Now where was I

Shortly before Easter I attended a teachers' workshop at Oxford University.  It was an intense two and a half days of work, but I managed to have a peek around the city under warm and sunny British skies.  It was my second trip to Oxford more than 10 years after my first where, as part of a mini European tour, I spent a weekend with my friend Sonja who was on an exchange from Georgetown University.

In my best British accent, I must say that Oxford is lovely.  Simply charming.  Not dreadful in the least.  I love the way the Brits talk.  Much more refined than us rough and tumble Americans.

The food--as least in my experience--is rather underwhelming.  My sense is that good food is to be had in Oxford,  but the extent of my foray into the local culinary scene has been dining halls, cheap eateries, and supermarkets.  Take the dinner I had on my one free night of the workshop.   Following nearly two hours touching, breathing in, and practically consuming the wares in Blackwell's Bookshop, I stopped at the Tesco for sushi, fruit, chocolate, and a small bottle of red wine.  I then went back to my room, ate at my desk and indulged in another guilty pleasure:  People Magazine.

The atmosphere at Oxford is inspiring enough to write one's first novel.  Instead, I ate chocolate and read People.  You also can bet that I loaded my suitcase with as many American magazines as I could get my hands on as well as a few books from Blackwell's.  I'll save those for when I'm feeling slightly more intellectual.