Serenity

This Saturday I took off to the University of Cambridge, located about 2 hours East of London. It was a rainy day, but just warm enough to do some walking around. Not knowing what to expect, I aimlessly wandered my way through Cambridge, but found some amazing sights! Best of all, I found the punting along River Cam, which certainly made my day!!

Welcome to the University of Cambridge!

Here is King's College, which is the oldest college at Cambridge. This is the college that visually represents Cambridge. 

An amazing church in the middle of Cambridge. It is all sorts of different colors because the church caught on fire in the 1800's, but it remained intact. 

This was a statue on King's College. This is Henry VIII, my favorite King of the British Empire.  Needless to say, I am becoming completely obsessed with British history, it's so interesting!

This is Queens' College. Take note of the punctuation around Queens' College. Queen is plural because 3 Queens were responsible for the making of this college, so they wanted to respect all 3. :)

This is a giant clock in the centre of Cambridge. In 2008, Stephen Hawking unveiled it to Cambridge, as he is a faculty member here. The monster at the top is called the Chronophage, or the "time-eater" which essentially is quite accurate. He eats away the seconds of the day with this clock. 

A lovely side street in Britain. 

It was here that I headed to the punting stations at the backs of the colleges. Cambridge has a special tradition of punting along River Cam, which is along the backside of the colleges. It allows for great views of the colleges, and a serenity I had not experienced yet in Britain. 

This is Punting! The men at the back steer the canoe like boat with large sticks. 

Me getting ready for my punting experience! 

My favorite picture of the day. This bridge ahead is called the Bridge of "Sighs." In the 1600's, this bridge lead to a prison on the left. It was said that prisoners would walk on the bridge, and sigh their last breath of freedom. It is the Queen's favorite bridge in Britain as well :) I would have to agree with her great taste~

The back of King's College. 

The willow trees were breathtaking... 

I loved Punting! 

This is Trinity College. The building has 99% symmetry. It was said that the King was obsessive about symmetry, and demanded this college be perfect symmetry. Everything is exact minus an eagle in the very center, which faces to the left. It is said it stares down King's College to the left to show no fear. 

This is a notice along one of the bridges to show evidence of a flood in 1947. It was the worst flood Cambridge has ever seen, and the line was above my head! 

This door was along the River, and was used for slaves to bring supplies and food into the palaces. :(

Years and Years of Beauty along this wall. 

The ivy on some of the walls was incredible. Hundreds of years of growth. 

King's College! Also, my great partners haha, a balding man and a greying woman :)

After punting, I walked around town some and found a local market. I grabbed some sweets and Starbucks, and made my way back to the station !

I loved Cambridge! 

This is what I will remember about England.. 

Big Ben at night from the train !

Cambridge was amazing. The punting experience was wonderful, and I am so glad I took the time to make it out there. After visiting Cambridge and Oxford, I honestly don't know which one was better. Oxford fits my academic dreams better, with such a rich history in English Literature, but Cambridge holds so much history that it would be extremely difficult to have to choose. :)

One last glance of the beautiful Cambridge....