South Park - 4 Things to Know Before Visiting

A beautiful classic seventeenth-century walled garden founded in 1621. Established as the Oxford Physic Garden for growing medicinal plants used to teach medical students, the Garden was the birthplace of botanical sciences at Oxford. Today it contains over 5,000 different plant species on 1.8 ha. It is one of the most diverse yet compact collections of plants in the world and includes representatives from over 90% of the higher plant families.

Christ Church meadow is a rare open space at the heart of Oxford, open to the public all year round. Though seemingly tranquil, the meadow is highly variable, with seasonal flooding and a variety of wildlife that comes and goes. During the Civil War it proved invaluable as a defence against the Parliamentarian forces, but visitors are nowadays more likely to encounter a rare English Longhorn cow than a soldier besieging the city. b

The Headington Shark is a terraced house located in Headington, Oxford, that features a sculpture of a large shark on the roof. Officially called Untitled 1986, the shark sculpture is embedded head-first, giving the impression of having fallen out of the sky. The Shark became the most famous resident of Headington when it landed in the roof of 2 New High Street in the early hours of Saturday 9 August 1986.

The University Church of St. Mary the Virgin is the largest of the city’s parish churches. Surrounded by university buildings, the religious site stands out for its Baroque entrance and spire. Climb the tower for fantastic views of the city center and university buildings, as well as other landmarks. The 13th-century tower is open to the public for a fee and provides good views across the heart of the historic university city, especially Radcliffe Square, the Radcliffe Camera, Brasenose College,

Christ Church Picture Gallery is an art museum at Christ Church, one of the colleges of Oxford University in England. The gallery holds an important collection of about 300 Old Master paintings and nearly 2,000 drawings. It is one of the most important private collections in the United Kingdom.

The Bridge of Sighs is a bridge in Venice, Italy. The enclosed bridge is made of white limestone, has windows with stone bars, passes over the Rio di Palazzo, and connects the New Prison to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace. It was designed by Antonio Contino, whose uncle Antonio da Ponte designed the Rialto Bridge, and it was built in 1600.