Today began slowly. Departing the hotel at 8:50 was the earliest we have had to been ready since getting back to London. The hour long bus ride didn’t help things either. By the time we got to Oxford, everybody was ready to get moving. After a little hike through the suburbs, we reached the home of one of the most prominent Christian thinker of the 20th century: C.S. Lewis. His house was not the grand ordeal I had envisioned, but was much more reflective of the income one might associate with the everyday English professor. The house was quaint and cozy and personal. My favorite part of his property was the large pond behind the house that has been preserved by the city as a wildlife sanctuary. Lewis had visited this pond in order to calm his mind, and it was surreal to think that this I was standing where Lewis had once stood, pondering solutions to any rational opposition to the Christianity.
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After Lewis’ house, we walked across town to his church. We observed his grave for a moment, then went inside to have a lecture. The sanctuary was empty, so we made ourselves at home in the center of the pews, while Forrest stood up by the alter and preached Lewis’ philosophy to the class. This lecture was especially significant, since it was the last one of the trip! It’s a fantastic feeling to be done with lectures, but also reminds us that we still have our final paper and our final test to get through. Afterwards, we went over to the exact seat that Lewis would sit in every Sunday in church.
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Again, the significance of this location in the history of Christianity was not lost on anyone. From the church, we took a half an hour bus ride up to the Trout Inn, which holds the record as the oldest pub in England (built in 1080). Lunch was sort of a disappointment though. We were all expecting an old pub atmosphere, but received a very contemporary restaurant that apparently had remodeled and redefined their image in the last year. It also took about an hour to get our food and we were really hungry…
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After lunch, we headed back towards downtown Oxford to see the university. Oxford University is renowned as one of the top three universities in the world. The school itself is actually composed of several smaller colleges that combine to make the official Oxford University. We got to tour two of 
these small institutions, Magdalen College and Christ Church College, the latter being the most famous and most influential college at Oxford. We then got to spend a couple hours looking around the city. Coffee shops and bookstores were scattered everywhere. It was fun to have time just to reflect on the day and the trip at large over a warm Starbuck’s grande hot chocolate. After another hour long bus trip, we were back at the hotel. Today might have begun slowly, but it ended just right. Cheers from London.
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--Jay Stahlman
