Iffley Locks

The river Isis

Today, we walked in the opposite direction along the river. We trekked down stream, away from the city center, towards the town Iffley. Erika suggested we take this route because it passes through a quintessential English village. As we turned off the path we saw that she was exactly right. The houses varied between little cottages with thatched roofs to old stone houses. The houses had names, such as, the "old vicarage" and "bell cottage".

The lock gates

Nearing lunch time, we stopped at a small pub style restaurant, named the Annora, and had a delicious lunch sitting in the garden. With full bellies, we walked around the town to the Iffley Locks. The original locks were constructed in 1631 and then rebuilt in the late 1700's. The locks consist of several gates that are opened to allow the water levels to rise or fall so that boats can pass between the different levels of the river.

The rollers

On one side of the locks are two sets of rollers, used by punts and smaller boats. We walked across the foot bridge that can only be traversed when the locks are closed to the opposite side.

St Mary's

After walking along the bank for a short time, we turned around and headed back to the town towards St Mary's Parish church. This small church is one of England's best surviving examples of a Norman era church. We walked through the small graveyard and sat on a bench admiring the stone facade. The sun was shining and we took a quick nap on the soft grass. After some time, two elderly ladies walked up, opened the church doors and went inside. We had been sitting outside thinking it was locked the whole time. We followed their lead and went inside to look around. The church was very plain and bright inside. As we entered, the two women left, so we were the only ones in the building. On one side we noticed the church bell rope hanging. It was a real temptation! To pull it or not to pull it? What would happen? Would the church bells ring? Would the towns people come running out? Tempting, but we resisted, and we will never know.

Temptation

During the early 1200's, the Church had been home to a mysterious woman known as Annora. This woman was a recluse or anchoress who lived isolated in a small cell connected to the church. She committed her life to god. Annora was a daughter of a wealthy baron and had 16 siblings. When her father fell out of favor with King John, the entire family became the focus of his rage. Her mother and a brother were held in Windsor castle and left to starve. Annora was imprisoned with four of her nephews. After her release, she sought the protection of the church's bishop and became a recluse. Her cell would have had a small window looking out to the church altar. Her cell also contained a stone coffin to remind her of her impending death. Being a recluse was only possible to a limited few. Her family status afforded her the possibility of taking this type of life. She is said to have been gifted firewood each year by Henry the 3rd. Also, she would have had maids tending to her. The safety that was provided by the church must have been a good alternative in a tumultuous time.

After touring the church, we walked back to Tom and Erika's. When we arrived at their house, Tom's best man -Phil and his wife Sophie, had arrived. Erika and Sophie were dressed and heading out the door, while the guys prepared to go night fishing. Tonight was Erika's hen party, the British version of a bachalorette party. The bachelor party is known as a stag night and Tom's had his party the week prior. At 6:00 p.m., Jane's aunt Judith arrived to pick her up. They headed off to the hen party. The night began with a wine tasting at a local place called Bottega, followed by dinner. It was a fun night out with the girls. Jane had the chance to visit with Judith and Erika's friends. She was happy to meet some of the guests that would also be traveling to Budapest for the much anticipated Hungarian wedding.