The Rasmusens in Oxford

Today was very special as we spent it all in London. Our plan was to visit Westminster and Big Ben first, then eat in Chinatown, make our way to the British Museum, wander around and find dinner somewhere and make our way back. Now back home, we can record some of our more memorable experiences. We managed to leave the house at 8 am and on a Saturday at that, and were in time for our 8:38am departure to Paddington. Eric walked the Thames path and the rest of us squeezed into a London style taxi— just pushing the stroller with the baby in it right onto the taxi. Eric walked into the station just a few minutes before we were supposed to leave – whew! – thanks to His long legs. We got some seats and then noticed that we were in the “quiet zone” standard seats. We didn’t know exactly what that meant and since everyone else was silent, we all were too, well, as much as can reasonably be expected of a family like ours. The children were so good. By the way, the family rail card at 20 pounds is very good. For all of us to get there and back in one day, being able to choose which trains, and having the freedom of taking any bus or underground train in central London cost just under 38 pounds. (it seems like a good deal to me anyway).

We were awed and amazed by the architecture of Westminster Palace and Abbey. The domed ceilings were amazing. Walking on top of 300-year old tombs is not something you do everyday. Elizabeth liked the tombs of Elizabeth 1st, Mary Queen of Scots, and of the little princes in the tower, and Ben liked King George VI’s sword and scabbard. I think he had always thought Big Ben was named after him.

New World dim sum (Leicester Square) was very good. But not exactly a bargain at about 43 pounds for all of us. (maybe good price by English standards though). We had a whole plate of garlicky spinach for 6 pounds 50 p. The Cantonese chow mein was really crispy and good (something you can’t find in Bloomington). Lilli and Eric and Amelia enjoyed the chicken feet (ugggh!) – well, it’s not bad really, you just have to get over your prejudice.

Then we decided to walk to Oxford Street to buy a second stroller. Unfortunately we stumbled through a REALLY rotten neighborhood, but quickly moved away. Oxford Street was awash with pedestrians and when we looked onto it from the double decker top decks, it looked impossible that someone wasn’t getting killed at every corner. So many buses, taxis and people. Especially near Selfridges, a huge stone, fluted-column department store. Ben, Faith, and I found a baby equipment store at Marble Arch and quickly got onto a number 7 that would take us back to where we had been and then onto the British Museum. Wonderful! By now Benjamin was having trouble behaving but the baby had napped through lunch (on my lap, and no, I didn’t spill anything on her amazingly), so she was happy.

The British Museum was the place for us. We need to go back there many times as we barely scratched the surface. But what amazing artifacts. The children and I have started studying history since none of us know any, and had learnt a bit about Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt. We’ve got some photos to share here. Benjamin was especially keen on the stone carvings of Assyrian lion hunts, which were stunningly realistic and exciting. We HAD to view the Korean celadon since some of us had recently read A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park. Good read. We passed through Ancient Egypt too quickly, but appreciated the Rosetta Stone and the HUGE head of Rameses II. It was so exciting to see some things dating from the times that we had been reading about and to be able to appreciate in person real objects which bore the different symbol systems, the contrasting artistic styles, the skills these people had. It was very exciting for me. We saw a well preserved mummy dating from about 2300 years ago, pretty recent for an Egyptian mummy.

Check out some photos.

After wandering around too long, we finally found a restaurant that would suit us. Govinda, a hare krishna restaurant!! (vegetarian). Since we couldn’t all fit very easily, I ate outside with Faith in her stroller (most of the time), and Lilli, (who was also in her seat MOST of the time). It was good food and about half of what we had paid at lunch. The tricky part was all the hare krishna and hindu and just plain insane people wandering around me. I am quite paranoid in the heart of any big city with people milling around me, on a Saturday night, with 2 little girls to protect and feed at the same time. And I was freaked out by this 50-ish Indian guy who kept creeping up behind me and standing very close just staring oddly and fixedly at us. He tried to put his heavy silver cross pendant around Faith’s head before I caught him and gently asked him to keep it since the baby was too young. I didn’t know what to say to him! Lilli wouldn’t finish her dinner and she needed to get just a couple more bites in before I was willing to leave. So I was getting anxiouser and anxiouser. This older gentleman was probably harmless, but I, being the paranoid protective mother bear, didn’t like his attention and his weird grunts. Anyway, we all left shortly thereafter and I am so glad I’m not a hare krishna, or a Hindu for that matter. Sorry, this blog is not PC: we’re not a very PC family. (understatement) Jesus is the way for us. The people are very kind I’m sure, like the older Hindu gentleman who invited us to the festival next week, but there is no salvation there.

Back to Paddington by tube and hauling occupied strollers with bags hanging from each handle up and down flights of stairs, keeping everyone together, squeezing onto full trains, we just missed our target train back to Oxford by a minute or so. So we got the next fast train and arrived home around 9:25 pm. Faith hadn’t fallen asleep – what stamina. Tomorrow we will walk to church and back (almost 1 hour each way), so everyone will be quite quite tired.

Yesterday, we walked more than 5 hours, the last 2 of which we’ll describe below. It all started as a long walk to Godstow Abbey north of us across the north end of Port Meadow. Feeling faint, we stopped at a Chinese take-away counter that sold us fried plaice and chips, shredded chicken chow mein, beef and onion in a puff pastry pie, mixed vegetables in black bean sauce, and hong kong style sweet and sour pork. It was good! We ate in the small Wolvercote playground and then crossed the street to go to the Red Lion pub. A beautiful pub, and very nice garden with great sturdy tables, beautiful potted flowers, AND a gigantic bouncy castle thing! Then we set off on Port Meadow to go back home since it was already after 7.

The grass was short and we found a cattle path. Around 7:30 we got excited spotting a gate which looked like the gate we needed to get out of the meadow and home. Well, it was a mirage (not a gate but a fence). We started squishing water into our shoes and saying EEWW! But this was just the beginning. The Marsh Monster (our invention) which comes out after sunset was too real for us now, as the water and squelchy mud got up to our ankles. Well, we kept going. The double stroller was being pushed by Eric with Lilli and Faith inside. The big girls and Ben followed me to the edge where we hoped to find higher ground. The water was up to our knees. Our shoes started getting stuck in the mirey mud. We were not dismayed but no path! We went back to the soggy stroller whose driver was stalwart. Then we saw a path!! We started galloping (!) towards it . By now, Eric had abandoned the stroller and started carrying Lilli. He had to turn back. Why we called? It was not passable even for his long limbs. I came to the baby and rescued her from her boat. Then we cut forward and found a stream. Ben was up to his upper hips now and Elizabeth resembled a soggy ghost in her pink Gap sundress and delicate shrug which were turning brown. We wondered if we could wade across. By now the sun had set. What was once dry and pleasant and slightly adventurous, was now dramatic, dark and wet. Eric managed to cross and carry Lilli to the path. We wanted out! So Amelia plunged through, Lizzie and Ben and I carrying the baby went next. The water came up to Lizzie’s chest, Ben’s armpits, and my hips. I lost my shoe! Lizzie lost hers too, and Ben was so brave, while we were giddy. We got to the path! The geese and flocking birds seemed to be mocking us with their twilight calls. We watched as Eric went back for the stroller. He later described it as kind of floating.

Well, what a sight we were! The sophisticated elegant English couple who came through the gate didn’t bat an eyelid. But they said that we were not at the gate that would lead us to civilization, but that the one we wanted was just around the corner. It got darker and windier, and we started to move down the path. Eric got up the embankment to the path and we took some photos. Well, no one else saw us up close and we arrived home about 8 minutes later, took baths and showers, and then all had warm milk and a whole pot of creamy oatmeal porridge. It was 9:30 when we went to bed, feeling grateful for dryness, cleanness, warmth and comfort.

The marsh monster had not gotten us! we had seen his footprints and his bed in the meadow – along with tons of cow poopies and scraggly feathers. Ben sat down in the yucky mud 3 times. Lizzie fell in it 3 times. The water came up to Amelia’s upper thighs and past my hips, why? because she was lighter and didn’t sink so much in the mud. This is a real story. Check out some photos.

Everything went so smoothly even though our flight out was delayed about 3 hours.  ALL our luggage was accepted plus 5 car seats.  The plane ride was great – my seat mates were Faith and Benjamin, the latter of whom deliberately stayed up until the fasten seat belt sign was turned off just so he could get his backpack from the overhead where his goodies for the plane were.  He quickly ate up both packets of pop rocks, the m and m’s, and then went to sleep watching one of the Shrek sequels.  He slept, the baby slept (mostly on the floor in front of me – she didn’t have a seat), and I did  intermittently.

The ride to Oxford was great.  EVERYTHING just fit into the minibus (as the man called it) – the ride cost more than $300-  outrageous.  But it got us here smoothly.  The house is amazing.  We are so blessed.  It is   3- storied, much smaller than American houses, but   very comfortable all the same.  We walk to the store and cross small brick bridges over the canal and go along narrow bumpy sidewalks and alongside some parks.  The weather is beautiful– kind of like San Diego weather!!  It won’t last though  ; )  and we are all very grateful and content and enjoying our surroundings.  Lots of walking already too.  We walked past the children’s school today and we can get to it in maybe 5-7 minutes walking along the towpath by the canal.

There are lots of ducks and a couple of swans on the canal and the kids have found lots of beautiful snails and snail shells, interesting feathers and stones and seed pods, etc.

They don’t like the pasta sauce I bought yesterday.  A jar of it cost only 28 pence (about 60 cents) but it was only 48% tomato puree so the rest of it was water sugar starch and flavorings.  No wonder.  Well, I’m trying to economize since things are pretty expensive here.  The landlady  even programs the water heater to be on only in the morning and evening, or just once a day.  Electricity will be expensive too, but one thing we can save on is long distance calls using the internet – something called scipe or scope…  which will be almost free.  I’ll have to put our phone number in this email.  The landlady is very nice and very helpful and friendly.  I’m feeling a little anxious to not stick out like a sore thumb and be labeled the loud and ugly American, but I guess I’m not so loud and ugly ; ).

We’re in the process of unpacking and the kids are divided into the upstairs bedrooms.  Ben gets the small single bed room   which looks out onto the back garden, which is kind of Italianate with gravel and lots of big pavers and some exotic plantings.  Faith and Lilli share a room, Faith with her pack and play and Lilli in a big luxurious double bed.  I ran into her room at about 3 a.m. last night after I put her to bed for the second time (jet lag) (and after having eaten cereal and bread butter and jam at around 1 a.m.)  to find her screaming and nowhere to be seen.  She was under the down duvet.  It was so fluffy I couldn’t tell she was under it.  She was howling and frightened because she had gotten lost under it.  It was terrifying for her, but funny.