Welcoming Cambridge

Having got off the train from London, we decide to walk to the hotel on the opposite side, to get to know the city, and Cambridge welcomes us with an immediate contrast between the youth of the people filling the streets and the ancient, austere buildings that line them. The atmosphere is serene, and the walls, towers, battlements and coats of arms actually give a sense of protection; you feel welcomed and you immediately become familiar with the pedestrian lanes full of shops and venues thronged with students who, having just arrived, are thrilled to begin their fantastic adventure in these days. I say it with a touch of envy, the good kind, because once you have even just breathed the air of Cambridge, as if struck by love at first sight, you wish you had an excuse to stay. The University of Cambridge has 31 Colleges spread around the city, but saying “spread” is a euphemism.

The largest and oldest colleges are found, one next to the other, in the centre of Cambridge and occupy most of it, enclosed between the city streets on one side and the embrace of the course of the River Cam on the other. You cannot help but immerse yourself in the atmosphere of the colleges of this university, among the oldest in the world and today among the best, so much so that it holds the largest number of Nobel Prize winners in Europe. Many Colleges can be visited in their common spaces, some with guided tours, others individually, some for a fee and others not.

We visited King's College and its wonderful King's College Chapel in the Perpendicular Gothic style, and St John's College with the bridge called the “Bridge of Sighs” which, unlike the one in Venice that listened to the sighs of those condemned to death, still today receives the sighs of the students who cross it on their way to sit an exam. We could not visit Trinity College because it was closed on those days for private ceremonies; while we walked around the courts of Christ's College, and at Magdalene College we only managed to peek in, because they were closing the gate. Another must for anyone going to Cambridge is a “punt” trip. The punt is a long, narrow, flat boat that was used along the river to carry building materials. It is guided by a person standing up, just like a gondolier, with a pole which they row with or push along the riverbed.

Slowly we savoured the tranquillity of the backs (as the area behind the colleges is called), made up of huge lawns stretching down to the river; we watched the students sitting on the banks or under a tree, the animals left to graze, and we let ourselves be carried along, gliding to the sound of the water with our gaze lost among the colours and golden lights of the sunset, which I think is one of the best moments for this experience. Today these tours are run by associations linked to the university and the “punters” are students who tell the history of the Colleges, the city and the bridges crossed along the way. For the braver ones there is the option of hiring the “punt” on their own.

We spent 3 wonderful days walking, exploring streets, markets, shops, pubs and fun venues in a city that is serene, fascinating, cheerful, rich in culture and history and that, like an elegant lady, welcomed us warmly in a gentle embrace along the bank of the Cam.