Hi All!
I have been meaning to send out an email about my second term at Oxford for a few weeks now. But unfortunately, my studies have been insane. To make up for it, though, I am writing an epic length email to you all, with pictures included!
As I write this, I have had a total of roughly 20 hours of sleep since Sunday. Though, admittedly, much of that has to do with being in Spain from Sunday until Wednesday. And then coming back, I had to write two essays. But both of those essays have been written and turned in, and I’ve had both of my tutorials! I only have three essays left and I am done with my second term here.
It’s crazy, really, how fast time has gone. I feel like I was just sitting at home in my living room opening Christmas gifts with my family. And suddenly, somehow, nearly two months have passed since I’ve been back at Oxford! Perhaps it’s the amount of work I’ve had, and I just haven’t had time to realize that time is passing. But I can’t believe that this term is nearly over! It’s just mind boggling. One term left and then I’m back to the States, and back to Holy Cross as a SENIOR! I can’t believe it! I can’t even think about it!
Anyway, back to Oxford.
So the biggest thing this term, I suppose, was the snowstorm. A few weeks ago we received the most snow Oxford has seen in two decades. Now, in Massachusetts and New England, snow really isn’t that big of a deal. It snows, we either smile and sip hot chocolate, groan and start searching for snow shovels, etc. And then the town hopefully sends out the plows and we carry on with our day. No big deal. In Oxford though, people my age have never seen more than an inch or two of snow. So when we got roughly 6-8 inches you can just imagine the chaos it created. Everything was canceled. Stores were closed. People were going crazy. Even I took the morning off, put on some gloves and boots, grabbed a camera and friends and took a walk. And Oxford just looked stunning under all the snow. All Hogwarts and Narnia and magical. It was just the right consistency of packing snow, which meant that there were snowmen everywhere. On benches, in parks, on bridges, under trees, on buildings. It was incredible. All of the rules about NO STEPPING ON THE GRASS (really really big deal here in Oxford - NO ONE is allowed on the grass) were disregarded as everyone surged to make the biggest, best snowmen. There were snowmen, snow-women, snow kids, snow dogs, snow penguins, snow bears, snow devils, snow toilets (there was a ten foot snow sculpture of a toilet at one of the colleges called THE THRONE), snow everything. It was incredible. For people who have never seen snow before, they sure were creative. Unfortunately, with so much snow, and so little preparedness to deal with the snow, roads were left unpaved, the side-walks became hazardous ice-rinks. For the rest of the week people were slipping and sliding, and just walking down to the grocery store turned out to be a danger filled adventure.
Here are some pictures:

This was taken in the Botanical Gardens. It looked exactly like Narnia there!
Look at the size of this snow ball!!! There were tons of these everywhere!
I wasn’t even half as tall as this snowman!! I took the picture at Magdelan College – that’s where the Queen went! The actress from Narnia, Susan, goes there. I had to sneak into the college, since you can only get into the college you specifically attend.I loved the snow! It was so nice!
Here are some pictures of my college, Mansfield.

(see the perfect lines on the grass? They’re REALLY serious about grass here)
That’s a picture of the dining hall and the chapel.
Here’s a picture of the outside of the library:
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Here’s a picture of my favorite Library. It’s called Radcliffe Camera. It was built in the early 1700s, and J.R.R. Tolkein used it as inspiration for Sauron’s Temple in Lord of the Rings. I usually sit on the top floor, since it’s really quiet, and usually warmer than the downstairs. To go into the library, you have to show your ID (bod card) and the guard checks your bag to make sure you’re not sneaking in water or food. Also, this is the library that you can’t take out the books. They have to stay in the library. Most of the books you have to order from the ‘stacks’ if you want to read them. The stacks are basically an underground book-stack that goes on for miles under the roads of Oxford. It’s rather incredible actually. When you need a book, you order it online, and then robots go and find it for you. Though, sometimes, the books I need are “offsite” which means they are kept in lime quarries in some distant town. Yes, I know. Oxford is weird.

And here are some pictures from around Oxford.
Our Bridge of Sighs:

Our tower of Oxford. This is what I look out at when I’m in the library. People climb to the top of it and sometimes I can see them as well. It’s kind of odd being watched by tourists when I study in the library.
(The people stand on that ledge above the clock).
Here’s Christ Church College where they filmed Harry Potter. This is the dining hall that they ate at:

This is my street:
(We have Subway!! I’ve never been there though).
Here are pictures of my bedroom:


(Those plants are steadily dying on me. I really don’t have a green thumb at all. And see my wellies? They’re great)

That’s basically my entire room. It’s really small, but its mine and its comforting.

Besides studying, I went to Spain this week from Sunday until Wednesday. It was the first time I’ve ever travelled alone in Europe! It was a little scary, but also very liberating knowing that I am capable of doing it. Spain was beautiful. Really warm and sunny (the sun doesn’t often come out in Oxford. Or if it does, there are always clouds, and a threat of rain). Though it was sunny and warm today! I wore a sweater t-shirt out (yes, they make them in England. Actually, I bought mine in Spain). And there were flowers that bloomed this week, and it was just really beautiful.

Anyway, Spain. So when I went, it was Carnaval. Kind of like a mix between mardi gras and Halloween. It was like one big party of dancing all night long. Most of the parties didn’t start until midnight and didn’t end until 7am. So you can imagine that sleep was very limited. The parties were amazing though. Everyone was dressed up. Kids, teenagers, adults, even the elderly were dressed in costumes and rocking out to techno music all night long. It was amazing! I’ve never seen anything like it!
Spain was very different from England. When you meet someone, they kiss you on each cheek and give you a hug. Guys and girls do it. It’s very different from England where you don’t even shake someone’s hand when you meet them. Suffice to say, I was a bit shocked the first time it happened.
I went to Leon. It’s in North Western Spain, and was absolutely beautiful. Here are some pictures I took:
This is the cathedral. It’s in the center of the city and is absolutely stunning.

(This building is now a hotel. It used to be a jail. Me and my friend ate lunch there when I took this picture. It was beautiful!)
This was my first sight of Leon. This bridge is right next to the bus station. It was incredible! I love the mountains!
This was where the party was being held – in a big tent in the center of the city. Look at those costumes!! It was amazing! That’s a Viking in the foreground!

Everyone was dressed up. It was just amazing. My friend and I went as matching princesses.
I don’t think I’ve ever encountered anything quite like the Carnavel and I don’t think I ever will again. It was a one of a kind experience. And while it did put me behind in my work, I don’t regret going at all. It was so much fun!!

In other news, I joined a yoga class that is really nice. It gives me a chance to relax, and is actually MUCH harder than I would have thought yoga could be.
Anyway, I hope this is a good summary of my time at Oxford. It’s been a whirlwind these past few weeks. If you have any questions or want more pictures, feel free to email me!! I also have a phone number now where people can reach me. It’s an international number that I bought through Skype. Basically, I use my computer to call people, or to receive calls. What is good about it, is that I can use it anywhere in the world, as long as I’m calling a landline. My number is 508-503-1514. Because it’s a computer number, I got to designate it to whatever town and country I wanted – so I chose home! So feel free to call me! Anyway, I hope everyone is doing well! I miss you all soooo much and can't wait to see you all! Only a few more months and I’m home!!!
Love always,
Becky