My older son and I arrived in the UK on 19 Sep, Sat at 0555. Just 2 hours earlier, UK had added S’pore into the quarantine exempt list of countries.
We originally planned to do 14 days of quarantine separately in his dorm and in the apartment I rented. But we found out only a day earlier before our Fri flight of the good news. We decided not to change the flights as the tickets had to be issued a week before the departure date.
The flight was uneventful as everyone had to keep to themselves and the middle seat was kept empty for social distancing. Only 93 passengers where it normally was at least 200+. Airlines are bleeding badly and SIA is only flying at 8% capacity. I guess this S’pore-London route of 3 to 4 flights a day is their main source of income now. The flight attendants keep to as little physical contact as possible, serving meals and not doing their usual high SQ service. It was just like taking a long bus journey. Why would one pay for business and first-class now, other than having more comfortable and larger seats?
The moment we landed, the immigration process was so quick with our biometric passports. They did not even need to stamp our passports nor check the online form we were required to fill just 48 hours before the flight. The machine took a photo of our faces and probably did all the expected AI document comparisons and authorizations instantaneously.
We had booked an MPV with a driver to go directly to Keble College where he will be putting up for his first term. It is very likely that he could come back home for his Dec Christmas holidays as he only needs to do quarantine at the S’pore end. He hopes to be able to celebrate with his girlfriend their 3rd anniversary as a couple 🙂
Once he settled down, we went to Oxford city to grab some essential stuff that he needed immediately, like bedsheets and pillowcases. Once I think that he is ok, I called a cab at 12+ to check into my 2 bedroom apartment at London Road, Headington. It was much better than I thought and I was very pleased with the facilities and a small private garden included. Spent the rest of the day exploring my street and getting some groceries to stock up.
Met Justin the next day at Oxford city for the first of our many Sunday Roast at a Pub lunch. We chose The Plough at 38 with a very nice outdoor table. Then it was more shopping for essentials before taking my bus back to the apartment.
Given that we need not be on quarantine anymore and we had time on our hands, I decided to rent a car for 8 days so that we can be more mobile and drive around the countryside to visit some nearby towns. It will also allow us more quality father-son bonding time as he could stay over at my place for a few nights.
I picked up the rented car on Tuesday morning and we went to the Bicester Village factory outlet for a nice lunch. Seems like there was no recession at all!! the place was full on a Tues and the 1,000 lot car park was also full!! Amazing! After lockdown and COVID, people were still aggressively shopping for branded stuff!
My son stayed over for the 1st of the second overnight stays in my apartment and we had a couple of nice home-cooked meals courtesy of ready-made TV dinner meals from the supermarket. The next day, we visited the city of Swindon as someone told me that things are cheaper there. We spent a few hours there walking around and having lunch at Rudi’s.
For the next 2 days, I was on my own for Thur and Fri as he had to go back to campus to finish up some work. I went to Marriott Walks in Witney on Thurs. It was a quaint place but lovely small town to walk around to get the British countryside vibe. On Fri, I decided to visit the famous Blenheim Palace at Woodstock. It was a good trip to see the only privately held palace in Oxfordshire. A super cars festival was also held then and I have never seen so many sports cars of all brands in one location. There must have been at least 100+ of them parked and displayed at the lawns outside the palace. So many “elites” owners gathering while the virus is decimating the economy. The irony!
I picked Justin up on Sat morning from his dorm and we went to Stratford Upon Avon. It was the place my wife had reminded me to bring him. We were there more than 20 years ago and I cannot really remember the place. It was the birthplace of William Shakespeare and there were a lot of walkways to explore. We had a very nice lunch there in a restaurant called The Lamb.
The next day, on the recommendation of a friend who used to study here, we went to Henley-on-Thames. If not for the cold (below 10 degrees C) and the strong wind, it would be a very pleasant walk along the river. She recommended a pub next to the river for Sunday Roast which we took a table outside to watch rowers sail pass the river while we ate.
Dropped him off in Keble the next morning on Mon after his last night with me at the apartment. We had 2 good home-cooked dinners over the weekend too. On my own again, I decided to visit another 3 Cotswold towns that day. Banbury was a bigger place where I had breakfast to escape the morning cold. Bought some stuff which I think Justin will need for his room, like a portable heater. Then it was off to Chipping Norton to check out the woollen trade. It was a super small town over the main street and most of its attractions were closed due to the virus. The last place I visited was Burford which was another small town over the main street where I had my required pint and a pizza for lunch.
I guess I have visited most of the Cotswold district already over the last week and the drives were just an hour or less from our apartment. The COVID situation is still worrying as the UK has been hit by the 2nd wave and Boris is threatening to cancel Christmas as school term is starting and students still want to party… More measures are being put into place and more to come.
Some places like Liverpool and Manchester are going into stricter lockdown measures. While cases are spiking up, the death rates seem to have eased and are lower than the 1st wave. Most shops require masks for entry while indoors but the majority still do not wear a mask when outdoors. The fresh countryside air is very nice and I have started going for long jogs over the last 2 days.
I will return the rented car tomorrow and move to new accommodation within Oxford City on Sat for another 2 weeks before flying home for a 2 weeks quarantine.
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