I awoke on my final day in the city of dreaming spires to the sound of the cleaning people going through all the rooms people had left earlier. We were supposed to be out of here by 9:30, but I paid for an extra day so I was determined to sleep in. One woman on the cleaning staff came into my room with a surprised look to find a barely awake Benjamin trying to pack up a few final things. “What time are you leaving?” she asked me with a look that said “I hope you leave right now I want to finish cleaning.” I told her I was staying an extra day, and she was ok with it, but I had the exact same experience a little while later with a different staff member. I should have made a sign for my door.
I left my room after packing with the intention of just going on a walk before meeting my Kentucky ESU pals for lunch, but to my surprise found some of my friends still at the door to Exeter. There were actually some Exeter students graduating today, and their robes were flippin’ flappin’ awesome looking. They processed out the front gate as we summer school students watched in awe. I helped Anna with her suitcase and walked with some friends down to the bus station.
After bidding them farewell and promising to utilize facebook for keeping in touch, I went on my pre-determined walk. I went down past Christ Church and past St. Philip’s Books farther than I had walked yet. With a trusty Diet Coke in hand I went over Folly Bridge into a quaint little residential area of town. I walked for about 45 minutes that way, and then turned around to head back. I stopped by the covered market to avoid the crowds (my last day here is uncharacteristically hot and crowded), and made my way back to Exeter to meet my friends. On the way in, I ran into Fernando. He was on his way to the busses. I’m very happy I got to say goodbye, he was one of the first friends I made here. Maybe someday I can go hang out in Madrid with him.
I met up with Joanna for lunch, and we waited a few minutes for Blake to show up with no luck. We went and knocked on his door, and then looked around campus but couldn't find him. We finally gave up and got some lunch, and then arrived back on campus to learn he had slept through our loud knocking on his door. We tried.
After walking with Blake as he picked up a sandwich, Joanna and I went over to Blackwells for one last browse. I am really going to miss such an amazing bookstore; hopefully I can use their website to continue giving them the business they deserve. I went back to my room to take a brief nap, and then met my Kentuckian friends for one last dinner in Oxford. We decided Jericho was a part of the city we hadn't explored yet, and walked for about 15 minutes before finding it. I wanted to try The Victoria pub, where Thom Yorke from Radiohead likes to go, but it was too crowded. We opted for another pub called Jude the Obscure. Strangely enough, they had the exact same menu as the Turf Tavern, the same dishes, printout, and menu set-up. The only difference was the name of the pub. We weren't upset, having loved the Turf's food, so we picked a little table next to a bookshelf and ordered some food. The three of us had a conversation about politics which is always lovely, and then walked back home.
Going to bed was a little strange; the whole campus was empty. I walked past all the rooms of the people I had gotten to know so well on the way up to mine. It takes small experiences like that to foreshadow just how much you are going to miss being at a place you love and leave. I called it a night and settled in to my bed in room 9-15, hoping I'd wake up in the morning and still be in my first week over here.
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