A Day in Cambridge, England

I was on my way to the Fitzwilliam Museum, when I spotted this darling little restaurant nearby. It is within a block of the museum and bears sort of a nickname, "Fitzbillies". It has two rooms and an intimate feel to it. It is simple in design but serves delicious light fare. I had their cold smoked mackerel salad with salad greens and lentil beans with capers. It was very tasty. It is the perfect lunch spot any day of the week.

I didn't learn until later that this very nice restaurant is a chain across the country of Great Britain—you wouldn't know it by the menu and the local feel it maintains. Their specialty is fish, and you see it freshly displayed in a chilled case as you are seated. Their varied menu offers shrimp, lobster, scallops, salmon, trout, oysters, and mussels to name a few. Side dishes are just that, separately ordered side dishes. Their desserts are local most delicious. I enjoyed a lemon souffle-like creation, which was almost the consistency of a mousse and quite refreshing.

The restaurant is easy to locate as it is directly across the street from the famous Fitzwilliam Museum. It is popular and crowded, so I recommend making reservations. It's a definite thumbs up in my book!

If one does nothing else in Cambridge, one should make a real effort to walk through the Fitzwilliam Museum. I was delightfully surprised to learn that it's free and undoubtedly the best deal in town. But after going through its amazing galleries, you'll want very much to leave a nominal donation for the fine collections they maintain. As the brochure states, "Founded in 1816 by the bequest of the 7th Viscount Fitzwilliam to the University of Cambridge, the Fitzwilliam Museum houses magnificent collections of works of art and antiquities of international importance spanning centuries and civilisations."

One of the aspects that caught my interest, was the rich assortment of antique furniture that the museum displays within each room. You see chairs, cabinets, benches, desks and stands from a variety of centuries, and you can hardly keep from wondering who sat in them and in whose houses they were. Oh, if they could talk, the stories they could tell. Besides the large array of paintings on their walls, you will be treated to collections of coins, rare manuscripts, pottery, plates and sculptures. It is a most enriching collection and though it really takes more than a day to fully appreciate, you can walk through in a couple of hours and still leave with a sense of having had an adequate exposure. I was awed by the depth and range of its contents and the experience is one I will long remember and definitely recommend.

My husband was invited to speak at a conference convening at Churchill College in Cambridge, England. He asked me if I was interested in accompanying him. Though that request may sound strange, we were finishing off the latter of two vacation trips in Europe. I am glad I agreed to continue on to Cambridge with him from Barcelona. It was a wise decision. Though our time was brief (only having 2.5 days in Cambridge), only the first of those two days was magnificent. The sun was out and I shot some of my best pictures that day. And when it comes to beautiful scenery, Cambridge can offer some of the prettiest.

We wisely took a 2 hour walking tour to get a quick overview of the city. We had signed up at the Cambridge’s Tourist Office. This is one great place to start your acclimation to the area. They offer a ton of information and also provide lovely trinkets for souvenirs and gifts (postcards, picture books, jams, and of course, T-shirts). Our tour guide was highly knowledgeable and gave us our money’s worth. I highly recommend such a tour for first time visitors.

You only have to look around you to know you can only be in England…the architecture and the landscape are purely English. As we meandered along the Cam River in our punt, we delighted in watching the magnificent scenery drift by. And, after cramming as much as we could into that one day, we concluded it by taking in what is referred to as Evensong at the King’s College Chapel. This is a 45 minute vesper service which is open to the public. To hear the King’s College Choir is quite a treat and not to be missed. What a perfect way to end a lovely day in Cambridge, England.