Although I've had some realizations about living in Bath, England, last week was full of new experiences in Oxford.

Our journey started with a pit-stop to Blenheim Palace; an early eighteenth-century structure with an unbelievable landscape which even includes a secret garden. This gorgeous palace holds a history with the Churchill family and Oxford itself. Although the wind made standing the gardens less than ideal, the typical English weather completed the picturesque view.

Arriving at University College of Oxford, we didn't have much time to relax and unpack before we started our tour of Oxford. However, the new experiences started on Sunday with the Oxford tradition of Punting. This activity requires a group of five people, one metal pole, a single oar, and plenty of teamwork. Our punting skills looked like a joke with the help of the strong winds pushing the current against us. The narrow boat couldn't handle our lack of punting skills and the struggle was real. A canal ride that should have taken forty-five minutes ended up taking around an hour and a half. Around the half way mark, our friend Nick (standing in the photo) lost his balance and fell into the river. Nick swam to land completely soaked as the four of us we pushed farther away from him because of the wind. It was best for Nick to walk back to the dock where we started the boat ride. The four of us left on the boat wondered how to continue our ride without the metal stick, which had fallen in with Nick and floated to the other side of the canal. Luckily, Jonathan Hope, the Dean and Director of ASE, who spent time in Oxford and became skilled at punting, came on board to help us return quickly to the dock. Even with an unskilled team, someone falling in, and a strong wind against us, the experience is still one to remember.

Another new experience I had during Oxford week was learning my way around another city. Oxford is first and foremost a college town, so it felt familiar, but on a larger scale than Williamsport, Pennsylvania. This meant new streets, cafes, museums, and bookstores. Oxford is famous for Blackwells bookshop, which opened in 1879 and is located directly across from the Boolean library. This store is four unbelievably large levels of every genre of book imaginable. I could have spent an entire day in there, but instead, I settled for a couple hours.

Pictured below: The Bridge of Sighs is a popular sight in Oxford.

A few other new experiences included:

1. Trying Indian food- I really enjoyed it, especially the naan!

2. Drinking Oxford's best hot chocolate at Paul on High Street (Pictured below)

3. Seeing the night skyline of Oxford while standing on a rooftop bar.

Oxford is full of history, literary inspiration, and education and I'm so happy I had the chance to experience a little part of that this past week. Now I'm back in Bath with a couple more day of school before spring break and an entirely new adventure waiting for me!