A Cool Spring in Cambridge.

To chase down my grandmother's birth certificate I had to walk from the bus stop outside the Grand Arcade on Sidney St down to Castle St, past Castle Hill to the Registrar of births...etc.

Being an intimate of Sydney's Castle Hill, I was a bit gobsmacked by the coincidence of names.

Handy plaque information 

After reading the handy plaque, I discovered that William the Conqueror had sent his loyal henchmen out to find high ground beside rivers overlooking the rural populace. He understood the concept that if you control the food chain you control the country. Castle Hill was just such a mound, before the cathedrals were built around about, it would have appeared like a large unwieldy bump beside the River Cam. The said henchmen built a wooden structure and dug in defence structures. The wood has long since rotted but the plaque showed diagrams of what archaeological findings report to have been there. I am still unclear as to whether this mound was naturally there in the middle of, at its lumpiest, a gently rolling landscape or if Willy C's henchmen designed and built the narrowest based security hill possible. Perhaps the people of Cam were not politically minded but kept busy with the happy art of brewing - up philosophy for the times.

Coloured Houses

Walking back towards the town multi coloured higgle'dee'piggle'dee houses flush with the road bring back memories of fairytale story books, especially the pied piper. Winding through little lanes packed with uber modern stores past the stone entrances, I suddenly burst out to a broad road that bordered St Johns College. The huge stone buildings covered in spires and arches without a single higgle or piggle was stunning. Thankfully my sudden stop and gasp did not cause any injuries to the crowds of Easter break holiday makers.

The cold spring has done wonders for the bulbs. Crocuses, daffodils, bluebells and hyacinths are in every pot and lawn. The many old churches with their dark mossy walls float on carpets of colour and scent.

The smell of sugar across the road from the Round church(another handy plaque announcing that it was the 2nd oldest building in Cambridge) lead me to Hardys original sweet shop. Petal - a heaven on Earth, this place has a bigger variety of any lolly shop I have ever had the pleasure of entering. Of course gifts were purchased.

Finding public toilets became a quest, the Cambridgeshire council obviously feel that civic signage detracts from the aesthetics of the place. Eventually, popping around another narrow bend was a tiny blue silhouette that gave great relief, the facilities were huge, very clean and empty. Excellent way of decreasing shire outgoings.

Michael met me outside Penhaligon's where he bought me 'Peoneve' last trip. From a store in the Grand Arcade he purchased a 20pound phone to curtail my unwarranted freedom. He parked there for 30 mins and paid three times the 2.10 pound I paid for a single bus fare to take me in - another hint from the council?

Wandering round Cambridge in spring is very cool.

Typical street sign in a cycle centred city.