Last day in Cambridge! Today was a lot more rainy and dreary so it took extra effort to get out of the hotel! After a delicious free breakfast, I headed out to go “punting”- basically a tour down the Cam river on a little guided boat. It’s the best way to see the colleges as the best views are from the river. The tour guide was great and I learned so much!

Afterward I headed to the King’s College chapel- the second largest chapel in the world (number 1 is Sistine Chapel in Italy). It was gorgeous. I then went to the Wren Library at Trinity College. It was beautiful but they did not allow photos….(grrrr) . They had original manuscripts of Winnie the Pooh and notebooks from Sir Isaac Newton!

I rested out of the rain for a bit and went back out in the evening to hear the men’s choir at the nightly Evensong at King’s College Chapel. Again, no photos, but it was a beautiful service with angelic singing!

I finished up with some Indian food for dinner and packing up to head home!

Day 3, and another day to explore on my own! My wonderful friend Amy gave me some great suggestions of sites to see, so I took her first suggestion and headed on a bit of a trek out to Grantchester Meadows. It’s beautiful green space along the River Cam and there were lots of runners, cyclists and dog walkers! I even saw some sheep on the way! The meadow is featured in the poem "Watercolor Of Grantchester Meadows" by Sylvia Plath and a 1969 song by the British rock band Pink Floyd.

It was fun checking out some of the more local, quiet neighborhoods along the way!

Afterwards I went through the Botanic Gardens. It’s 40 acres and was created for the University of Cambridge in 1831 by Professor John Stevens Henslow (Charles Darwin's mentor) and was opened to the public in 1846.

The Winter Garden was especially beautiful this time of year!

I stopped for lunch and tea at the Old Bicycle Shop (delicious) and did a quick stop into the (free) Fitzwilliam Art Museum.

All in all I logged 9.1 miles of walking! My legs were killing me, but it was worth ti!