It was a long drive as we will be travelling to Manchester, which is about 4 hours drive from London. We planned to leave at 8 a.m. but Faiq and Aira woke up later than their usual 6.30 a.m. alarm drill. We finally left Brunswick Quay at about 10 a.m. with many thanks to Amran and Alina who actually packed a few stuffs including food for us.
Even though it was Sunday morning, there was still a slight traffic going out of London. Our first pit stop was Oxford city. Our destination in particular was Oxford University. The University of Oxford, a university located in the English city of Oxford, is the third oldest surviving university and the oldest university in the English-speaking world. Although the exact date of foundation remains unclear, there is evidence of teaching there as far back as the 11th century. The University grew rapidly from 1167 when King Henry II banned English students from attending the University of Paris. It was like a dream come true to be there.
We parked near the Oxford University Park and decided to walk around there. Faiq was sleeping and it started drizzling when we were walking. Actually the university was so huge that we didn't know where the park will lead us. Luckily, we met up with two nannies who was on the way to Carfax. I read that a tour of Oxford is essentially a tour of the of the colleges, and a good starting point is Carfax. This is an old centre of the city, around the pedestrianised area, where the four main streets meet. When we arrived, we saw a group university tour which was starting in a few minutes so we went for it. Our tour guide was a chirpy lady called Debbie. I think there were about 20 of us who joined the tour.
Our tour started at Exeter College, one of the 38 independent colleges in Oxford University and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street. One of the famous undergraduate from Exeter College is JRR Tolkein. Every college in Oxford has its own emblem, quad, a chapel, a dining hall and dormitories.
I can't remember where else we went but we definitely saw the Radcliffe Camera, Wren's Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford's Bridge of Sighs and Bodleian Library. The highlight of the tour was of course when I get to visit the building which potrayed Hogwarts in Harry Potter.
The tour ended at about 1 p.m. Debbie told us to bring the kids to River Pitts Museum as they feature dinosaur fossils and all things that fascinate kids but we were running out of time so we only get to see the oldest tree bark outside the museum. When we got back to our car, we were slapped with a traffic summon for illegal parking. Darn, 35 pounds melayang begitu sajer! But it was nothing compared to the experience we had visiting Oxford.
We then made our way to Bourton-on-the-Water. At first we were torn between visiting Stratford-upon-Avon and Bourton-on-the-Water but we decided on the latter as suggested by my former boss and Amran. On the way there, we passed by a cricket club and saw that there were people playing. Rafiq, being a sport enthusiast just had to stop and enjoy the moment. It was surreal..hihi. We arrived at Bourton-on-the-Water at about 3.00 p.m. Regularly voted one of the prettiest villages in England, Bourton-on-the-Water has more than its share of Cotswold houses and cottages, many of them three hundred years old, some dating back to Elizabethan times four hundred years ago. Set on the River Windrush, it has all the ingredients of fairyland: miniature footbridges over streams and under willow trees, sweet smells in the perfumery, a motor museum in a barley mill, a model railway and a model village. It was indeed very lovely and there were loads of people enjoying their picnics, Faiq happily played in the stream and chased the ducklings, while the rest of us sat on the grass. We walked around the village, went to the souvenir shops and had Fish and Chips. We were so mesmerised, we didn't want to leave. But unfortunately we had to and we left at 5 p.m.
The scenery along the highway was lovely - acres of field with horses, cows and sheeps. I could sense that Rafiq was tired so we stopped at the R&R for coffee. Finally we arrived in Manchester City at about 8 p.m. Manchester city is the central business district of both Manchester and Greater Manchester. As we entered the city centre, we were greeted by the sight of the Wheel of Manchester (similar to London Eye/Eye on Malaysia). Our only destination was Hard Rock Cafe for memorabilias. We then headed off to our hotel, Travelodge which is situated at Trafford Park. We arrived at the hotel at about 9.30 p.m. For a budget hotel, we were very satisfied with the service and amenities. I think we only paid 35 pounds for a family room and it was very comfy. We had mushroom soup and maggie mee for dinner. I must've dozed off at 11.30 p.m.
~To Be Continued~
We then made our way to Bourton-on-the-Water. At first we were torn between visiting Stratford-upon-Avon and Bourton-on-the-Water but we decided on the latter as suggested by my former boss and Amran. On the way there, we passed by a cricket club and saw that there were people playing. Rafiq, being a sport enthusiast just had to stop and enjoy the moment. It was surreal..hihi. We arrived at Bourton-on-the-Water at about 3.00 p.m. Regularly voted one of the prettiest villages in England, Bourton-on-the-Water has more than its share of Cotswold houses and cottages, many of them three hundred years old, some dating back to Elizabethan times four hundred years ago. Set on the River Windrush, it has all the ingredients of fairyland: miniature footbridges over streams and under willow trees, sweet smells in the perfumery, a motor museum in a barley mill, a model railway and a model village. It was indeed very lovely and there were loads of people enjoying their picnics, Faiq happily played in the stream and chased the ducklings, while the rest of us sat on the grass. We walked around the village, went to the souvenir shops and had Fish and Chips. We were so mesmerised, we didn't want to leave. But unfortunately we had to and we left at 5 p.m.
The scenery along the highway was lovely - acres of field with horses, cows and sheeps. I could sense that Rafiq was tired so we stopped at the R&R for coffee. Finally we arrived in Manchester City at about 8 p.m. Manchester city is the central business district of both Manchester and Greater Manchester. As we entered the city centre, we were greeted by the sight of the Wheel of Manchester (similar to London Eye/Eye on Malaysia). Our only destination was Hard Rock Cafe for memorabilias. We then headed off to our hotel, Travelodge which is situated at Trafford Park. We arrived at the hotel at about 9.30 p.m. For a budget hotel, we were very satisfied with the service and amenities. I think we only paid 35 pounds for a family room and it was very comfy. We had mushroom soup and maggie mee for dinner. I must've dozed off at 11.30 p.m.
~To Be Continued~
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