Riding to Ely

Cambridge pulled out the stops this weekend and delivered beautiful autumn weather, a perfect opportunity to explore the countryside around Cambridge on my new 'trusty steed', a used bike I bought from a 3rd year Ph.D. student for £45. Unnamed as of yet, my mauve and white bike has fine rust detailing (just enough to makes it less attractive to thieves), 18 working speeds and a basket that holds two small grocery bags worth of stuff.

So, taking advantage of yesterday's weather, I embarked about 10am on a ride out of Cambridge to Ely, a 'sleepy market town' (according to Frommer's England 2008) that boasts a beautiful cathedral and Oliver Cromwell's house.

From Cambridge, I passed between the towns of Histon and Impington, through the village of Cottenham, skirted Wilburn, finally came into Witchford and Ely. Of all the villages I rode through yesterday, Cottenham was the prettiest ride, with thatched roofs (including one with a peacock thatcher's mark), a town green and a lovely church.

With these villages and the long stretches of farmland that joined them, the journey itself was worth the trip. That being said, I was glad for the weather. At 38 miles round trip, the biking bit took me about 5 hours at a leisurely to moderate pace. Had it rained, I would have been drenched!

Once in Ely, I wandered into the market, had market food (sausage with peppers and onions on a baguette) for lunch, and then headed to the cathedral. Founded as a monastery by the Saxon princess Etheldreda in 673AD, the present building dates from 1081. Sunlight was streaming through the windows and catching in the incense that hung thick in the air from services held int he morning. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

the Octagon, set high above the crossing of the cathedral

sunlight streaming across the presbytery in front of the high altar

the nave, looking toward the choir

Home Sweet Home

I've been in Cambridge for 11 days now and the old house I'm sharing with--at the moment--6 other people and the University Radio Station is starting to feel like home. The house is big, with 12 numbered rooms on two floors (ground and 1st) and the station (which I have yet to see) in the basement. We have shared kitchen and laundry facilities on the ground floor.

The view of the house from the road isn't much (below). There's not much character to the flat face or the plain walls.
However, the view from the road really isn't the important one. The path I normally take is down a path behind the house, the most direct route to my college (a hop, skip and a jump away). Here's approaching the house, just off the gravel road and through the hedge that separates our house from the college's car park:
And now, passing through that nice screen of trees, we get the house, replete with a rose garden near the top of the lovely set of brick steps. It's a terrific spot to read in the late afternoon (I've tested it). My window is just visible below the red roof on the right hand side (between the two trees).
Speaking of trees brings me to one of my favorite things about being here: fruit. In my back yard and throughout the college, many of the trees are fruit trees. As 'members' of the college, we're encouraged to eat as much as we like. There is a bowl in the kitchen overflowing with apples and pears at the moment, and I picked blackberries (which grow in the hedges along some of the bike paths a short ride from college) and had them as a snack with yogurt this afternoon.

Cambridge

As of 2pm yesterday (WET, that is, Western European Time), I've been settling in in Cambridge. I unpacked my suitcases in my (lovely) room, went to dinner with Courtney, Vikram and Lisa, and filled in a few forms. I feel like a partial student right now; I don't have an ID card yet, nor do I have internet in my room. Thank goodness there's wireless in the buttery (a college cafe)!

I promise a more detailed update once most of the 'dry and sundry details' of setting up for a more permanent existence here have been sorted out, primarily the detail of getting internet in my room!

A Spell of Good Luck

Since I've written last I've been exploring London, then in Bath, and now in Oxford. This weekend was a story of luck--or, in other words, ending up with (mostly) terrific experiences in Oxford despite realizing I had not done enough research at home about what to do here. This weekend, it turns out, was Oxford Open Days, a weekend set aside by the city where many of the colleges and historical sites are open to the public so that the residents have a chance to see inside the university that dominates the city without paying £3 a pop for admission to the grounds of each of the colleges.  In addition to free admission and extended hours at many sites, there were free tours (which I didn't hear about early enough to get reservations), a big band playing in All Souls College (I heard Summer Loving from Grease and a few other tunes before the band packed up at 4:30) and ghost stories in the Court Room at Town Hall (which I got to with plenty of time to get a spacious seat). I had more good luck this afternoon.  I had just resigned myself to a stool in a corner of the Eagle and Child when the table right under the plaque about JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis and the Inklings used to meet to chat weekly.  Guess where I sat? Also, when I got to Christ's Church Cathedral for Evensong service, I learned that this weekend was the first weekend that the choir had returned from break.  I really enjoyed hearing them in that wonderful acoustical space! Now, not all my luck was good: today's exploration of British cuisine didn't go so well.  I ordered a 'Ploughman's Cheese Salad' for dinner and ended up with several large wedges of cheese, two onions, an apple, and a bit of lettuce on a plate.  I won't make that mistake again!

Terra Firma and the Globe

On 7 Sept., I officially started my time in England as I had my visa and papers checked going through passport control at about 7am local time. Monday was a whirlwind--I won't get into details--but suffice it to say that I did indeed get both my bags where they needed to be, check into my hostel in London, get a cell phone SIM and even do a little sightseeing (and make some new friends at the hostel) before I crashed. However, now I am literally and figuratively on terra firma with two nights' rest under my belt.

Last night, I opted to get 'grounding' tickets for a show at the Globe. By the time I found it, I was determined to see a play--whatever play was showing. It was a good thing I was somewhat stubborn at that point because, had I skipped out on the Globe because I wasn't farmiliar with Troilus and Cressida, I would have missed the best part of a very full day of introductions to London.

I stood for the three hour show almost touching the stage amid a bunch of theater students from U of Syracuse. They had arrived last week and were completely taken by the performance (rightfully so!); their enthusiasm just amplified my enjoyment. Despite aching feet, I chortled at the jokes and gasped at the battles and (mostly) followed the plot. The floor was properly advertised as 'crowded', but the cool night air (no rain!) made it bearable.

I have a full day ahead of me (starting with breakfast, then the British Library and eventually ending in Bath), so I'm going to sign off for now. Cheers!

Pantomime!

I've found something I absolutely must do this winter: go see a pantomime!

Despite the name, the English pantomime is more akin to The Rocky Horror Picture Show than the stopped-in-time businessmen and living statues that I saw in Rome last year. Pantomime is a genre with prescribed elements--men dressed as old women, audience participation, innuendo, slapstick humor--using the guise of well known fairytales to bring delight to audiences.

Sleeping Beauty, Aladdin and Peter Pan are just a few in London's theaters this coming year, and I plan to see one (if not more) during the Christmas season.

If you're curious to learn a bit more (and hunt for a reference to a loved English professor from my alma mater), read the wiki entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantomime