26-07-2014 / 27-07-2014

Short nights are kind of becoming an Oxford thing. Saturday morning, after barely three hours of sleep, we got up for breakfast and got on the coach to go to Bath. Because the excursion wasn’t full, we could join the cbl-oxford group and I think it was really cool of the RA’s to let us come with them! After sleeping on the bus for two more hours, we arrived in Bath. The city was way more impressive than I had expected. There were some really nice buildings and the tour guide told us some stories about these buildings and the history of the city. He also told us about the famous roman baths and the traditions that come with these baths. It was really nice to hear the story behind this famous phenomenon.

In the afternoon we had some free time during which we visited the termea bath spa. This is Britains only natural thermal spa and it was really worth the visit. There were ofcourse the thermal baths, but there also where steam rooms infused with aromas and there was an open-air rooftop pool. The entire experience was amazing and really relaxing.

After the spa we went back to Oxford, where we had dinner at the college. After dinner we went out for drinks at a rooftop bar, which had a really nice view. We also went to one of the pubs we visited during the pubcrawl the night before. I really liked this pub, because there was room to just chill and talk, but there also was kind of a party vibe with dancy music.

Sunday was a bit calmer than the day before. Because a lot of people went clubbing after the pub, I was one of the few people to show up for breakfast. After breakfast I hung out in the room for a bit, because everyone was still fast asleep. It was kinda nice to do nothing for a while though. Towards the end of the morning we met up and went to Jamie’s Italian for breakfast/lunch. Because I just had breakfast, I opted for a brownie. This turned out to be a good choice, it was amazing!

After Jamie’s we went to Primark. My goal was to find a necklace to match the new dress I bought two weeks ago at the outlet. I did find a necklace, but I also came back with a new purse and some bracelets. We then went back to the room and chilled for a bit, before going to the rooftop bar/restaurant for afternoon tea. It was really nice to have a proper British afternoon tea and I would say this is a must do when visiting England. After the tea we hung out in the college garden for about an hour, and then it was already time to leave again. The weekend has passed so quickly and it was horrible to say goodbye to everyone again. I really hope we will all meet again in the (hopefully near) future.

As I am writing this I am on the bus back to Cambridge. I was just scrolling through my photo roll looking at all the pictures that were taking during this trip. Looking back at al the things we did and the beautiful group of people we had, I couldn’t be more thankful for this experience. I know for sure Oxford will always have a special place in my heart! Love, Iris