Get thee to a nunnery...

Binsey is where Henry VIII reputedly took his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, to visit the fertility fountain when she failed to give him a son. A village fete was in progress when we walked past the dirt road that led from the River Thames to the village. My favorite booth was the Chicken Beauty Contest which had five or six entrants, complete with mission statements attached to their cages, vying for the title of most beautiful chicken in Binsey. I hope Brigitte won - dark, sultry, temperamental hen. Although the fluffy white silkies were cute too.
Our real destination was Wolvercote, and a nice long walk all around Port Meadow which we saw a glimpse of yesterday. The good Commoners of Wolvercote have the right, bestowed upon them by King Alfred, to graze their cows and horses, but not sheep, over the whole of Port Meadow. And they do - loose animals are everywhere. The Ladies of Ossabaw are familiar with my wild pig neurosis, but even they don't know about my cow adventures. I am exceedingly wary of them, and exhibited great bravery in not breaking out into a run when we had to pass by this and several other herds of cows.

Godstow Nunnery, founded in 1139, with the ruins of its 16th century chapel is on the Thames Path just before Wolvercote and just after Godstow Lock. It's delightfully overgrown, but it was rather disconcerting to discover a sleeping bag in one corner of the chapel. I read somewhere that wild, all night parties take place on Port Meadow during balmy summer nights, but this looked like an urban outdoorsman's camp. You wouldn't catch me out there in the dark with all those wild animals lurking about.


The last part of the five miles we walked this afternoon was through the Burgess Field Nature Park, which used to be Oxford's rubbish tip. Now it's wild and overgrown ( which seems to be the definition of Nature Park in these parts) with chest high cow parsley, stinging nettles , blackberries and different varieties of grasses. Oh, and more urban outdoorsmen hiding in the latter.
It had been cool and blustery - I needed to wear a sweater, and with all that fresh air and walking I had worked up an appetite. We got back just in time for dinner at the College:

roast turkey
roasted potatoes
cauliflower au gratin
gravy
cranberry jelly
treacle pudding
coffee in the cloisters