What else is a girl to do on Valentines day when there is no handsome male banging down her door showering her in roses and chocolates? Head to Oxford and escape the red and pink of London and instead immerse herself in the Thatched cottages of the Cotswolds and Oxford University.

Signed in for a walking tour of Oxford I started talking to the only person on the tour that was within the same age group as myself and since that day the outings together and the conversations have only grown and grown! We missed our first train so we caught the later one that stopped in different locations along the way but didn't seem to get us there much later than the first!

I found the best shop for lunch in the Cotswolds and for once when the sign said home cooked meals, I actually believed them! Very yummy! I passed a shop that reminded me of Mum and Nanna and walked out with two Mothers Day gifts that I think they both will love...and if they don't...well I will put them to use :)

The Cotswolds were exactly like they seem in all the photos...and as I dodged between left over snow from the previous Monday and Tuesday the houses and sights just kept getting more and more beautiful.

Back to Oxford and the Univeristy that nearly everyone in the country dreams of going to was before us. Not so much how I had imagined but interesting none the less. The town is called Oxford...then there is the University of Oxford but to tell you the truth I couldn't really tell where one begun and the other finished...it all seemed to mesh together in my sights.

Amanda and I broke away from the group to sneak into one of the dinner halls and see where the smart people ate and slept....very nice!

I do like Oxford...can't wait to compare it to it's rival Cambridge????