Woodberry at Oxford 2013: Friday, July 5

Day Six started out in the classroom with a discussion about yesterday’s journey to Ironbridge Gorge. After recounting various bits of our intriguing visit to one of the Industrial Revolution’s key locations, we wrote essays about the significance of Ironbridge Gorge. The morning was spent trying to fit all the interesting pieces of information we had gathered from Ironbridge into a single essay. After we put the pens down, another delicious lunch was enjoyed in Brasenose College’s dining hall. The second scavenger hunt led Christian and me to the Bates Collection of musical instruments. We spent about an hour checking out some finely crafted flutes, violins, and brass instruments well over 200 years old. To see such craftsmanship coming from an age without modern technology was incredible. After seeing the instrument collection, we headed to St. John’s College and Corpus Christi College. Both were beautiful, Corpus having a small, tight knit feel to it, while St. Johns was conspicuously a popular school. The weather was beautiful, which made exploring Oxford even better. After eating dinner, we took to the lawn to engage in one of Oxford’s famous pastimes, Croquet. Steve and I teamed up to barely win our match after halting a great comeback from Peter and Eddie. I still don’t quite understand the sport, but it was very fun and we learned about the game from two Brasenose students who are working for the summer conferences office, Oliver and Owen. After croquet, I joined the Brits in cheering for their beloved Andy Murray in a very competitive semi-final round at Wimbledon. After yet another great day in Oxford, we are just about finished with week one.

Submitted by Cutchin Anderson

Breakfast July 5 in Brasenose's Great Hall

Brasenose College acquired its name from the unusual bronze door knocker which is shaped like an animal's snout that now hangs above the high table in the dining hall. The original door knocker dates back to the 11th century.