Oxford & Blenheim Palace

Post-exam adventure: days 1 & 2

At the end of every period of stress, people often require a long duration of relaxation before beginning to work again. The majority will generally pursue this through an extended sleep. However for me, I prefer to de-stress through a slightly more active and fun way. 

The Radcliffe Camera, Oxford

Yes that's right. Traveling is my cure.

Window shopping in Oxford

For the first part of my grand 6 day adventure, I decided to travel down to the charming and lively town of Oxford. I'm sure that most of you will have heard about its splendour and spectacles, so I won't go into many details about what I did there (the photos should explain this thoroughly). I did think about going to Bicester Village to shop, but there was more than enough independent retailers for me to buy from in Oxford itself. 

Blenheim Palace (interiors)

The Temple of Diana

In comparison to day 1, the second day matched my passion for exploration much better. Fate led me to the magnificent Blenheim Palace in the historic market town of Woodstock (no relation to Snoopy I believe). Whether you're interested in history or architecture, this palace has it all. As a quick overview of its timeline, the building was originally the birthplace of Winston Churchill. Visiting enables you to learn more about his life and relation to the palace. For example, he proposed to his to-be-wife, Clementine, at the "Temple of Diana" in his garden (and yes I did manage to snap a photo of this fantastic piece of architecture). The interiors of the palace itself can also be explored. I particularly liked The Long Library which houses one of the largest organs in Europe. 

Absolutely aMAZE-ing

The organ in The Long Library

Duck on patrol

Of course no adventure is complete without a bit of outdoorsy fun. For any nature lover, Blenheim Palace's exteriors will completely spoil you. There are acres pure grassland to promenade on, interesting monuments like the Column of Victory, and also the one of the largest hedge mazes in the world to get lost in. You can literally spend a good couple of hours just walking around and breathing in the fresh air (given that the weather is sunny). And if visiting Blenheim Palace is not enough to satisfy your globetrotter spirit, pop down the road to Woodstock village once you're done. There's a variety of quirky shops and cafes to marvel at and photograph. It's a great activity for anyone, especially whilst you wait for the bus to get back to Oxford. 

Heading to the Column of Victory

In the Formal Gardens

Roaming around Woodstock

That's it for Oxfordshire. Come back tomorrow to find out where I headed next on my 6 day post-exam adventure (dun dun dun).

Blenheim Palace (the magnificent exterior)