The last two days, warnings about extreme heat for Days 8 and 9 were posted at every train station, tube stop, bus stop, etc. They warned of dangerously high temperatures, the need for water, and interruptions to the rail network. People were warned to avoid unnecessary travel. Being reasonable for once, I actually heeded their advice. At least with regard to the water. Took two bottles rather than the usual one.
I set off from London heading north, beginning my whistle stop tour towards Edinburgh. My morning train to Cambridge was really empty. I only noticed three people on the platform before getting on. Calm and quiet ride, with the only issue being a dead kindle. Books have the upper hand in that regard- they can't run out of juice. But being able to carry a whole library…
Cambridge was dead when I arrived. To be fair, it was 9:00 and the station is a mile outside the city center. As I approached the city, I passed more and more folks. Tourist attractions were still all closed though, so I did as I usually do- wandered the streets.
The first things to begin opening up were churches. There are plenty of medieval ones here, including both the Round Church and the Great Saint Mary's Church. They weren't the only ones, but I wanted to call them out. The former has an exhibition about the role of Christianity in England and in the development of Cambridge. It spans the history starting with the Romans in the first century and ends in the twentieth. The latter is also known as University Church. It is the primary church of Cambridge University and is, quite literally the center of student life. The university began there, in 1209, and later its bell tower marked the focus of a ten mile radius circle. Students were only permitted to live within those borders for fear that they might otherwise miss Sunday mass. Apparently that tradition is still in place. Usually it is possible to go up the bell tower, but due to the heat it was closed.
The hill wasn't particularly tall and the trees in town weren't particularly short, so the view wasn't too spectacular. Especially in comparison to the trades I made. I chanced upon the market on my way there, buying six ripe peaches for one pound. Already a good deal. But as I walked, the peaches that I hadn't eaten right away kept bouncing with every step, and their ripeness put them at serious risk of bruising. So when I paused for some chocolate ice cream, I offered the owner of the shop a few while waiting for the barista/ ice cream scooper to get to me. She accepted then, to my surprise, declined my payment for the ice cream, saying that it was a fair trade.
On the way back to the city center I passed a quaint little church and the Cambridge Museum, an exhibition of artifacts related to home care presented in an inn which was opened in 1611. The most interesting was the manually operated vacuum.
I kept wandering about, visiting as many old and beautiful buildings as I could. Eventually, I found myself in the famous Kings College church. Construction had begun under Henry VI and only took 60 years. Among the church's treasures were its stain glass windows, some of the only ones to survive the revolution. Soldiers and their horses spent a winter in it, so they probably saved them to help keep themselves warm, rather than out of respect for the artistry. In the end, it doesn't matter why they weren't smashed, only that they were unharmed.
Outside, I stumbled into a walking tour getting ready to depart, so I joined. The guide, a student of Cambridge University, was able to describe a lot about its history. In the UK, the collegiate system works differently than at home- social versus academic divisions. I'm used to the College of Engineering teaching engineering courses, the college of science teaching science courses, and so on. Here, all the colleges offer classes across disciplines, but the divisions control where you eat and live. In the end, everyone from each of the thirty one colleges gets a Cambridge degree though.
The afternoon was changing into the early evening, but the sun was still beating down and the 38C was still making me feel it. No regrets about the extra water, it really came in handy during the walk to the station.
Then the fun part started. My ride to York had two transfers. I took the first train and found myself stuck in a small town in the English countryside. The rails had buckled in the heat. At the information desk, I was told that this wasn’t likely to be running the following day either. So I turned around and caught a train back to Cambridge. Apparently I wasn’t the only one in this situation since all the hostels were sold out and most hotels had no vacancies either. I did find a room in an apartment, so the adventure was set to resume the following day.
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