This morning our group moved on from Stratford-Upon-Avon and continued its always migrating English tour. It’s not farewell to Shakespeare’s city, though, as we will make another pit stop here to see the Royal Shakespeare Company’s performance of “As You Like it” later on in our trip.
A coach ride took us to the beautiful but formidable Blenheim Palace, residence of the Duke and Duchesses of Marlborough. The 11th Duke currently lives there with his family. We toured the state quarters of the palace, which has become a hallmark attraction for being Winston Churchill’s birthplace. Our tour guide seemed enthralled with the fact that Churchill was gorn in a ladies’ coatroom closet, and even more enthralled with the history of the 8th Duchess of Marlborough – an American who the Duke strategically married because all of his family’s fortune had been squandered. His bride’s name was Consuelo, and she was the heiress granddaughter of the Mr. Vanderbilt. As well as saving the estate Consuelo added much needed height to the gene pool, for which the current duke (standing 6’5”) is glad.
Another coach ride took us into Oxford. Immediately we all absorbed the great collegiate atmosphere. It was afternoon when we arrived and waterways and playing fields were filled with crew and lacrosse teams, tennis players, joggers, and bicyclists. As we toured Christchurch College I’m sure we were all envisioning ourselves as graduate students and not just visiting study abroad undergraduates – I know that I was. The highlight of Christchurch was seeing the great hall where Harry Potter movies are filmed. Evensong at the chapel was also a treat.
We are all looking forward to further explore Oxford tomorrow!
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