To go punting is a very Oxford-esque thing to do. It's a must really. At some point everybody punts, and to be declared a punter is most noble.
For those unfamiliar with the meaning of this pursuit, I give you two definitions from the internet:
from Wikipedia:
"The word punter may refer to: A man with great prestige, humble but yet beloved by fellow colleagues; aka ; the man"
from dictionary.com:
punt (noun); a small, shallow boat having a flat bottom and square ends, usually used for short outings on rivers or lakes
to punt (verb); to propel (a small boat) by thrusting against the bottom of a lake or stream, esp. with a pole.
While the latter definition more accurately describes the activity I participated in this weekend, I find the former more compelling.
Anyways........as you can see by the photos I'm continuing to have a great time here in Oxford. Last weekend a friend from Guelph came through town for a short visit which was fantastic. David and I had a great time exploring the university and seeing the sights, including this adventure in the punt on the Isis River (a branch of the Thames). I think the charms of the city and my wonderful classmates may have convinced him to apply for the course next year!
Classes have now started - this week is infamously called "Climate Change Boot Camp". Basically it's about 35-40 hrs. of lectures on the science of climate change interspersed with talks on ecological responses to environmental change, climate change economics, etc.... It's a rapid pace, but most discussions are interesting and generating plenty of dialogue amongst our group.
One other note. I've decided to join the rowing club for Linacre College. We'll see how that goes, rowing is a very big thing here. I believe this final photo is of David successfully navigating our punt out of the tree that we were stuck in on the bank of the river.
4 comments:
ohhhh punters. Near and dear to my heart. I never would have called you a punter derek, and I mean that in the nicest way. That was an informative and hilarious post.
thanks marcus..
credit crunch/financial meltdown joke of the day:
I tried to get cash from the ATM today but it said "insufficient funds." I don't know if that meant them or me.
Derek,
Thus far, very disappointed with your blog. Not a single photo of a sweater vest to be seen! !
Joking aside, interesting reading about what my uber-British grandma would refer to as the "mother land" (although I guess uber is more of a German thing??).
Kath
Hey Kath!
Glad you're following along with the blog.
There are plenty of sweater vests here...I'll see what I can do to get a photo. It's kind of like birding actually..."oh look at that one darling, it's a royal blue!....oh, how about that one? it's got a deep v neck!". you get the point.
D.
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