Day 29: Let’s go punting

Hello NIU! Today is one of our last days here in Oxford as a group, so to celebrate we went punting! Punting is basically riding a gondola, except rather than being pushed by someone, we were pushing ourselves! It was quite the workout! We split into groups and had to make it around an island in an hour or less. My group didn’t quite make the hour, but boy did we have fun! It was a bit of a rough start, since there were almost no instructions from the staff. Luckily, Alex took the lead and punted us out of the gate. After watching everyone pass us by, we were finally able to get going, thanks to some instruction from Dr. Crowley. (Could a punting class be in his future?) I took a turn at the helm, masterfully steering us into some trees and almost a family of ducks. For the safety of all wildlife, Alex graciously kept took over again. The trip was full of laughs and happiness, just what we needed to kick off a night of studying for exams!

Day 30: Exam day!

Good morning! Today has been a full day! I took my last exam of the trip and walked around Oxford just to enjoy the beautiful weather. I’m definitely not ready to leave the lovely 75 and sunny to head to the crazy heat in Illinois! I also took the opportunity to spend some time outside to buy some souvenirs for family and friends before I started packing. We ended the night with another trip to Be At One. This time, rather than pop, they had some oldies playing and we spent the night bopping to the Bee Gees and other 70s-era music.