Oxford, England is the best place to find Alice in Wonderland and other wonders.

I first stayed at Jesus College, Oxford, ten years ago. I was attending a summer school at the university, and booked a room next to a large bell on the Turl. Big mistake. It clanged on the hour, every hour, and my jetlag was indescribable. Still, there were wonders to compensate – chiefly of the Alice variety.

Of course, I’m not a slavish fan. There is no doubt that Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) took photographs of young girls which make for uncomfortable viewing now. Dodgy Dogson, you might say. However, he also created an epic story which appeals as much to Tim Burton as it did to 20th century children. The symbolism remains fascinating. Cheshire cats. Mad hatters. Enraged queens. Rabbits with stop-watches. No wonder Alice was revived in the psychedelic 1960s!

There are fabulous Lewis Carroll artefacts at The Oxford Museum – the map is at oum.ox.ac.uk. Most interesting of all is his watch, given his strange perception of time and space. You may also find the original ‘Drink Me’ bottle there.

The dreamy river and ancient trees help set the scene – though get up at 6am to wander around, as I did, if you want to have the atmosphere and the space, rather than the coach-loads of people with backpacks and cameras. The museum won’t open for ages, but go wandering, across the cobblestones, and down to Oxford’s famous bridges and playing fields.

It’s quite hard to imagine Oxford as she was in Carroll’s time, or even in Waugh’s time, when he was absorbing it all for Brideshead Revisited. The shops selling university scarves tend to take away from the magic. As do the fast-food containers in the gutters  – tch.

Wake up early enough, though, and you’ll find a little of what transported past students and academics – and what inspired their work. Time only stands still on Lewis Carroll’s watch, but you can catch glimpses of the past if you try.