Punting in Oxford
Just punting down the river in our little punt. Nothing like a bit of PUNTING in Oxford on a nice summers day, especially when we were stuck inside all day in meetings with the Church Mission Society. I found out that the people in Oxford punt from the back, with the till forward, and Cambridge folk from the front while standing on the till, and one must never get it mixed up while punting in Oxford or it will result in a severe taunting by people in preppy cardigans. However, Wikipedia says that "the Oxford position is closest to the orthodox". Better stop there before I start a war. The first picture is me punting from the back, as one does while in Oxford, and Mark Berry getting splashed while he steers with the paddle.
very glad indeed to hear that the orthodoxy of you and Mr Berry have been validated by the uber-authority, wikipedia!
actually, most glad that you got a chance to emerge from the meetings for some moments of reflection ... though i'd hardly consider Mark to be steerage!
p.s. Mark ... nice shades! those the ones from the shopping spree de corps in Houston?
Posted by: brad | July 05, 2008 at 02:03 AM
Is this a British form of steering wherein one places the paddle on one's lap?
Posted by: becky | July 05, 2008 at 10:01 PM
The irony of your post has me laughing out loud. I'm a yank in cambridge for a couple weeks doing some work at the Tyndale House. On the train up here yesterday I heard some students talking about 'punting' and I had no clue what they were talking about.
You don't happen to know of any emergent or at least friendly to emergent communities here in cambrige, do you?
Posted by: eric | July 06, 2008 at 07:43 AM
Becky, I think the word "steering" could be more accurately replaced in this context with the words "hanging on in fear of my very life"
Brad, no sadly not, the Houston specs lasted till early this year when they went the way of all things :(
Posted by: Mark | July 12, 2008 at 07:45 PM