It had been cool and cloudy when we set off, but the weather grew sunnier and warmer as the day wore on. First up was a coffee and a small cake in Waterstones, and after we'd eaten we had a browse around the bookshelves. I love a good bookshop and I'm always on the lookout for something interesting to read!
Oxford was thronged with lots of tourists and we also saw some students wearing graduation robes, so there was a lovely atmosphere. We walked the short distance to the Ashmolean Museum and went up to the second floor to look at European art. Both of us love wandering around and looking at paintings so this was perfect!
We stayed for about an hour and then headed back to the city centre in search of lunch. By now it was warm and sunny but we found a lovely little bistro tucked away down a side street called No 1 Ship Street, which was offering set lunches or mussels and chips for £13.00. We went in!
Inside it was lovely and dark and we sat right next to a huge wine rack which I was worried I'd knock over! The menu was quite pricey, but the lunch offerings were good value. We ordered bread and a plate of mussels accompanied by thin-cut chips. The dish came with a small glass of wine, which was delicious.
I was particularly fascinated by the table next to us and the four people who were obviously friends, having a very interesting conversation. One of the couples was American and I couldn't help overhearing what they were talking about! The English man was evidently a hernia surgeon as he went into great detail about the operations he was performing!
We had a lovely meal, finished off with what we know as a "pizookie" - cookie dough cooked on a skillet and served with ice cream. We had planned on going back to the museum but it was getting late and it was warm so we popped into Tesco for some beer for Keith and a bottle of Vermouth, and waited for the bus back to the Park and Ride.
Driving back to the M40 I saw signs for Bicester and asked Sophie how close to Graven Hill we were. This housing development has been featured on Grand Designs: The Street and I'd always wanted to go and see it. Sophie said we were very close so off we went!
Graven Hill is a development of houses where plots are available for self-build. There are conventional homes and flats as well, but the array of houses is astonishing! There are so many different shapes and sizes and we recognised quite a few from the series. How great it would have been to see Kevin McCloud!
We drove slowly around, and there were other cars doing exactly the same! We didn't take any photos but it was wonderful to see so many different designs! Most of the houses had a lot of glass and we could see right into the rooms, some of them, bedrooms! We will certainly go back for another look!
After half an hour of driving around and marvelling at the houses, we headed home via the M40 and the A43. Back home it was almost time for Scrabble, and I beat Sophie this evening!
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