Advertisement
Published: July 27th 2017
Edit Blog Post
Ely
Inside the cathedral. Another lovely morning in Norfolk. A pity we have to move on but then again we are catching up with our daughter and her husband in London. Always a special moment. We have another delicious breakfast, a bit lighter this time. The bags are packed, car loaded, and we’re off.
As we head along the lane we catch up with Farmer Brown driving his tractor and pulling an overloaded trailer piled high with hay bales. As he drives along, the roadside trees are removing large amounts of hay from either the side bales or ones on top. Hay blows everywhere. Hay is left hanging from the trees. We keep our distance just in case a bale is dislodged. The locals must be thrilled to have all this hay accumulating in their lane. But then again living in the country has its benefits as well as its drawbacks. We would be out there collecting the hay to put around the strawberries.
We stop awhile, two hours, in Ely to visit the cathedral. There is free parking in the town for two hours, after that the penalty is a seventy pound fine for overstaying. We chat to a very vigilant parking
Ely
A street scene looking towards old city wall and cathedral. attendant. We won’t overstay our welcome.
The cathedral is wonderful. It had its beginnings in the 7th century under the direction of St Etheldreda but the present building has been here since the 11th century with a mix of Norman and Romanesque designs. A feature is the octagonal tower in the centre of the building. Outside in the sunshine it offers some large grassed areas to relax and enjoy the view. Our stop has been well worth while and we recommend the detour for anyone traveling in the area. The two hours are up and we need to drive to Cambridge.
We were last in Cambridge in December 2004 and it was so cold. Today is different. It is warm. We leave the car at Park and Ride on the outskirts of the city. Now there is no money left for sightseeing. The bus drops us in the city centre. A large airy shopping centre has appeared since our last visit. Outside, the market is busy selling anything and everything. Around the University colleges tour groups jostle for an assembly point prior to entering one of the many buildings open for viewing. To visit many of these historic
Ely
Houses built on the outside of the wall. buildings, especially the chapel at Kings College, you need deep pockets filled with shiny new pounds. The chapel is a must see but having visited in the past we admired it from afar. Around the town young people are trying hard to sell tickets for a punt ride on the Cam. We think they are becoming bored with all the “No thank you” responses. Time to move on.
Back at the car we give Jane instructions to take us to Northwood in London. Looks like we’ll arrive during the early stages of the late afternoon rush hour traffic. Should be fun. The highway system in Britain seems to go from one motorway to the next in a seamless way. It would be wonderful to be a bird or drone and follow our route from above. We just rely on Jane to tell us which exit to take and make sure we are in the correct lane. Somehow we reach the outskirts of London, leave the motorways, and stop start our way through Watford before we reach our destination. A press on the buzzer and the gates open and we have arrived.
Great catching up with family who live
Ely
The cathedral. twenty thousand kilometres away. It will be a talk fest for the next few days. The late afternoon is warm, some nibbles and drinks are outside. The forecast tonight – lightning and thunder. Seems like we have brought it to the UK. We go to bed with the flashes and sounds of a storm outside. Perhaps tomorrow will be okay.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.38s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 10; qc: 46; dbt: 0.1336s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb