I feel so... provincial now. I love Texas A&M, but even the best bits are nowhere near Middle-Earth. In 128 years, the university has managed to accumulate some pretty, um, disastrous architecture. The vast majority is vintage '60s and '70s utilitarian. *blech*
The two best bits are the Administration Building:
And the Academic Building:
I suppose those columns are as close as we'll get to Gondor. But I defy you to find a bluer sky anywhere in Middle-Earth.
Climatically speaking, we're about 100 miles inland from Umbar, represented by the great city of Houston. Hot and humid - where else could we be?!
And surely the Century Tree belongs in the Shire. The pictures aren't the best. It's a huge - and old - live oak tree in front of the Academic Building. They're all over campus, but this is the biggest. It's a favorite site for proposals.
)
