Tuesday, January 24,
2017
Oxford
Oxford is
forlorn in the winter—although the sun did come out today to gild the
honey-toned Cotswold stone colleges with golden hues. But this cosmetic
facelift did little to cheer the town up. When greyed tree silhouettes are deprived
of leafy foliage, when ice encrusts the banks of the Thames, when humanity is
stripped off the aged cobbled streets, the town wears a distinctly different
look. Still, I refused to let winter get the better of me. It was a red-letter
day for me and I felt extraordinarily privileged to arrive in the city as a
guest lecturer who would lead a graduate seminar. It is for moments like these
that one lives the academic life…Truly.
I awoke to
have breakfast with Sue—more toast with butter, marmalade and coffee. A shower,
a more formal outfit for my lecture chosen, I sat down to review my notes and
prepare for my lecture. But having awoken at 4.00 am, I was nodding off at 9.30
am and succumbed to the luxury of a morning’s nap—I must have dozed for about
half an hour but I awoke and got my second wind. Half an hour later, I was
ready to Ieave and I took the Thames Path again.
Visiting Exeter and
St. Anne’s Colleges:
Having had
a slow start (I left the house only at 11. 10 am), I meandered along slowly,
with nothing really important to do except meet the Director of the Asian
Studies Center, Faisal Devji, at 1.00 pm at St. Antony’s College for lunch,
followed by my lecture. So, I popped into the Oxfam thrift shop on Broad Street
and bought another DVD (About Time),
then decided that since I could not possibly leave Oxford without going into
Exeter College, I wandered in there. Students were hurrying to a lecture in the
Saskatchewan Lecture Hall underground, where I had once lectured during a
Summer School Program. Before I reached there, however, I decided to go
upstairs to my former room in the Margary Quadrangle that I was re-visiting
after at least 30 years. It was open—yes! Fancy new security codes make it
impossible for visitors to wander around usually, but I knew my way around
easily, of course. I found my former room, now occupied by someone else and I
found the bathroom I had used with its old-fashioned bathtubs and no showers.
All has changed, needless to say. There is modern plumbing now which belies the
Gothic façade of the main quad—although the Margary Quad dates from the early
1960s. I used the facilities, took a few pictures and moved on. I had the
distinct feeling that I will not pass through these stairs again. The feeling
is sobering.
I hurry off
then for the lecture to see if I can catch a part of it. The lecture hall is
packed and there are a few students standing at the back. I join them and
discover immediately that the speaker is Jeri Johnson, the American professor
or American Lit. at Exeter who had been my friend Firdaus’ Tutor so many moons
ago while we were both at Oxford. She is lecturing on the role of the US
government on modern literature. I stay for a little while, thrilled, once
again, to be able to listen to a lecture in my own alma mater. I then do some
more wandering—to the Undercroft Bar where I had downed many a glass of wine
with my buddies many years ago. I am unable to enter the chapel (which is
closed) or the Dining Hall (ditto). However, I am delighted at my flying visit to
Exeter (which also looks very different in the winter gloom) and make my way
back to The Broad.
I
contemplate popping into the Ashmolean Museum, but I have little time for it. I
decide to walk instead towards St. Antony’s College. I might be a mite early
but I can survey Zaha Hadid’s handiwork on the new Library. Just next door to
St. Antony’s is St. Anne’s College where I had been admitted to do my Masters’
in Eng. Lit. many decades ago. I had not taken my place as the offer came
without a scholarship. Since I had never actually been into St. Anne’s, I
decided to poke around. And whom should I run into (and what are the odds of
such a thing happening?) but David Longrigg, my former landlord in North
Oxford, and good friend. Of course, we chatted for a long while as I inquired
after his lovely wife, Elizabeth, who had been a superb landlady. David thought
I was “very brave” to lead a seminar at an Oxford college! He was admiring the
new building at St. Anne’s that had been beneath scaffolding for a long time.
He told me to make sure I returned at night when the lights are on and the
books in the new library building are illuminated. I promised him I would.
Once I said goodbye to David, I
entered St. Anne’s and had a poke around. I did not realize that behind its
modern façade there are Victorian brick buildings that provide an antiquarian
touch to the lovely landscaped lawns. It is a very peaceful campus—small, but
very appealing. Had my life taken a different turn, perhaps this college would
have had huge significance for me, I could not help thinking.
Lunch at St.
Antony’s:
Five minutes later, with the
clock’s hands nearing 1.00 pm, I was at the Porter’s Lodge at St. Antony’s
College and just a few minutes later, I was meeting Faisal Devji with whom I
had an appointment for lunch. He turned out to be the nicest person and within
ten minutes of our meeting, I realized that we knew so many people in common in
Bombay. Almost everyone I asked about were folks he knew personally. It was
amazing. We chatted easily in the Buttery over a steak lunch with onion rings
and a cauliflower gratin—a larger lunch than I really ought to have eaten
before my talk. Upstairs, we had coffee—a decaff cappuccino for me and a tea
for him and we continued to chat amiably. There was so much to say, it was
amazing.
Leading a Seminar at
St. Antony’s College:
And then it
was 2.00 pm and we arrived at the classroom where my Powerpoint presentation
had been set up. There were several people already in the room—many grad
students plus my friends and in the varied ages of the folks there, I knew we’d
have a very lively discussion. I was introduced by Faisal and I began. It was
exhilarating, to say the least. To be back in an institution in which I had
been elected to the position of Senior Associate Member and where I was being
provided the opportunity to talk about my coming book. As expected, there were
many questions that followed and many comments and experiences that were shared
with me as I listened to the impact my research had on those present. It is one
of the most gratifying experiences of my life—to be able to take my findings
out to so many intellectuals in some of the most august institutions in Europe
Truly, this talk was for me the most privileged culmination of my non-teaching
semester in the UK. It provided an afternoon I would always remember with the
deepest pride.
Tea and
biscuits followed in the hall outside where I had the chance to speak to
several more people who came up with questions and comments. I took a few photos
with my friends Susan, Steve and Rae who were also present and with Faisal
himself who had been a splendid host.
Exploring the Zaha
Hadid Library:
Just before
we said thanks and goodbye to Faisal and to the premises of the college, we
decided to take a closer look at the Library wing designed by the late
architect who was robbed off her life in her prime. She has left her mark on
many major international buildings and St. Antony’s is privileged to carry her
work—possibly the last major commission she took on before her untimely death.
We were granted permission to enter the Tube-Funnel like industrial-looking
passage she created as part of the Library’s Reading Room. There was complete
silence as many students were at work. Indeed, it was fun to wander around,
take pictures and size up the strangeness of her vision.
Off to Summertown:
One of the
things I wanted to do while in Oxford this time was a stroll around Summertown,
the North Oxford hamlet that has some fashionable shops. I walked past one of
my favorite Oxford churches on the Woodstock Road to get through the North
Parks Parade with its cute shops and to arrive at the Banbury Road from where I
took a bus to Summertown. I caught some of the shops just before they closed
for the day and from the Oxfam there, I bought a lovely Victorian-looking warm
fleece hat that reminds me of Eliza Doolittle in her flower selling mode! It
was a very long walk back from Summertown to Grandpont—indeed it took me about
1 hour and 40 minutes, but I did stop for an ice-cream sundae (which provided a
chance for a sit-down) at the ice-cream parlor just opposite Tom Tower at
Christ Church College.
Dinner with Sue, Tony
and Steve:
Half an
hour later, I was back home at Sue and Tony’s place and getting ready for
dinner. Tony’s son, Steve, was expected for dinner and Tony was hard at work
conjuring a venison pie based on a stew he had created earlier. Blanketed by
puff pastry, it made a very handsome dinner indeed, served with potatoes and
cabbage. I had a shandy to wash it all down and in Steve’s company, we had a
very interesting chat. It was a deep pleasure to meet Steve and it was simply
wonderful to be treated to all these amazing meals by Sue and Tony—the stew was
perfect comfort food on a chilly winter’s evening. I had a small bit of Lemon
Ricotta Cheesecake to finish off my meal and just after I had the last mouthful,
sleep just washed over me. I excused myself and returned to my room to start
packing for my departure to Essex tomorrow.
An hour
later, it was 9.30 pm and having my backpack and other belongings all ready, I
crept into bed as chatter and laughter from the dining room still continued. I
was bushed after what had been a really eventful day for me and in minutes, I
was fast asleep.
Until
tomorrow, cheerio…
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