My trip to Oxford

Hi, everybody! I have made it all the way to Europe. I will be based in Oxford, England, for the foreseeable future. From here, I'll have the opportunity to travel all over Europe -- and beyond!

Oxford is home to the University of Oxford, the oldest university in the English-speaking world. Oxford's first colleges were founded way back in the 13th century, and teaching has been taking place here since several hundred years before that. It's a lot of fun for me to be in a city with so many students.

Here is a picture of me in front of the Radcliffe Camera, which is one of Oxford's most recognizable buildings. Today, it is part of the university's library system. Isn't it a funny shape for a library?

Here is a picture of me in front of the so-called Bridge of Sighs. It looks kind of like a similar bridge over a canal in Venice. It's the Venetian bridge that inspired the name -- prisoners "sighed" when they were taken across the bridge to jail. I hope someday I will be able to go to Venice and see it. Anyway, this Bridge of Sighs just goes over the street. It links two different parts of Hertford College (pronounced like "Hartford," the capital of Connecticut). Oxford is made up of 38 different colleges, all of which are independent of each other. Hertford was first established in 1282, although back then it was just called Hart Hall.

The college where I am staying is called Magdalen College (pronounced like "maudlin," as it if didn't have the G). Magdalen wasn't founded until 1458, so it is relatively new. It is recognizable for its tall tower. On May Day, the boys of the chapel choir go to the top of the tower and sing a hymn as the sun rises at 6am. Everybody else watches and listens from below the tower.

Magdalen is also famous because they have their own deer park. I am told that it is fun to go to a college that has deer roaming around, but when I went to see them they were off grazing by themselves and they didn't come very close to me. I can't show you a picture of them because they were too far away. I promise I will send you one later!

To my friends at Green Gables Elementary School -- I hope that you are all doing well and that you are as excited to hear about my travels as I am to share them with you.

I want you all to find a map of England. Do you see Oxford? What river is Oxford on. Follow that river downstream to the North Sea. What other cities does it pass through? I am planning to go to several other places on that river -- perhaps you can even predict my next adventure!

--Benny