On arrival, we pottered round the market - a foodie heaven. There was a stall with all manner of teas and coffees, another with herbs and spices etc etc. Given that we had the rest of the day left and a two hour coach journey, reluctantly, I had to resist all this temptation. So we popped into Indigo cafe and indulged in a very nice bacon toastie, followed by investigation of the two nearby bookshops in King Edward's passage.
Next, we went to The Sedgwick Museum, which describes itself as 'One of the World's Major Collections of Fossils'. It's not kidding. The place is absolutely chocka with them. The museum is named after Adam Sedgwick (1785 - 1873) who was responsible for improving the geological school at Cambridge by vastly expanding the existing collection and he founded the museum in 1841. There are some very cool skeletons there, including these two:
I apologise for the way I look in this photo. I wasn't feeling so well. Neither, I imagine, was the Irish Elk next to which I'm stood.Given that it was so close, it was only natural that this was followed by a visit to Kings College Chapel. Which, frankly, is just astounding. Truly beautiful and full of all sorts of interesting details. As you can see from these photos:
Which are, respectively, the main chapel, the Lady chapel (including that fabulous glowing icon) and the lecturn (which is apparently something to do with Robert Hacomblen, Provost of the chapel from 1509 -1528).
Thereafter we wandered down towards the river at Trinity college:
We were hoping to go punting, but when we got to the place that was advertised as offering this, we discovered it was closed. Disappointed, we wandered further along, to discover that it wasn't possible to go much further along and so we doubled back into town. Once there, we were gently accosted by a very nice chap (whose name I've forgotten, sorry) from Scudamores who was selling chauffeured punts. Given that he said he would book us in as students (£2 cheaper than the adult price) I was very pleased. We had half an hour to kill, so went and grabbed some money and then had a quick drink at a nearby pub. (The Mitre, which was very nice and reasonably priced too. Very much recommended - it does real ales, single malt whiskies and decent cider.)
So, 2pm we begin our tour with our guide, Tom. Despite some difficulty when we were setting off, he warmed up nicely and enabled me to get some very pretty pictures. As you can see:
The above is the third replica of the wooden mathematical bridge, designed by a student of Isaac Newton. Apparently it is so called because the original was held together with no nuts or bolts. Impressive, huh?
And this is the Bridge of Sighs. Named after the famous one in Venice. They did tell me the reason, but I forgot to write it down. Sorry!
Clare College, the oldest college in Cambridge. Founded in 1338.
And this is Magdalene College, which was the last to admit women - in 1988! Not only that, but the students and dons walked around with black armbands when it finally happened in protest. Shocking lot.
There are lots more photos, but this blog post will be huge if I publish them all. So I'll leave you with this pretty shot:
1 comment:
Hi Allie, a bit of history if you want about the Bridge of Sighs.
The Bridge of Sighs in Cambridge is a bridge belonging to St. John's College of Cambridge University. It was built in 1831. The architect was Henry Hutchinson.
It is named after the Bridge of Sighs in Venice [I'll put up a photo on my flickr site], although they have little architecturally in common beyond the fact that they are both covered. Queen Victoria is said to have loved it more than any other spot in the city.
Locals jest that the bridge is named in reference to the sound that Cambridge students make as they cross the bridge on their way out of exams.
The Bridge of Sighs (Italian: Ponte dei Sospiri) is one of many bridges in Venice built in the 16th century. The enclosed bridge is made of white limestone and has windows with stone bars. It passes over the Rio di Palazzo and connects the old prisons to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace.
The view from the Bridge of Sighs was the last view of Venice that convicts saw before their imprisonment. The bridge name, given by Lord Byron in the 19th century, comes from the suggestion that prisoners would sigh at their final view of beautiful Venice out the window before being taken down to their cells. In reality, the days of inquisitions and summary executions were over by the time the bridge was built, and the cells under the palace roof were occupied mostly by small-time criminals.
I actually took a video from a gondola there with my wife one July morning in 2003. But the shot is too dark to see anything, which made the ride that much better.
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