Fourth week kicked off with a trip to Woodstock to give a presentation to the Rotary Club there. As usual, I had a fabulous time (and unusually, I managed not to throw food on anyone during dinner). The next day, we had a class tour of New College which has been around since 1379 (they filmed parts of Harry Potter and James Bond there). Besides the beautiful castle-like buildings and chapel filled with medieval stained glass and carved wooden seats, they also have a famous Mound in the gardens where, if you stand in a certain spot and clap, you'll hear the Mound quack back at you. Sounds silly, I know, but it's just so bizarre and surprising and kinda neat when it happens, that you end up standing there for a while, clapping to yourself. (Apparently you can't clap to yourself for too long though, as security is serious about Mound protection... not that I would know or anything...)
Yes, this is the Mound. Only fellows of the college are allowed to climb the steps...
On Wednesday, we went to the Vic to help Kevin, Will's friend, ring in his birthday with some brews. And on Thursday, I went to an exchange dinner at St. Anne's College. What their College lacked in beauty (it was new, like Linacre), it made up for with a fine salmon dinner and unlimited wine. After dinner, as is custom, everyone retired to a special room for teeny-tiny glasses of port -- it's so Oxford. Then, on Friday, our whole crew went to Kevin's house to really celebrate his birthday. I attempted to bake a cake (basically, it looked like a cake and frosting container exploded all over the pan) and Will got Kev a poster of his fav American lady, Kristin Cavalleri. Sadly, The Hills has also infected England. The rest of the evening was spent laughing, playing Spoons, and taking pictures with Kristin posing in various locations around the house.
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