Heya,
Today was a pretty cool day!
It started with my technical communications class where my professor reviewed my essay outline in front of the class (he liked it!). Then, my professor said that we had a surprise speaker. I turned my head and saw none other than Paul, our amazing guide from Ireland, standing in the doorway! He was here to speak to us about the history of communication in Ireland (many traditions were passed down through means other than writing) and how he properly communicates with his employees to keep his business running well.
After seeing Paul, I went back to my dorm to continue working, then I asked Connor about his plans for lunch. He suggested we go get some more quiches. I figured, "Why not?" If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. So, we went down to the covered market, got some cold goat cheese and onion quiches and ate them like cookies in front of everyone.
After that, I went to my world religions class, which today took place mostly in the cathedral in Christ Church College. Even though I've been here already, gaining a deeper understanding is always nice. We met our guide, Patrick, who took us around the college and showed us a whole bunch of little details, such as the things that inspired Lewis Carroll while he was writing Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in Christ Church.
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| Arch with a statue of the dean that inspired the White Rabbit, since the dean was always running late! |
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| The fountain in the middle actually serves a practical purpose: putting out fires |
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| Memorial for a respected member of the college |
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| The seat where Charles I sat |
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| Stained glass of St Frideswide, the patron saint of Oxford, and her story |
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| Hey, there's a toilet in the background! |
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| Shrine of St Frideswide |
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| Where St Frideswide is buried |
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| The Cheshire Cat (or what inspired it) |
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| Oldest stained glass window in the cathedral, dating to 1320 |
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| The garden where Alice, the daughter of the dean, played, and the tree that the Cheshire Cat appeared on |
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| What inspired the scene where Alice's neck grows in chapter 5 |
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| A little difficult to see, but this window heavily inspired Lewis Carrol. It has a girl in a dress, a white rabbit, a man with a top hat, etc. |
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| Portrait of John Locke, an enlightenment thinker, who attended Christ Church |
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| Harry Potter stairs (again) |
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| Graffiti from the 17th century on this door to protest Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel due to his views on religious reformation |
After the tour, we went back and I started talking to my friends about preparing dinner. Then, we gathered the ingredients and started cooking!
Tonight, we made a vegetable and rice soup with carrots, potatoes, onion, garlic, celery, a bay leaf, and some Italian seasonings (and I successfully convinced Giulianna that 1 stock cube was enough instead of 8). We ate the soup in the garden with a big loaf of bread that I cut into slices, and for dessert, we had an almond cake that Noah baked for us.
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| I never tire of this view! |
Then, we hung out together in the JCR (Junior Common Room) for a little while and did the dishes before retiring for the night.
That's all for today! See you tomorrow!
