Now, I think today was my favorite day yet! To start off the day, our entire group met together in the lobby at 8:40 am and we all walked outside, where the coach bus was waiting for us. Today, we were going to visit Blenheim Palace and Oxford. The drive to Blenheim Palace was close to 2 hours. Once I sat in the bus, I settled in, put my AirPods in, and fell asleep immediately. I was asleep for most of the ride and woke up just in time as we neared the palace. As we got closer to the palace, there was so much flat green land. The views were amazing! Soon, we got off the bus and were making our way into the palace. Then, all of a sudden, we realized there was a marathon taking place and there were so many runners taking part. This was the second time we had seen runners like this. I find it so cool and important that people here take physical health as an important topic.
Once we made our way into the palace, the views of the building were astounding and the architecture was just amazing. It was crazy to think that all of this was built so many years ago! The grounds of the palace were just so big in size as well! First, we started the tour of the palace itself. The palace is so massive that there was even a chapel and many gardens attached to it too! The architect for Blenheim Palace was John Vanbrugh. Inside the palace, we were able to see the room where Winston Churchill was born. There were numerous paintings in that room too. As we walked from one room to another, it was interesting to see how rooms were set up back in the days, the outfits/costumes worn by the royalty and laborers, etc.
After walking inside the house, we went out onto the gardens. The view was just breathtaking. There were water fountains, a huge lake, and numerous green spaces. We walked the gardens slowly while simultaneously taking pictures. Soon, we found out that the entire estate comprises 1,863 acres of historic woodlands and that there were an estimated 46,367 trees along the hedge lines. These numbers absolutely made me realize how immense the estate really is. After viewing the gardens, we went to the gift shop to buy some souvenirs. I decided to buy myself a refrigerator magnet for my collection at home!
After that, once again, we all boarded the bus and took off to the next destination: Oxford! First, we got a quick lunch. It was probably one of the best meals I have had so far! I really enjoyed it and it was delicious. Soon, we started our tour. We started off by going to New College. As we walked, I realized Oxford is such a cute, beautiful town! I love how all the streets were arranged: curvy paths with buildings on either side. The views of the old buildings are just fascinating. It slightly reminded me of the show Bridgerton! In addition, I got super excited when I was told that some of the Harry Potter movies were filmed in certain locations throughout the town. This is because I love Harry Potter and even to this day, it is one of my favorite book series ever! At one point during the tour, we walked into the college dining hall and the set-up of it reminded me of Harry Potter. Right when I was thinking that, the tour guide said that the actual Harry Potter movies were filmed in the same dining room and that got me all excited. Another minute thing that really caught my attention was watching little kids play cricket on the ground. Cricket has always been one of the few sports I watch that is always close to my heart. Watching little kids play cricket reminded me of how my cousins, friends, and I would play cricket back at home in India. This was a little nostalgic moment for me. I also learned that the motto of Oxford University is Dominus Illuminatio Mea, which means “The Lord is my Light”. I found this very cool and interesting.
After our tour around the university and town, we had a few minutes to do some shopping. I got an Oxford University sweatshirt and a refrigerator magnet. After that, we made our way back to the bus. We had another two hour bus ride ahead of us. By this time, I was exhausted so I fell asleep immediately once again. I really like both the places we visited today and wish we had more time to spend. However, we didn’t and I am very happy about the way I spent my time today!
Once we got back to the hotel, I took some time to rest and eat some food. Then, I met up with my group to prepare for our International Nursing Conference presentation tomorrow. I am super excited but also nervous for tomorrow! Hopefully, it goes all well!