England: Blenheim Palace

From Oxford, we took a short bus ride to the town of Woodstock, famous as the home of Blenheim Palace (built 1705 to 1722) which was declared UNESCO World Heritage in 1987 - I was compelled to visit. The 2000 acres of land, plus building funds, were awarded to the first Duke of Marlborough (family name = Churchill) for beating the French at the Battle of Blenheim (southern Bavaria) in 1700. As beautiful as everything is, the whole place is a monument to war; in paintings, tapestries, reliefs, and statues.

Blenheim is also the birthplace of Winston Churchill (his cousin's house, his mother went into labor unexpectedly while visiting). The whole property is still owned by Charles James (Jamie) Spencer-Churchill, the current 12th Duke of Marlborough. Considering the steep ticket price, I'm not sure why we were funding nobility - I should have done more research.

We arrived in Woodstock at 9:20 and looked around a bit while waiting for Blenheim Palace to open at 10:00.




The main entrance, triumphal arch and ticket office, to Blenheim Palace is at the northwest corner of Woodstock.








The Great Hall (main entrance hall) is undergoing a multi-year restoration and is covered with scaffolding outside (1st below) and inside (2nd).




The Birth Room of Sir Winston Churchill. The paintings above the bed were painted by Sir Winston himself.




Photos from our walk through Blenheim Palace are below. Note that although we walked through the Marlborough family's private quarters, photos were NOT allowed.








The Battle of Blenheim Tapestry.


The Long Library and Pipe Organ.


After touring the Palace, we walked around in the gardens. First, the Water Terraces (1925 to 1931) with the famous caryatids and atlantes wall (3rd below).






We spotted several male ring-necked pheasants.


Took a selfie at the Grand Cascade and a panorama at the circular Rose Garden. There were no roses;instead, a ring of purple alliums






Blenheim Roundel Fountain


We left Blenheim after a walk through the huge, and fun, Marlborough Maze.




And on the bus back to Oxford we got a good look at the spiffy London Oxford Airport (EGTK) Terminal.

England: Oxford

Next we moved our base to Oxford; very many tourists. Most of the colleges have stiff ticket prices. The one place we actually were willing to pay, Radcliffe Camera library, was long booked up by Harry Potter fans. In the end, we managed to walk in a few colleges and attended evensongs at Christ Church and Magdalen College Chapel.

We stayed four minutes walking distance from the Ashmolean Museum and ended up going there everyday. Overall, highlights turned out to be the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, truly a cathedral to science, and Pitt Rivers Museum, highly unusual.

Oxford seemed very different from what I remembered from my brief visit to Cambridge 30 years ago.

Radcliffe Camera


The Main Quadrangle of All Souls College at the University of Oxford (1st below) and All Souls College Chapel (2nd).




The University Church of St Mary the Virgin


The Pissarro Gallery, Ashmolean Museum


The Pre-Raphaelite "Return of the Dove to the Ark" (1851) by Sir John Everett Millais, Ashmolean Museum


The Shrine of Taharqa, Ashmolean Museum


Cornmarket Street, the busy pedestrian shopping street.


Looking back at Magdalen College Chapel after Evensong.


"A Feature of Modern Life" - Every night, delivery guys hung out below our hotel window. Nice.


The not-so-busy Friday Morning Commute.


We happened to be in Oxford on Graduation Weekend.


The exterior of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History does not prepare you for the amazing interior.








Not to mention the adjacent Pitt Rivers Museum.






One evening we grabbed some street food at Najar's Place, an Oxford institution.






We walked by this timber-beamed building at least once each day.


We attended Evensong at Christ Church Cathedral, entering beneath the Tom Bell Tower.


Students Entering Tom Quad for a "May Ball".


Finally, Sunday Cyclists.