Summer in Oxford

Studying abroad was a concept that i hardly gave any thought to, with most of my attention focused on submit-ting requirements and studying for countless quizzes and exams. The idea, attractive as it was, couldn’t be given the time or proper attention it needed. One day, however, my mom chanced upon an advertisement by the Institute of Foreign Study (IFS) in the newspaper. Suddenly, the prospect of studying abroad–even for just a couple of weeks–didn’t seem so farfetched.

After a series of mind-numbing mental debates over which of the many IFS programs to take (it was a toss-up between Paris and Oxford), I finally settled on the Oxford program.

The four weeks prior to departure were devoted to physical and mental preparation for the three-week course. The weekly Saturday orientations began with a program called Sigla, a collection of Yoga-esque exercises conceived by Dr. Jose "Pepito" Cunanan. The activities that followed were aimed at getting to know the rest of the 28 participants and 2 group leaders (EJ Legaspi and Alice Orleans) who were bound for England. We were also extensively oriented on the basic rules and regulations of our three-week stay in Oxford.

The days before leaving had most of us (and our parents) anxious, excited and worried. We began the trip battling mixed emotions — most of us were about to leave Manila for the first time on our own and enter a life that was completely foreign and unfamiliar. Personally, I was apprehensive about a number of things, from the allegedly bland food to the heavy accents to the soaring exchange rate–almost 100 pesos to 1 pound.

Shortly after our arrival at Heathrow (and a long episode of picture-taking in the airport that left an array of digital cameras on the floor), we boarded a bus that would take us directly to the city of Oxford. Nearly a day’s worth of travel left us all exhausted and lethargic, so we slept through the entire hour-and-a-half trip. Minutes into pulling up at the parking lot of the Oxford Skating Rink, we got into separate cabs to go to our respective houses.

Despite a few direction mishaps amid the rainy weather, my roommate Gracie and I managed to get to our host family’s house within minutes. Chris and Marina Heeley, the couple we were assigned to live with for the next three weeks, greeted us with the warmest smiles imaginable–despite the fact that it was past midnight. We quickly settled into our room and joined Marina for tea in the kitchen, before calling it a day.

May 1 was a bank holiday, so Marina appointed herself as the tour guide for the day and showed us around the entire city of Oxford, giving us general directions around the place and pointing out several important must-sees. Gracie and I were in constant amazement– completely overwhelmed and unable to fully contain ourselves at the sight of the gorgeous city, which was a mix of both elaborate, historical buildings and modern fixtures.

Following our designated shopping day was our first day of school at the College of International Education (CIE), located conveniently in the heart of Oxford. After a fifteen-minute bus ride, a few minutes of walking and several wrong turns, Gracie and I managed to make it to the school with enough time to send quick e-mails to our friends and family back home.

As soon as everyone gathered at CIE, the 20-something students were distributed into three classes. Together with my six newfound classmates, we made our way to the Oxford Union, where our classes would be held. The Oxford Union, located across the street from CIE, serves as headquarters for the debaters of Oxford University.

As part of the IFS Oxford program, the classes we were assigned to take up in a span of three weeks were History of Art, Politics, Creative Writing, Economics, Philosophy and Media Studies, at two classes per week.

The six classes we took held some of the most interesting topics; I was drawn to Philosophy and Media Studies. Apart from being intellectually engaged by the subjects, we also found ourselves getting attached to some of our teachers. In appreciation, one of the classes threw a small birthday party –complete with birthday cake–for our History of Art & Philosophy teacher, Tim Wilson (who bore an uncanny resemblance to Patch Adams/Robin Williams).

Following our morning classes and lunch was Academic English, which was centered on preparing for an extensive research paper to be submitted at the end of the course. Preparations included choosing a topic related to England (I picked the English Premiere League, as soccer fever was beginning to grip the country) and researching at the Oxford City Library and other resource centers.

After the hour-and-a-half long English course, we gathered outside the Oxford Union for the afternoon activities. Organized by CIE, we were put under the care of Julian and Nachida, the school’s activity coordinators. Afternoons were spent going to the various colleges and Harry Potter sites, ice skating, picnicking at some of the university parks, punting, bowling, watching plays and riding double-decker buses for sightseeing. Some of us even caught a glimpse of the Queen–or at least, her hat. She was in Oxford one day to inaugurate Oxford Castle.

Class activities usually ended at about 5 p.m., which gave us about an hour to shop before the stores closed. On occasional nights, we would get together for dinner — fish and chips, Asian food and steak were some of the strong favorites.

Weekends were reserved for out-of-town excursions. On the first Saturday, we girls went to Bicester Village for a shopping spree, much to our delight. Although it was drizzling for most of the day, we managed to leave the place with a couple of shopping bags in tow.

The next day was a trip to Blenheim Palace. Blenheim, surrounded by vast, green gardens, was home to Sir Winston Churchill and has since been converted into a museum. One of the highlights of the trip was a visit to the maze in the palace grounds. Energetic Pinoy tourists that we were, we attempted to reenact the maze scene in Harry Potter 4 and tried to get out in the shortest time possible.

The following Saturday was a trip to Warwick Castle and Stratford-upon-Avon. Visiting Warwick Castle, a medieval castle situated in central England, was a fun experience for everyone, most especially due to the ghost tour. The "Ghosts Alive" tour was a terrifying walk-in tour narrating the murders of the ghosts that haunt the castle — I, however, could hardly pay much attention to the storyline because of the ridiculously scary actors and effects.

Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, was our next destination. Charming and old-fashioned, it is decorated with bright flowers and has cobbled streets. Most of our time in Stratford was spent watching a production of Julius Caesar, which we had studied in our respective schools. After watching the play, we–camera-ready as always–took countless pictures in front of Shakespeare’s house, but were interrupted by sudden rain showers.

Bath, which we visited the next day, was a picturesque display of the Roman Baths and spas, dating all the way back to the ancient times. We were also given time to shop along the impressive lineup of stores in the busy city. A few of us, upon hearing rumors that Lindsay Lohan was in the area, ran up and down the streets in a vain attempt at celebrity-sighting.

Our final week in Oxford was met with dread and disappointment, many of us not wanting to leave our host families, teachers and friends. On our last school day, following the presentations of our research papers, we came up with a short production that was staged in front of our teachers and CIE employees. The program began with the distribution of certificates, followed by our group’s renditions of Harana and Ugoy ng Duyan. Our teachers seemed to be very impressed and absorbed by the entire presentation, and were also eager enough to join in a few games.

Friday night was spent packing, and Gracie and I showered our host mom with presents of dried mangoes, bags, earrings and shawls. We also presented our host dad, a science-fiction addict, with a DVD of Spaceballs, a parody on the Star Wars movies.

Next morning was a somewhat tearful goodbye to the house and our host family, before heading off to the Oxford Playhouse. We said goodbye to the city of Oxford, the various colleges, our favorite restaurants (Kebab Kid, which had some of the best fish & chips around the city; and Noodle Bar, a Chinese restaurant which solved the whole ‘no rice’ equation), the Odeon theatre and the Oxford Union, and then headed off to London.

Our last day in England was spent sightseeing in London, visiting some of the tourist attractions such as Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey. Our tour, however, was put on hold for a couple of hours to check-in at the St. Giles Hotel in Heathrow. After settling into our rooms, we assembled once again in the lobby to go to West End and watch We Will Rock You, a musical that showcases the songs of the rock band Queen.

After the show, we maneuvered our way through the London Underground. After a few frustrating attempts, we made it back to our hotel for our final night in England.

There were life lessons and how-to’s to last a lifetime. I learned how to appreciate the acquired taste of milk-flavored tea; how to pronounce words such as ‘Gloucester’, ‘Bicester’ and ‘Magdalen’; how to find my bearings on a pair of ice skates; how to watch my expenses; how to survive in a different continent without the company of parents and guardians; how to live under the roof of complete strangers; how to enjoy a walk home after a tiring day in the city… I could go on and on.

My stay in Oxford, although brief, brought some of the most unforgettable memories in my life–from climbing the narrow steps at the Carfax Tower to sitting in the rain watching a collegiate production of Animal Farm. And a favorite (and extremely well-documented) activity for practically everyone was playing friendly games of Pusoy Dos in the unlikeliest of places–-museum benches, moving buses, and pavements among them.

Staying in Oxford has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life–the people I met while on the program have become very good friends (who I see a little too often in Manila). I’ve learned more than I expected to and it is definitely an experience I will look back on with a smile.

IFS will not be offering the Oxford program in 2007. Cambridge, also in the United Kingdom, will be the destination for high school students, and East Devon, for the juniors. For further information, please visit www.ifsphil.net