A Visit to Oxford

 

It's been 23 years since I visited the city of Oxford and it was about time I see it again.  I took the train Wednesday morning.  I had three goals in mind, first I wanted to see the memorial to the poet Shelley, second I wanted to visit the Ashmolean Museum, and third, I just wanted to stroll those ancient streets once again and snap some photos. I managed to succeed with all three goals.

To the left is the building known as the Radcliffe Camera.

And here is the beautiful memorial to Shelley that I had read about.  Shelley briefly attended University College Oxford until he was expelled for writing a pamphlet called "The Necessity of Atheism".  It's a twist of fate that this lovely memorial now resides in that very same college.

No trip to Oxford is complete without a stroll under the "Bridge of Sighs" as it is called.  On this day there were literally hundreds of people gathered at the bridge to get a look.  I was lucky to get a photo with only few present.

From there I took a stroll down a very, very narrow passage to get a glimpse of the Turf pub which dates back to 1831 and has seen many famous guests before they were famous.  It looks like Bill Clinton might have been one of them.

As I walked past the Sheldonian Theatre, I admired all those distinguished heads atop the fence posts.  

Then it was on to the Ashmolean Museum to see what treasures might be inside.

I discovered that they hold a large collection of Egyptian artifacts as well as some grand paintings.

But, I think what struck me the most was this fine sculpture by Ju Ming, a Taiwanese sculptor.  It's a statue of art historian Michael Sullivan. What I couldn't figure out is why such a fine sculpture was placed in such an out-of-the-way location next to the lift and the restrooms.  I think it's a brilliant piece of work.

All in all, it was a totally enjoyable day.