Day 20 - as day 19!

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Similar day to yesterday, starting with a walk to Port Meadow, a large water meadow by the Thames but accessible from the Oxford Canal. This is a wild water swimming area – not rough water but more fresh water swimming. I think that I would want a shower afterwards though – there's a lot of goose poo around. Port Meadow is managed by Oxford City Council whereas I believe all the other meadows around Oxford are owned by various colleges.







Started on the undercoat today and the boat was so hot that the paint was going tacky on contact. Put another coat on this afternoon and will have the joy of sanding tomorrow.







I decided to walk around the Jericho area of Oxford this afternoon – famous from Morse/Lewis and also Jude, the Obscure. Jericho was Oxford's first planned suburb. It was named after Jericho House which was just outside the city walls. In the 17^th century, travellers arriving after the gates had shut could find refuge there. Most of the street plan was laid down after the canal was built, to house local factory workers – eg. Oxford University Press. In the 1960s there were plans to demolish what was by then a run-down area and replace it with light industrial units and a relief road. Locals campaigned vigorously against this and Jericho became a model for urban renewal. The houses are 2 and 3 storey Victorian terraces mainly, developed on an ad hoc basis by individual builders when funds were available.

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Photos

Port Meadow
and cows.

Port Meadow
and buttercups.

Port Meadow
and the Thames (and Hattie).

Port Meadow
and one of the swimming areas.

Port Meadow
and a hot dog.

Port Meadow
and the water meadow in action.

The end of the line....
....as mentioned a couple of days ago, this is the actual start of the canal now the basin has been filled in. What could have been a beautiful area is now a messy and used as a bottle/can bank by the local drunks who hang out there.

Martyrs' Memorial
On the site where bishops Cranmer, Ridley and Latimer were burned at the stake for their Protestant beliefs. They say that the main gate to Balliol College still bears the scorch marks but they weren't obvious.

Ashmolean Museum
Above the portico.

St. Sepulchre Cemetery, Jericho
Well this took some finding as it has been enclosed by a large development of flats. This sounds awful but it really wasn't - the flats are stylish, all at different angles, quite pleasing to the eye. The cemetery is an oasis of calm - beautiful.

St Barnabus' Church campanile
Built by Thomas and Martha Combe and consecrated in 1869. It is a parish church but in the Anglo-Catholic tradition. It is modelled on the Cathedral of Torcello, near Venice.

Inside the church.
The church was locked but I had this tantalising glimpse through glass at the interior - it was amazing.

St. Barnabus again....
... but from the opposite side of the canal. It was impossible to get a picture when next to the church because of the sun and the proximity of housing.

Comments

[Jan]

Great diary - thanks!
Really enjoying your blog. The photos and commentary really do bring your trip alive! Sorry that you felt vulnerable but glad that everything worked out ok....this time tomorrow your "knight in shining armour" will be back to protect you. In the meantime - take care and leave Hattie as your guardian. Had to postpone our trip to The New Forest but still scheduled for Tewkesbury next week. Glad weather has improved for us all - looking forward to your next update. Love to all Jan & Jan xx

[sgs]

torcello
St Barnabus certainly does look like Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta on Torcello. That also has a canal near by! The famous Cipriani restaurant, frequented by this family on the odd occasion, is now even more exclusive since it costs a lot more than your moorings fees to get to the island. Gone are the days when no-one really knew it was there. Once again - entertaining and informative travel report (blog is rather unromantic a word....) s