Oxford, Gondola Rides and Shisha Bars

One Saturday Lauren, Kristina and I took an hour long train ride to Oxford for a day trip. When we got there we immediately got on a sightseeing bus to get an overview tour of our amazing surroundings.

Oxford is truly a beautiful town. There are so many historical buildings as well as brightly colored shops and flats along the streets.

One of our first stops after we got off the bus was Oxford Castle. Although we didn't go inside because of time restraints, we did go up on the mound, also known as St. George's Tower.

The views from the mound were beautiful and gave us a little more of an overview of what Oxford is made up of.

We then made our way to Christ Church where the Harry Potter dining hall is located. Unfortunately, it was closed when we went there. There are normal closing hours so that the people that really eat there in real life aren't bombarded with camera flashes and tourists while they enjoy their meal. Due to an event going on there that afternoon, the public was not allowed in.

 This was all we were able to see of Christ Church. We harassed the man who was in charge of keeping the public out for quite some time before we gave up. He was a really nice man and tried to get us in, but had no luck.

(This photo was found on Google Images- This is what it looks like on the inside.)

After being denied at Christ Church, we headed down to the river where there are gondola rides available. We stopped by a candy shop, which absolutely made my day. It reminded me of when I would get candy with my little brother when we would go into candy shops like these after being to apple orchards and such. He always got the "Tootie Fruitie" flavored candy cane, so I made sure to buy him one at this store.

 

 

 I also bought some dark chocolate that was made in Barcelona. We ended up finding the same kind in Barcelona when we went there later on in the summer.

After the candy shop we made it to the river to ride the gondolas. We took one that we could paddle with instead of using the long rod, which got many people stuck we noticed. After we headed down the river, we slightly regretted not paying extra to have one of the staff people push us down the river, since all of them were handsome, muscular guys our age. Oh well. It was by far the most fun thing we did in Oxford that day.

Kristina staring off into the distance on our wonderful gondola ride. I was really good at steering so that was my job most of the time. I even was able to parallel park the boat at the end! What can I say- I'm a natural.

We had a little duck friend follow us for a while. She kept trying to jump in the boat, which terrified Kristina. Lauren got a Lollipop from the candy shop that we went to earlier and tried to feed the rest to the duck. She didn't like it too much.

Daring Lauren sits on the tip of the boat while we paddle through an archway.

There were so many beautiful views along the way. I never wanted it to end.

After the gondola ride, we went to the top of a Cathedral to get even more amazing views of Oxford.

We got really hungry by this time and stopped by the oldest pub in Oxford- The Bear.

Any man walking into the pub wearing a tie will get it cut off. They are displayed on the walls of the pub.

 

 Although it was really exciting and fun to see the ties, there was no air conditioning and it was as big as our living room in our flat on Edgware Road, so we decided not to eat there.

 

After eating and eating way to much Tartar sauce with our fish and chips, we decided that it would be a good idea to stop by Somerfield and get some Strongbow for the ride home. When we were checking out, we showed our Missouri Licenses to prove we were of age. Lauren was almost not able to purchase hers, so we started arguing with the grocer. 

"Why on earth would someone make up a Missouri drivers license to purchase alcohol in Oxford?" we asked. 

"You'd be surprised. I've seen so many fake IDs from the states. The students use them here because it's easier to get away with," he responded.

Since we were obviously American, he let Lauren have her Strongbow, and we headed home that night after a successful day trip to Oxford University.

We got back late and decided to head home. However, I was stopped by two Kiwi accountants who were looking for the nearest hookah bar (also known as shisha bars). Of course, I knew exactly where to take them. We walked several steps more and we pointed out all 7 of them that lined our street. We decided to join them for a while before heading home. 

 

 Our new found friends from New Zealand. My camera didn't work that well in the dark on manual.

Kristina, Lauren and I trying out one of the many hookah (also known as shisha) bars on our street.

 

It a random and interesting end to our night. We left early in the morning to go to Oxford and came back to go to a hookah bar with two New Zealanders. You never know what will happen in a city like London- and that's why I love it.