Oxford Diary

Sunday, the eleventh of August

The day that I had been looking forward had finally arrived. I spent the night at a hotel near the “Henri Coanda” Airport, in Bucharest. I could hardly close my eyes and slip into blissful dreams, as my overwhelming emotions had taken over. Soon after, I was on my way to embark on a munificent journey along seven other campers. We were anxiously waiting for our guide to arrive, and as soon as she met with us, we farewelled our loving parents and went through security. After going through a multitude of gates, we arrived at the boarding lounge. There, we began conversing and sharing our hopes for the future camp. As I was the oldest of all of them, I thought it would be challenging to speak with them, but I blended quite nicely. After three hours of waiting our plane finally arrived. The time to set off finally came.

The plane ride was quite normal, nothing peculiar happened and three hours later, we landed at “Heathrow” Airport. Unfortunately, our transport got mixed up and we had to wait two more hours at the airport. In order to make time pass swiftly, we ventured to a nearby Costa and had a delightful coffee afterward. A nice surprise was finding out how vast is UK’s Netflix Catalogue after opening the app on a whim. After a long, but pleasant wait, we got into the provided Taxis and went to our accommodation “Oxford Brookes”.

After checking in and leaving our luggage in our dorms, we were ravenous and set off to the university, where the canteen was. Even though the food was not the best, it was still fuel and we ate happily. The last event of the tiring day was a tour of the campus. A student showed us around and let us know a few fun facts about the campus. We were drained after such a day, thus our dorms were our next stop and we drifted into a serene sleep.

Monday, the twelve of August

Today was my first full day here on this amazing campus. I was angrily awoken by my alarm and had to get up. The first stop of the day was breakfast, fortunately, I was hungry. We were served an average breakfast, nothing really shined through. The zenith of all meals was a sweet juice, of which flavour I could not for the life of me identify. After eating, we set off on a walking tour around the luminous city of ” Oxford”.

In order to get there we had to go down a hill, and at first, the descent was quite easy and swift, the same thing cannot be said of the ascent. The sun was blistering and everything felt blurry. I was nauseous by the time we got back to the uni, but I powered through. Nonetheless, the visit was a smashing success. We went on a historical tour around Oxford; we saw the great College of “Oxford”, and the Bodleian Library. They had a certain mystique surrounding them and was enthralled by them. We got a bit of free time and me, and my friends went to the most enormous libraries in Oxford “Blackwells and Waterstones”. We also paid a visit to a nearby Wendys and ate a delightful meal. Most of my time here was spent with three girls named Ada, Ioana, and Maria. However, the dream ended, and we returned.

As mentioned before, I could not eat lunch, but I bought myself a snack from a nearby store titled “Co-op”. To be honest, this would be a very important part of our meals, as the cafeteria food was horrendous. After a bit of resting, we went through some tests, in order to place us in the best-elected groups, in which we would partake in classes.  Afterward, we had the induction, where we were taught the rules and given lanyards (which I still have).

The evening activity was a poorly planned disco and to be honest, it was very humdrum. It was not to my liking, thus when it finished, I was elated. My company in suffering was Ioana, a fellow cynic of the club aesthetic. Back to the dorms we were and back to sleep was I.

Tuesday, the thirteen of August

Once again awoken by my alarm, I dragged myself to the cafeteria, after of course fulfilling my morning duties. The breakfast, once again, was nothing new. I consumed it and tried my best to enjoy it, but I was not complaining aloud. After breakfast, we had our first classes.

Ada was in my class, so at least I had a familiar face around. We were split into many classrooms, ours being named “Oxford”. Our teacher cordially introduced himself as Mr. Wolf. Even though he seemed a bit bashful, he redeemed himself. For our assignment, we were split into groups and we had to create a short scenario, where a plot twist was present. Each group created humorous scenarios, and we all laughed together. For the second part of the class, we had to give a presentation, but sadly, time ran quite quickly, and we didn’t get to finish this respective task.

Lunch came and I ate the food provided, once again nothing delicious. After a minuscule break in our dorms, in which I phoned a friend of mine, we had to go back, as our afternoon activity was “Sport’s Day”. We had a pick from different sports, but ultimately six of us played badminton. Even though we were no athletes, we competed against each other in ruthless matches. I and another girl, named Karla, played against a German boy and a Bulgarian boy, and we won, even though they insisted we didn’t.

We had dinner, and it was nothing that inspiring to my taste buds, but I ate a delicious chocolatey croissant from the nearby store, so that was a perk. Our evening activity was a “Trashionshow”. We picked a model, an adolescent boy from Spain, and we had to make his garments out of cardboard and trash bags. Since there were more models involved, there were more groups, and at the end, the catwalk was set and the models paraded down the catwalk in a fiercesome manner. Paris Fashion Week would be jealous of our models. Overall, a great activity for bonding and stimulating our creative nerves. We headed back to our dorms afterward and succumbed to slumber.

Wednesday, the fourteen of August

After being forcefully woken up, I headed to breakfast. Once again, it didn’t really attract me, but breakfast was usually a decent meal and it fueled me, so no complaints today. After finishing breakfast, I headed to my classes accompanied by my friend, Ada. Once sat down, a new teacher emerged into our classroom. His name was Phil and the topic today was “Literature”. We went over how to write a review. He showed us intriguing ways in which you can spice up your reviews. It was overall a very informative class and I gathered a lot of information from his teachings.

Afterward, we were served lunch and it was sadly not to my liking. The aftermath of this activity was a short period of rest in our rooms. Our afternoon activity was a fascinating visit to “Magdalen College”, where some scenes of the renowned “Harry Potter” franchise were shot. I visited the famous Dining Hall and got to see it in all its glory.  It was an astonishing sight to see. The college’s architecture was breathtaking and seeing history truly unfold in front of my feeble eyes was an experience like no other. I mainly haunted through the college by myself, as I had to be alone to take in all its beauty.

We were given some free time after this visit and it was mostly spent wandering around The Oxford Mall. After being dumbfounded by the price of clothing at “Urban Outfitters”, I entered and exited shops and had overall a great time. I was by myself as I found tranquility in absorbing new environments by myself.

The evening activity was supposed to be sports-related, but due to unforeseen circumstances, it was replaced by karaoke night/card game nights. I partook in karaoke and sang with my friends. Even though we all didn’t bear a significant talent for singing, we still gave it our best and had an amazing time. With our vocal cords exhausted, we went to our rooms and fell asleep.

Thursday, the fifteen of August

The alarm rang anew and I dragged myself from my cozy bed and got dressed. After completing my homely tasks, I headed down to breakfast. I was particularly ravenous this morning, thus I ate to my heart’s contempt. I went to the class by myself, not knowing how significant this class would be. Our teacher this time was Mr. Wolf, thus I gathered that the teachers are usually rotated.

Our first task was to think of inexcusable situations. Each group thought of five scenarios, but we were to only pick one to be put on the board. After we came up with ridiculous situations, we settled on “Starting a world war”. Very humorous indeed. Other groups came up with equally wacky ideas. The next assignment was to act out a chosen scenario. I was paired with a Ukrainian boy named Danylo and two other Spanish girls.(half of the group was of the Spanish population). It was very funny. The second part was debate. We were shown ways in which to have a cordial debate. The next logical step was to host a debate, of course. As we were walking out of the class, two Ukrainian guys from our class were also going down the stairs, thus we went to lunch together and ate some very dry chicken together. What I didn’t know, was that it would be the beginning of a blossoming friendship.

After resting we went on a visit to the Blenheim Gardens, where the palace of Winston Churchill was. It was a fascinating site. The palace was comelily upkept and we could appreciate its beauty. While haunting the palace, me, Ioana, and Ada bumped into the two charming guys. We walked around the palace together and visited the horse stables. But the piece of resistance was the gardens. They were wonderfully upkept. We wandered around and found a hedge maze, in which we were stuck for a minute amount of time. To celebrate the occasion of encountering a bridge, we took a selfie. The excursion ended shortly after.

Dinner came and the five of us ate dinner. The evening activity was Movie Night. The elected movie was  “Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief”. While the movie was playing, we were making snarky comments about it. It had a wonderful atmosphere, albeit a very judgy one. After the credits rolled, we went to bed and slept after such an amazing day.

Friday, the sixteen of August

The penultimate day rolled around and the dread of the camp ending was starting to crowd my thoughts. I brushed my teeth and got dressed, then headed to the canteen, where four of us ate the meal; everyone but Ioana. After taking in breakfast, we went to the classroom and sat at a four-person table. Phil was once again before us like I had thought so.  We started with a brief continuation of the last day of class, and after Phil showcased useful ways and humorous ways of using AI, we had a fun break. During this break, the four of us got to know each other better, a very insightful break I might add. For the second part of the last class, we had to do a presentation on the economy of London. After diving thoroughly into the information, we gave a dashing performance and wowed everyone. The last class ended and we headed to lunch. Once again ate lunch and enjoyed each other’s company.

The afternoon activity was another trip to Oxford. A local market was happening, thus we took a stroll around it to notice what they were selling. The four of us walked around the city center and mainly window-shopped. Me and Ada bought some matching Wolverine and Deadpool T-shirts we rested in a coffee shop, in Blackwells, where everyone except for Yaroslav(the other Ukrainian guy) ordered themselves a latte. We drank them, while Yaroslav was taking a nap in the coffee shop. An amusing sight indeed. I also bought an Oxford sweater from a souvenir shop. I managed to buy it for half off. What a steal. I also bought some souvenirs for my loved ones. After the time was up, we took a bus back to the campus, as we could not bear walking in the blistering heat. It would have been hell.

The graduation ceremony followed, of course, after a particularly nasty dinner. It commenced with a speech from the main organizer and what followed was every group getting called on stage so as to receive their diplomas. There were a few main groups; our Romanian one, and one other Romanian group, which had stayed for two weeks, instead of one, a large group of Spanish students, and another coming all the way from China. The rest of the attendees mainly came alone or in pairs. Photos were taken and memories were shared. What a delightful time. The evening activity was supposed to be a Hawaiian Disco, but me and Ada bailed and went to our rooms, where we talked for what seemed like hours.  Finally, I went to sleep.

Saturday, the seventeen of August

Today was the day trip to London. I rushed out of bed with merriment and went to the canteen, where surprisingly delectable croissants were served. I could barely eat, as the thought that I would be seeing one of the most beautiful capitals later, completely overtook me. What a waste of dough.

We boarded the buses and off we were. The road was exhilarating and we got to see London in all of its beauty. I saw magnifique office buildings and a lot of car dealerships, where luxury was showcased even in the discreet and sleek outside décor. This was just an ado of what I would see later. We arrived and as I was walking with a glimmer in my eyes, I spotted Big Ben. We went on an informative walking tour where we saw the renowned Landmarks of London. Seeing Buckingham in real life was magical. We saw Trafalgar Square and then we had four hours of free time. The four of us met up and we first went to China Town. What a sight. It was spectacular. The decorations were beautiful and every building was unique in its own way. I enjoyed Chinatown the most. We bought some pastries from an authentic Chinese bakery; and some buns filled with a variety of fillings. We also ate some delicious donuts, that were in the shape of a fish, but filled with a vanilla creamy custard. They were simply heavenly. We also drank bubble tea, which was a bit pricy, but it was so worth it.

We wandered off to some church, of which name lies on the top of my tongue. Afterward, we walked along the Thames, and I was enthralled by the spectacular views. It was an enjoyable walk, albeit a silent one. Once we got to the meeting point, the guys departed on an earlier bus, but only after 20 minutes we also left. At breakfast, I and Ada were gifted a postcard by Yaroslav and Danylo, thus we barely managed to purchase a postcard for them. At dinner, we ate it in peace and said our depressing goodbyes. We hugged and I started to feel a bleak wave take us. Ada and I rushed to the dorms and we sat crying because we were going to miss everyone, but especially our new-found Ukrainian friends. It is peculiar how someone you had only met three days ago can make you feel as if you had been friends with them for an eternity.

I went back to my room to pack and drifted off to sleep.

Sunday, the eighteen of August

Here was my last day. I wistfully dragged myself to the canteen for my last breakfast there. I ate some pancakes, which were a pleasant surprise. Not long after, we had to return our keycards, and off we were to Heathrow.

We went through all the safety procedures and arrived in the lounge area. Here, Maria and I walked around and funnily bought books from a store there. I came with one book and left with six. What a tale. To soothe the pain, I got a delectable cinnamon bun from the Costa, and when I say it was the best one, I had ever tried, I’m not joking. After an unexpected delay, the plane arrived and off we departed for our home country. Three hours later, I arrived at “Henri Coanda” Airport and was met with a surprise, as my cousin and my dad were waiting for me.

This camp has been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me. I enjoyed all my time here and have met so many wonderful people. It was horrorshow. I met so many wonderful people with which I fully want to stay in contact with. I never knew that you could find friendship so easily, just from a simple mix-up. I truly appreciate all that I have experienced. Even though I didn’t find it quite challenging, I tremendously enjoyed it. International camps are quite grim, as you get acquainted with people who live thousands of kilometers away and there is no way of meeting them in the distant future. One day you are eating breakfast with them and talking about what will unfold the following day, and the next everyone is back home and rebounded into their habitual daily routines.  And for the last time I say, I went to sleep, and a new day was waiting for me.

Tomi Anastasia