Tim and Rebecca's wedding


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July 18th 2009
Published: August 31st 2009
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The Gate of HonourThe Gate of HonourThe Gate of Honour

This gate is only used by graduating students on their way to Senate House.
George, Jamie, Hywel and Tim attended Downing College and then shared a house whilst completing their medical degrees. Tim and Rebecca were getting married in Cambridge, and conveniently, Hywel and Jenny were getting married the following Saturday near Ashford in Kent.

We took the train from King's Cross to Cambridge, checked into the hotel and put on our glad-rags. Hywel and Jenny, true to form, were running very late. As we met Jamie and his partner Jo at the Fountain Inn for lunch they were still in the wrong country! In the end they made it just in time for the ceremony at Downing Chapel.

After the service we gathered in front of the chapel while pictures were taken. I took great satisfaction in the fact that my heels were aerating the for-looking-at-only lawn. I coveted the gorgeous fascinators that many of the ladies were wearing.

Jenny was wearing gorgeous shoes that, like mine, were not made for walking on Cambridge's crooked-cobbled sidewalks. (John Hopkins, who taught John Cleese when he was reading law at Downing, claims that the "Ministry of Silly Walks" sketch was inspired by silly sidesteps necessated by puddles formed in Downings' uneven gravel paths). Jenny and I joined the old people and children on the double-decker bus to the reception at Gonville and Caius College. Cambridge is a confusing network of one-way and pedestrian-only streets, so the bus went via the scenic route. Sights included graduating students in their robes, cricketers on Parkers Piece, and George and the boys sneaking a pint in a pub on the way.

The reception started with bubbles in Caius Court. I felt pretty posh as I enjoyed the sunshine and privileged atmosphere of Cambridge's beautiful buildings. Dinner was served in the handsome wood-panelled hall, supervised by portraits of notable fellows and alumni. The nosh was top notch and company excellent. John, the Best Man, gave a great speech that George felt he'd have a tough time following at Hywel's wedding. The bride introduced herself to me - being a guest at a strangers wedding is an odd situation to be in, but she was very gracious.

After dinner we headed downstairs to the college bar. We didn't do much dancing because the DJ played a lot of hip-hop, which was not to George's tastes. (FYI his dancing diet is strictly restricted to 80's and 90's cheese). A 12 year-old kid became the star of the show, enthusiastically rapping all the words to "Low" by Flo Rida. Sadly, the venue strictly enforced the 11pm closure of bar and music switch-off so just as the party was getting going, it was time to get gone. Rebecca had thoughtfully provided jandals so us silly girls wearing silly shoes wouldn't have to walk home barefoot.


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