Greetings from East Anglia!

(Cambridge, England, U.K.)

Having indulged in most of my sports interests (especially hockey and skiing) already during this year of travel, I decided that it was finally time to have a music-themed trip.

I’ve always enjoyed reading British music journalism and, as a result, have followed some prominent British musicians who don’t have as large a fan base in North America.  Alas, the economic realities of the music business mean that relatively few British musicians are able to tour anywhere near my home in Kingston.  If the music wasn’t going to come to Kingston, I would have to go to the music!

I've seen a lot of airports this year but haven't taken many pictures in them.  This is the long walk from the terminal to the Heathrow baggage claim.
I’ve seen a lot of airports this year but haven’t taken many pictures in them. This is the long walk from the terminal to the Heathrow baggage claim.

London is the epicentre of the music world here in Britain and I’ll be spending some very intensive days there at the end of this trip. However, I’m easing into things by spending a few days in the famous university town of Cambridge.

I wanted to see one of the ancient universities in England, so it came down to a choice between Oxford and Cambridge. They both had a lot to offer but Cambridge was closer to the location of the Paul Carrack concert that I mentioned in my previous post. My wife and I intend to see some more of England in the future; if I enjoy the Cambridge experience, we may include Oxford in one of our future itineraries.  Or maybe we’ll come back here!

Cambridge has a historic core...but there is also an upscale shopping mall in the middle of it.
Cambridge has a historic downtown core…but there is also an upscale shopping mall in the middle of it.

I only arrived in Cambridge at 3:00 p.m. today so I didn’t have a chance to see much of it by daylight.  After a nap, I went for some Indian food…I am forever searching for a chicken dhansak that rivals the wonderful one I had in Chester, England, back in 2005 (I really like the version served up by Darbar back home in Kingston too).  Tonight’s dhansak was good but not spectacular. The search continues!

After dinner, I walked around the city a bit.  It feels safe and comfortable here; the huge university population also supports a terrific variety of ethnic restaurants.  I had assumed that I’d be eating a lot of Indian food here but I saw too many other interesting places to restrict myself to dhansak (however tempting that might be).

"The Cow" - one of many historic buildings in downtown Cambridge
“The Cow” – one of many historic buildings in downtown Cambridge

Tomorrow, I’m taking a tour of Cambridge’s ancient university colleges and will finally see the city by daylight.  I’m looking forward to sharing some daytime photographs!

2 thoughts on “Greetings from East Anglia!”

    1. Hi Mary Beth,

      Thanks for the tip on your brother’s band – that looks like a great tour, with a bunch of fun venues in France and Germany after finishing the English dates. The English dates don’t work for me (I arrive in London the day after their show) but I’ll watch for them back home!

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