five senses friday: oxford

Hello, friends! (Here we are in University Parks, in Oxford. And yes, that is my Ravelry shirt, by the way.)

I’ve been wanting to blog about our trip. Wanting to tell you stories, to share beautiful photos, to dream and reminisce about the lovely time we had. But I always find myself silent after big events like this one. I just can’t seem to find a place to start.

So, when Abby posted a Five Senses Friday post on her blog today, I thought I’d play along and give you a few tidbits of what we sensed in Oxford.

We saw:

~Vistas like these – lush foliage, old cemeteries, gray-green rivers, honey-coloured stone buildings
~Lots and lots of beloved friends – Lizzie, Sally, Jacque, Mike, Ron, Janine, Simon, Tiffany, Nicky, Vince, Jo, Grace, Mark, Jacob, Lara, Niluka, Kirsty, Hannah, Rachel, and on and on. (I didn’t take photos of most of them, though; we were too busy talking as hard as we could, or in some cases, laughing at each other’s jokes or singing along to random music or just being together.)

~Two gorgeous weddings of beloved friends – Jo and Vince are above, dancing; more photos from those to come

We heard:

~a live flute player at the crafts market near the Oxford Castle
~Cockney produce sellers hawking their wares at the Gloucester Green open market
~story after story from Mike and Jacque – there’s always so much to catch up on

~Traffic on the busy Cowley Road – but oh, it felt so good to be back!
~Oxford rain – including a freak thunderstorm!
~two Sundays’ worth of wonderful worship at St Aldates

We felt:

~sunshine and late summer breezes on our faces (and rain, too)
~sore calves and feet after walking everywhere (but it was worth it!)
~the softness of scarves and cardigans, and cool coziness after a long hot summer. (And yes, I bought a new pashmina – the green one in the photo.)

~total ecstasy – and belly laughter – at being with dear friends again (Lizzie and Grace, beloved housemates, are pictured above)

We smelled and tasted (I’m combining them because these are all food/drinks):

~Blackberries growing wild near University Parks – Jeremiah couldn’t believe they were free for anyone to pick!

~Delicious On the Hoof sandwiches. This one is a Tom’s Le Club – Cajun spiced chicken, mozzarella, salsa and bacon. Yum.

~Chai lattes at Combibos Coffee on Gloucester Green, along with fresh strawberries:

And finally, lots of ice cream (and hot chocolate) at G&D’s:

Check out Jeremiah’s new blog for a series of posts about what he learned on vacation – great stuff. I’ll be back next week with more stories and photos. Happy weekend!

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