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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 11, 2015
- ⛅ 19 °C
- Altitude: 68 m
- England Oxford 51.75146, -1.2569651°45’5” N 1°15’25” W
Day 20
London to Oxford
September 11, 2015 in England ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C
Well today went by in another blur of travel. It never seems to take a short amount of time to get anywhere.. always a decent day full of main and sorting things out.
Anyway.. we caught to train early to Paddington station where we had a quick sandwich and a coffee before boarding our train up to Oxford. The train journey wwpas less than an hour of taking in the stunning Neglish countryside., what a beautiful place it is.

Getting our hire car and getting to our apartment was.. diabolical.. 4 hours to get about 2 kilometres from the train station, a huge detour through the city and around a ring road before coming back into the city, dropping our bags and slightly injured-foot Joy off near our apartment, proceeding to find a car park in the almost entirely padestrianised Oxford city was a mission in itself, then walking back to the flat through an unknown town. What should've taken us a small part of a day had us at 6pm scratching our heads about what we were doing here.. but a quick walk down the road to the oldest pub in England for dinner was reason enough. Oxford is completely beautiful. Looming towers, Castle spires, libraries and university buildings dotting every street corner, bookshops, gardens, beautiful houses, cobblestoned streets, pubs, cafes, the river and every manner of student, businessman, teacher and sophisticate walking past makes for a truly perfect little village. Pretentious? Yes. But when you live or study in a town like this it's okay to be a bit retentious because that's what it's all about, and noone should try and stop it.

A wander through the streets was highlighted by finding an original Dali print, hand signed off course, for only £5,500. Bargain.

Also, our apartment is pretty cool too. It's a creaky old renovated little flat upstairs in the old Oxford town hall, next to the museum of modern art in the main street. It involves going through 4 locked doors, through some of the meseum, up two spiral stair cases and down some very dark corridors. The flat itself is lovely, everything decorated to the Oxford period style and the floorboard and beds creaking in a somewhat ominous am menacing way. But it's home and it's pretty great.
Sleep now as a big couple of days ahead.Read more
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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 12, 2015, 12:00am
- ⛅ 15 °C
- Altitude: 68 m
- England Oxford 51.75486, -1.256151°45’17” N 1°15’22” W
Day 21
Oxford Day 1
September 12, 2015 in England ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
Late writing this one up again, apologies!
Today we went for a walk around Oxford in the morning, including going through a great underground market for a very average coffee and full English breakfast. We then walked around the various libraries and museums, the highlight of which was a library exhibition featuring original Jane Austen, Shakespeare, Magna Carta, Dante Aligherie, Cppernicus and many more. It was incredible to see such ancient pieces of famous literature as they would've come off the press - speaking of which there was an original Gutenberg Bible also!!

From the museum we jumped in our hire car and drove off into the countryside, visiting various little towns and villages which were always mentioned by my grandparents when I was growing up. They were all tiny, cute and beautiful with quaint English architecture, duck ponds, rolling green hills and great little pubs. We visited my distant family, again which I have heard much about throughout my childhood, in the small village of Princes Risborough. We had tea in their great little backyard and chatted and chatted all afternoon, eventually settling on Chinese takeaways which were. . Or course very average from a cheap little village takeaway place down the road.

Our drive back through to Oxford was lovely again and we returned with hot chocolates in hand to settle down for the night. All in all not a terrible day, but with the standard frustrations that seem to be a regular occurrence.Read more
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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 12, 2015, 1:00pm
- ⛅ 18 °C
- Altitude: 63 m
- England Oxford 51.75621, -1.2609251°45’22” N 1°15’39” W
Day 21
The Bodelian Library, Oxford
September 12, 2015 in England ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C
Books!

From top left to bottom right the photos are of:
1: The Bodelian Library
2: The Divine Comedie, Dante.
3: Jane Austen scribblings.
4: Gutenberg Bible.
5: Original Shakespeare
6: Pride and Predjudice, Jane AustenRead more
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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 13, 2015
- ⛅ 15 °C
- Altitude: 103 m
- England Wycombe Princes Risborough 51.72615, -0.8326951°43’34” N 0°49’58” W
Day 22
Oxford Day 2
September 13, 2015 in England ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
Our second full day I Oxford was full of family time and socializing. It was really nice getting to know my extended family which, like I say, I have heard so much about but never met. They were all such kind, welcoming, hospitable, fun, generous people like others I've known that it was yard to say good bye.
We breakfasted with just a takeaway pie from yesterday's little street market while walking around the Oxford University buildings on our way to the car. A nice drive through the English Countryside brought us back to our cousins house in Princes Risborough. Today was the day we had brought my deceased grandparents ashes from New Zealand for. We were to scatter the at various locations around the Buckinghamshire countryside. Alf of Grandads went on his parents grave. Half of my grandmother's went on her brothers grave, in the came cemetery and her parents but as we weren't sure where they were buried it didn't seem right to guess. The other half of both grandma and grandad went together under a tree outside the house they had built 60 or so years ago in Princes Risborough. They were together again.
It was a very emotional experience - especially for my dad as they were his parents - but was wonderful to do it not as a big event, just with a few relatives present making a little pilgrimage across the countryside together.
After a few more stops around the places to see where people grew up or went to school, as well as a drive to the top of White Leaf Cross to see the countryside view, we went back to my cousins houses before dinner at an Italian restaurant. Dinner was nice and standard Italian fare while the drive back to Oxford after saying goodbye to the relatives was a little more sad, knowing we won't be seeing them for a long time after having never even met them before.
Tomorrow we leave for Paris which should be another interesting day full of travel.
There has been a little relief from the frustrations of a certain co-traveller whilst in the Oxford and Buckinghamshire area and we have been so busy doing Small-family stuff, which has been good.Read more
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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 13, 2015
- ⛅ 16 °C
- Altitude: 65 m
- England Oxford Oxford Castle 51.75195, -1.2619751°45’7” N 1°15’43” W
Day 22
Oxford Town
September 13, 2015 in England ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C
Oxford Town, Oxford Town
Ev'rybody's got their hats bowed down
The sun don't shine above the ground
Ain't a-goin' down to Oxford Town.

He went down to Oxford Town
Guns and clubs followed him down
All because his face was brown
Better get away from Oxford Town.

Oxford Town around the bend
He comes to the door, he couln't get in
All because of the color of his skin
What do you think about that, my frien' ?

Me and my gal, my gal's son
We got met with a tear gas bomb
I don't even know why we come
Goin' back where we come from.

Oxford Town in the afternoon
Ev'rybody singin' a sorrowful tune
Two men died 'neath the Mississippi moon
Somebody better investigate soon.

-Bob Dylan

Different Oxford than the song but still...Read more
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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 14, 2015
- ⛅ 17 °C
- Altitude: 32 m
- France Île-de-France Paris Paris 09 Ancien - Quartier Île-Saint-Louis Saint-Louis Island 48.85228, 2.3542948°51’8” N 2°21’15” E
Day 23
Oxford to Paris via London
September 14, 2015 in France ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C
Another full day of travel, all their way from Pxford , through London and I to the heart of Paris.
We woke bright and early to finish packing and get to our car for our early train to London. Dropping the car off went without a hitch and out train was on time but slow to get I to London. We transfered through Paddington to Kings Cross and St Pancras international train station. Had all of my baggage inspected as a had a small hunting knife that I bought in Greece.. what a hassle! But got there in the end and through passport control with no worries.
The Eurostar zoomed through the British countryside, the channel tunnel and up into France with ease. It was misty and raining in France but by the time we got into Paris it had cleared up. A quick commute through the Paris underground and we emerged next to Notre Dame for our quick walk to the Isle de Saint-Louis on the Seine river; we traipsed up a few spiral staircases and into our pokey little French flat.
After a quick sorting out of rooms we went to find some late lunch and do a little shopping.Read more
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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 16, 2015, 12:57am
- 🌧 13 °C
- Altitude: 34 m
- France Île-de-France Paris Paris 09 Ancien - Quartier Île-Saint-Louis Saint-Louis Island 48.85223, 2.3543148°51’8” N 2°21’16” E
Day 25
Paris shops and first night.
September 16, 2015 in France ⋅ 🌧 13 °C
Went for a quick walk through the shops on the Isle which was nice. Lots of bread and cheese and wine and chocolate. Dinner was a quiet affair of bread and cheese, oh and a crepe before hand of course. Was frustrated yet again with my travelling companions so went for a late night walk. It was lovely seeing the Notre Dame all lit up next to the Seine.Read more
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Edward Small Europe 2015
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- Sep 16, 2015, 1:00am
- 🌧 13 °C
- Altitude: 32 m
- France Île-de-France Paris Paris 09 Ancien - Quartier Cité Pont Saint-Louis 48.85249, 2.3539348°51’9” N 2°21’14” E
Day 25
Paris full day 1 and 2.
September 16, 2015 in France ⋅ 🌧 13 °C
These last few days have been pretty dire. I've sat in bed being depressed about the situation I'm in and wanting to go home. A few walks around the Isle by myself were nice, a few coffees and a few brioche were good but really I just want to go home.

Have booked a flight out of Rome for in a week.. parents found out, got mad, had an argument and I might be going home today or to orrow yayRead more
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