Tourist day 1

Today was my first full day in Cambridge, and I took advantage of that! I had a minor setback in the middle of the day but overall it was really nice!

I took the bus to the city centre, because my plan was to go to the Tourist Information Centre to see what Cambridge has to offer. One thing I can say about the bus drivers is that they are really friendly and they help me to get out of the bus at the right stop. While I walked to the Tourist Information Centre I passed a phone shop and quickly bought a prepaid UK/International SIM. This way I can contact people within England cheaper and I also have internet outside of the occasional WiFi spots. This also means I now have a different number. So if you want to contact me by phone (whatsapp/text message/etc.) you need to have another number. If you want it, please contact me trough email or Facebook or leave a comment here on my blog.

After I fixed this I found the Tourist Information Centre quit easily and got almost all of the leaflets and maps (see picture). I think I have enough information now on what I can do and how to get there. I also bought a Cambridge University sweater and it is really comfy. It's soft on the inside and really warm! 

After I got out of the building I was approached by a guy asking if I wanted to go on a canal boat tour. Since I first wanted to visited the bookshop my friend is working at, I said yes but not right now. He then got me a ticket for the tour of one o'clock and I continued my way to Heffers (the book store).

I don't think I ever saw such a big book store. It is huge, not kidding you! I think you can probably loose someone in there. Anyway, I went to see my friend and we chatted a bit and she told me that Heffers has a game night every other Saturday evening. I'm definitly going to visit that sometimes! We also agreed on seeing each other again, but this time for real, this Saturday.

By then it was time to go to the meeting point for the canal boat tour. Me and some other tourist where guided towards the boats by one of the guys who try to find clients. We chatted a bit during the walk and in the end he insisted to give me his phone number. In case I had some questions about Cambridge regarding food and pubs. Not entirely sure whether this was him being nice to me, or if there was something more behind it...

Anyway, we ended up at canal and had to wait for a bit on some other people. The weather up till then had been quit nice. No rain, around 20 degrees and just a little breeze. I think you can guess what happened the minute we started the tour. It started to rain so extremely hard to I got soaked. Luckily I had brought my coat so the top half of me stayed dry, and my bag lay on my lap so from my knee down everything was wet. Due to the rain and the wind blowing for the first 10 to 15 minutes of the tour I could not make any pictures or hear a full sentence from our guide. I did however had some fun with the couple that was sitting next to me. Making poor jokes about how good the weather was etc. After 10 to 15 minutes it stopped raining (thank god) and I could finally make some pictures. Unfortuantly I can't really tell you which building is which, because I couldn't hear the guy most of the times. I could however hear that there is a library that, during the school year, is open 24/7. They even have beds around the building so students can take a quick nap in between studying. Amazing isn't it? Oh and the first drawing of Winnie the Pooh is also somewhere in that building. Talking about Winnie the Pooh, last night I watched Blackadder's Christmas Carroll and the Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. I heard some words I didn't know yet, like excavation (a cavity formed by cutting, digging or scooping) when Pooh got stuck in Rabbit's doorway and a mole came to help. Domicile, which is another word for a home, supercilious, when someone shows or has the unpleasant attitude of thinking they are better or more important than other people. Or when the wind was blowing loudly and violently they called it blustery weather. Speaking about words/phrases I didn't know yet. I also saw a lot of houses that where for sale where the sign said "Let agreed". It apparently means that an offer has been accepted and the house is no longer on the market, but no one moved in yet.

Anyway, on with the story!
After the tour was finished I went to a Starbucks to let my trousers dry and got something hot inside of me, as well as some food I already bought. While I was sitting and enjoying my Chai Tea Latte I noticed that to the right and left of me there where job interviews being held. For two completely different things, but they had in common that the people who offered the job where constantly talking. I found it rather interesting that the interviewee did not have to say anything about him/there self during the entire interview.

Another thing I noticed while being in Cambridge is that there are a lot of public toilets that are free to use. Which I find quit handy! I also enjoyed the fact that there where a lot of street musicians playing all kinds of music around the city centre.

After listening to some music I decided to visit the King's Chapel and I certainly didn't regret it. It is such a beautiful building, if you ever have to chance to visit it and you are interested in architecture or churches I would really recommend it. I made some pictures of the Chapel so you can already have a taste of it. While walking around and enjoying the beauty of the Chapel I overheard a tour guide saying that the Dutch actually thought the English how to glaze. Isn't that amazing? Thanks to use they have such beautiful glazed windows. I instantly felt proud, although I did not do anything. Little nationalism showing up I guess.

Afterwards I took a bus back and stopped at the Tesco to do some groceries and it was enormous. It reminded me of those large Supermarchés in France. After some walking around and trying to find everything I walked home, ate some dinner, talked and laughed with Kelvin (other guest staying here) and now I am lying in bed typing this all out. I think that today was quit an eventful day and I can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring!

Love,
Nina