After questioning a couple of people, specifically the two I was living with, I opted for the more walkable Cambridge for yesterday's outing. I made my way to King's Cross Station, bought tickets, and bypassing platform 9 ¾, made my way to the train. I hopped on and started to read the excursions section in the London book I had borrowed. It said pretty much nothing, and the tiny map did not even have the train station marked on it- interesting.

At the station in Cambridge, there was less than nothing- no tourist office, no maps, nothing. I walked up to a couple who looked confused and said, "You look like tourists! How far do you think the City Center is?" They replied that they were and showed me their map. I decided to take a chance and started walking in the right general direction. There were signs pointing the way, so I followed them. Happily it was only about a 15 minute walk which, when you don't know where you're going, feels like an eternity. I passed shops and cafes, but it all looked much like a smaller version of London. Then I noticed a distinct changed in the architecture ahead of me. Aha!! That must be the "City Centre".

I wandered aimlessly around the narrow streets, which happily were blocked from motorized vehicles, and read the signs on old ornate buildings. I stumbled upon the Round Church that was an interesting shape, but covered in scaffolding. The Backs, which ran along the river and, cleverly named, along the back side of many of the buildings. I saw several colleges, the most beautiful and interesting being King's College, that were crawling with would-be tour guides. And the Bridge of Sighs which confused me; why would they want to liken their college to an Italian prison?

It was an incredibly beautiful day, sunny and warm, and I was having a lovely time. Shockingly nothing particularly out of the ordinary was happening. Then, as if by pathetic fallacy, the dark clouds rolled in simultaneously with the jet-lag. I sat for a bit, ate something, had some water, and then accepted that I needed to leave. That was okay since I had managed to see most points of interest. I made my way back to the station, found my train and promptly fell asleep on it. Yup, I was tired.

After some scones with clotted cream and jam and a coffee (apparently my North American ways haven't quite got the swing of tea time) everything was better. I spent the evening at Tamara and Neil's eating supper, drinking wine and getting caught up. But today I have a lot of plans, and I've just finished my breakfast, so a quick shower and I'm off to Trafalgar Square and Covent Gardens for the morning then to meet the two newest members of the family for the afternoon.

Ta!