The buildings in Oxford were insanely beautiful and elegant, full of detail and embellishments. You could certainly tell the stonemasons and carpenters put a labor of love into the buildings.
Finally, our last stop for the day was at Christ’s Church (bottom), home of the stairs made famous by the Harry Potter movies. Remember these, Potterheads? Yeah, so awesome!!
It was like a step back in time, being wrapped up in the tales and literature that were born within these walls. It was a dream come true!
