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Brimming with academic
life,
a place of Gothic
palaces devoted to learning, Oxford is also a pleasant, traditional
old market
town close to one of the prettiest parts of England. Oxford University,
Britain's oldest and grandest, is
huge; its many colleges dominate the town. Their ritual and
ancient customs have a special charm, and it's not unusual to see gowned
graduates or undergraduates streaming along the High Street to attend
some ceremony. But there is more to Oxford than that, with excellent
shops, good restaurants and atmospheric pubs, as well as renowned
museums and libraries, two thriving traditional theatres, and first-class
arts and music.
In term-time, students
make up a quarter of Oxford's population, and a large number of the
town's visitors are their family members.
There's liveliness and
good-humour in the air, perhaps because so many have something to celebrate.
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Oxford lies in the
humid, misty plain between two rivers, the Thames (or Isis) and
the Cherwell. Its wide
central streets are a clue that this was once an important local
market town where sheep, and their wool and leather, were
traded and worked. It has remained a market and local commercial
centre ever since.
Oxford was founded as a fortified "burgh" by King Alfred in the 9th
century, and its position in the centre of southern England
gave it a certain political and strategic importance from
the start.
Oxford university was founded in 1167. The privileged standing of its
scholars vis-à-vis townspeople led to tensions and episodes of
violence, with rioting several times throughout the 13th
century, and a three-day pitched battle between "town and
gown" in 1355.
However a modus vivendi was reached, and by the 16th century Oxford's
citizens were almost entirely dependent on the university for
their livelihoods, and remained so for centuries.
In 1913, Morris opened their first car factory at Cowley, on the edge of Oxford.
Its success, and the related industries, began to change the
character of Oxford. The town expanded far from its historic
heart, taking in many surrounding villages and adding large
areas of new housing.
In 1992,
Oxford Polytechnic in Headington was renamed Oxford Brookes
University.
The city's main tourist
office or Oxford Tourist Information Centre, is at
15-16 Broad Street (nearly opposite Balliol College).
www.visitoxfordandoxfordshire.com
The heart of
historic Oxford is bounded by Broad Street, Cornmarket Street,
High Street and Catte Street, although there is a lot to see
outside this central area.
The focal point of
Oxford is the fortified Carfax Tower, which stands at the
meeting point of the town's four busy, attractive main shopping
streets (restricted access for motor vehicles), Cornmarket Street,
High Street, Queen Street and St Aldates.
At the far end of St Aldates, Tom Tower on Christ Church College,
although not at the centre, is one of the
town's most distinctive landmarks.
Matthew Arnold's evocative description of Oxford as the city of
"dreaming spires" is still accurate. Yet while many of
Oxford's handsome old streets are lined with majestic
architecture from centuries past, there's also a lively, youthful
feel to the town. And if the streets seem crowded, it's not just
with the thousands of students and tourists, but also with
residents, because Oxford is the thriving commercial centre
for a
large area of suburbs, small towns and villages.
Oxford can be inspiring, delightful or maddening by turns. Most
maddening of all is trying to get around by car, with very poor
signposting, even the main roads subject to a 20mph speed limit,
and much of the town centre closed to motor vehicles during the day.
A particular danger in Oxford: everywhere is an undisciplined horde of cyclists ignoring
all the rules of the road, riding at night without
lights, on the wrong side of the road, while talking on the phone and passing through
red traffic
lights without a pause!
If you don't have heavy luggage and could manage without a car, on arrival at
Oxford's 'ring road' look out for the town's excellent Park & Ride car parks. Parking
in these is free and there's a frequent shuttle bus into the
town centre. Within the town there's a good bus service.
The central area is small enough to get around on foot.
www.oxfordparkandride.co.uk - Park & Ride
www.oxfordbus.co.uk - Oxford Buses
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Entertainment and nightlife |
Oxford entertainment and nightlife
is of an unusually high standard for a town of this size, with
traditional theatres and other
performance venues in the town centre and Jericho
areas. Few other county towns offer as much classical music, for
example, concerts by the amateur chamber orchestra, Oxford
Sinfonia.
More usual is to spend the evening at one of Oxford's many atmospheric
old pubs, popular clubs and late-night dance venues. The main
area for student nightlife is Cowley Road.
www.oxfordplayhouse.com -
Oxford Playhouse
www.newtheatreoxford.org.uk -
New Theatre
www.oxfordsinfonia.co.uk -
Oxford Sinfonia
www.inoxfordmag.co.uk
- 'What's On' latest
Eating and drinking in Oxford
As well as a plethora of budget eateries throughout
Oxford, the town centre and Jericho areas have several
above-average chain restaurants, including a branch of
Jamie's Italian and a
Brasserie Blanc,
as well as French restaurants such as
Pierre Victoire bistro.
Among the town's genuine brasseries with drinks and food,
Quod also has live jazz.
A top name for tea-time treats - and in a very charming,
evocative setting - is
The Old Parsonage Hotel.
In the High Street, the glittering 17th-century
Grand Café is reputed to have
been England's first coffee house and is a pleasant, if
busy, place for a drink, meal or set tea.
St Mary's Church, in the High Street backing onto Radcliffe
Square, has a inexpensive self-service daytime cafeteria in its
vaults. On a fine day, its garden is one of the most pleasant
places in town to have lunch or tea.
Pubs are among the most tempting places for a relaxed, informal meal in Oxford.
Among the selection of historic places, some have evocative
settings, like
The Turf, hidden down alleyways, and
The Head
of the River on the river bank beside Folly Bridge. Others have intriguing
literary connections, such as
The Lamb & Flag, in St Giles, supposedly a favourite of Thomas Hardy,
which also appears several
times in the TV series Inspector Morse. Opposite, the
Eagle
and Child was a meeting place of 1930s writers including
C.S.Lewis and J.R.Tolkien - they gathered here every Tuesday for
lunch to discuss their work and read it aloud.
Hotels in Oxford
The best place to stay in Oxford is in the centre,
but there is a wide range of accommodation from basic to luxurious throughout
the town. Centrally located, highly rated hotels in attractive old buildings
include
The Randolph (opposite the Ashmolean Museum),
The Old Bank
and
The Old Parsonage. More modest but thoroughly enticing is
Bath
Place, at the end of a cobbled courtyard and a lane leading to The
Turf tavern.
- Where is Oxford?
In
central southern England, about 50 miles NW of London.
- International phone
dialling code:
+ 44 1865.
- Time zone:
GMT (+ 1 hour during British Summer
Time).
- Money:
Pound Sterling (£).
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The Ashmolean
and Oxford's other museums
The oldest public museum in Britain, still
free to enter, the
Ashmolean occupies a well-designed six-storey modern
building behind a fine neo-Classical facade in the town
centre. One of Britain's leading
art and archaeology
collections, its Egyptian and Anglo-Saxon
sections are among the best in
Europe. Exhibits extend from earliest times to the
present day, themed on subjects such as money and trade, writing
and textiles. The art and design collections encompass a wide
range, including Flemish painting, silverware and ceramics,
pre-Raphaelites, Impressionists and modern art. There's a
large, busy
basement
cafeteria, and a restaurant at the
top of the building.
Among
Oxford's many other museums and galleries are the
Museum of Oxford,
telling the story of Oxford with entertaining displays;
the
Bate Collection of Musical Instruments;
the
National History Museum, and
attached to it, the
Pitt Rivers Museum, an idiosyncratic
Victorian personal collection of thousands of ethnographic
pieces displayed in glass cases (with unreadably tiny labels!).
The Colleges
Would-be
Oxford University
students apply not to the university but to the college of their
choice - there are
38 Oxford colleges,
all of them independent and autonomous. Most are centuries old and full of character, and
often open to visitors. Handsome
Balliol (Broad
St) is one of the oldest (founded 1260) and traditionally has
some of the most distinguished alumni, while nearby
Wadham (Parks Rd)
is noted for its informal, liberal tradition.
Magdalen
(pronounced 'Maudlin'; High St), beside the River Cherwell, is
one of the most picturesque and has its own riverside meadows
and deer park.
Grandest of all is
Christ
Church (St Aldates), whose gateway is surmounted by the city's landmark
Tom Tower.
Its magnificent Great Hall was the model for Hogwarts
Hall in the Harry Potter films. The college has its own art gallery of Old Masters and even its own
cathedral (which entitles Oxford to be called a city). Among dozens of distinguished alumni and
luminaries associated with the college, Lewis Carroll,
author of Alice in Wonderland, was a
Christ Church
mathematics tutor.
www.ox.ac.uk - Oxford
University
Oxford Castle
Almost 1000 years old,
originally a Norman fortress. subsequently a prison,
only part of Oxford Castle survives, including a tower
with exceptional views.
Oxford Castle Unlocked is an
entertaining family-oriented hands-on overview of the castle's
history, complete with costumed actor-guides.
The rest of the site is occupied by the luxury Malmaison hotel (in which
former prison cells are now guest rooms) as well as restaurants
and bars, and
O3 gallery's art
exhibitions and events.
Carfax Tower
Rising on a crossroads in
the very centre of the town, this 23m (74ft) Norman tower is all
that remains of what was Oxford's main church for 500 years
until 1896, when the rest of the building was demolished. 99
steps climb to the top, giving a beautiful view over city-centre
spires and roofs.
Botanic Gardens
Opposite Magdalen College,
these quiet, delightful gardens alongside the River Cherwell
were the first Botanic Gardens in Britain. They are part of
Oxford University, which created them in 1630. Within the main
walled area, attractive plant beds are arranged by families of
plants. Outside the walled area are traditional garden themes,
such as a beautiful rock garden. Interesting glasshouses
include carnivorous plants, a lily house and exotic tropical
species.
www.botanic-garden.ox.ac.uk
Bodleian Library
The main library of Oxford
University - which has several other distinguished libraries -
is the Bodleian. Housed in a number of connected buildings, all
in constant use by students and academics, the library can be
visited on guided tours (including the option of individual
visits with an audio-guide) which begin in the 15th-century
Divinity School and encompass some of Oxford's most impressive
medieval and 17th-century architecture.
www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk
• The Covered Market – The 18th-century covered market in
the town centre has a surprising variety of traditional
butchers, bakers, leather goods, fashion and shoe shops and many
other boutiques and shops along paved lanes.
www.oxford-covered-market.co.uk
• The indoor shopping centres – Oxford's main modern
indoor shopping mall is
Westgate,
in Castle Street. Its car park is the largest in Oxford.
There's also a traditional, independent department store,
Boswell's, in Broad Street,
trading since 1738.
• The main shopping streets – Oxford's main shopping
areas are Cornmarket,
Queen St
and the parts of High St and St Aldates close to
Carfax Tower.
• Books – Blackwell's in Broad Street is the largest
bookshop in the world.
• There are lovely riverside walks out of town beside the
Thames.
• For a quiet stroll in town, take a break in University Parks
beside the Cherwell.
• For a moment of peaceful relaxation,
some colleges have beautiful gardens.
• Choral evensong at Christ Church College is a delight.
Dancin' Oxford
18 Feb - 28 Mar 2012
Shows and workshops exuberantly celebrate all kinds
of dance around the city
www.dancinoxford.co.uk
Literary Festival
24 March - 1 April 2012
A week of talks, debates, readings, with a broad
array of writers in Christ Church and Corpus Christi College,
the Sheldonian Theatre and Bodleian Library.
www.oxfordliteraryfestival.com
Jazz Festival
1-7 April 2012
Acclaimed jazz artists performing in the
Ashmolean, the North Wall Arts Centre, Oxford Town Hall and
Saint Michael at the North Gate.
www.oxfordjazzfestival.com
May Day
30 April-1 May
May Day is one of the town's biggest public
celebrations, with colourful traditional events starting the day
before and continuing all night.
For flights to Oxford, the closest airports to Oxford are
London Heathrow and Luton, both within about 90
minutes by car. Direct buses run from Oxford to Heathrow, while the
Oxford Tube is a frequent bus shuttle to central London.
Trains connect Oxford to London Paddington and Birmingham. By road, Oxford is on the M40 and A34.
Google map of road access to
Oxford.
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