A pint amongst scholars

We had a delightful time in Oxford. It was, for the most part, a small enough town to simply wander and explore. It was surprising to us to find that there isn't a singular "Oxford University campus" but instead it is a town made up of a large collection of colleges, with quite a few puns scattered amongst them, along with shops and homes. I (Calvin) thoroughly enjoyed the abundance of local pubs. There I learned of what they call here "Real Ale," which in the States we would just call cask ale. Kelli and I enjoyed visiting puns known for the notable people that had frequented them. The first such pub was The Kings Arms, which is apparently the pub the Queen likes to visit whenever she's in Oxford. That evening we went to The Eagle and Child, which was the favorite hangout spot for "The Inklings," better known to Americans as J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis and friends. Later that night we went to The White Horse, which was Bill Clinton's favorite hangout when he was at Oxford. There I met a Peruvian metaphysicist named Max, who proved quite the conversationalist. He told me that, in life, I am a priest. We also paid a quick visit to The Turf Tavern, where Oxford students traditionally go to celebrate finishing exams. What was really cool for us about these pubs was how truly old they were, the newest of hem being only a couple centuries old, and, being a part of this amazingly old and historical college town, how much thinking must have gone on in them. In fact, Max told us about an even older pub hidden across town, The Bear, established in the 1200's, which Michael and I visited the next day. All told, we had the perfect little visit to Oxford. We thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Kelli's cousin, Joy, her husband Michael, and their darling daughter Riley. We toured some amazing places, including Christ Church, where Lewis Carroll invented the world of Alice in Wonderland, and Oxford Castle, which, despite its name, spent more of its history as a prison, finally being shut down by the Human Rights Act in 1996. Of course, the visit was not without its downsides, mainly due to having to replace a brand new suitcase, and dealing with constant rain for over half the visit. But it was worth it, we loved Oxford.