Cambridge: Travel diary #2

After a more or less restful night, we first prepared a delicious breakfast. In true English style, with porridge, jam on toast and, of course, tea.

As we had nothing specific planned, we took it easy in the morning and it was already noon by the time we finally got going. Our first sightseeing stop was King's College with its magnificent church.

It was easy to buy tickets on site via a side entrance and enter the church. I was particularly taken with the colourful stained glass windows on all sides of the church and the front section with old wooden benches and candles, reserved for members of the college. I could imagine that during the famous Christmas concert, the whole place has roughly the same charm as the dining hall in the Harry Potter films.

Unfortunately, you can't really go inside any of the colleges in Cambridge, as the students live there and wouldn't exactly appreciate crowds of tourists strolling through their homes. So our tour was over after a quick look at the garden, and we continued on a tour (I would rather call it a shopping trip) through the city.

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Shopping in Cambridge:

First, we walked through the small side streets past Jack's Gelato along Phease Hill.

Our first stop was Ark-Gifts for interesting people. And the name says it all. The shop is colourfully decorated with all kinds of knick-knacks. Key rings, jewellery and homewares. You can really find a gift for everyone here. However, don't imagine a souvenir shop. It's more of a slightly different concept store.

If you walk a little further down the street, you'll also find Anthropologie. As a partner of Urban Outfitters, the concept is quite similar. However, the target audience is no longer really young people. Anthropologie also has jewellery, homewares and, of course, clothes in line with the latest trends. However, as nothing caught my eye in the shop, we left empty-handed and crossed the market square.

Right at the other end of the market square is Rose Crescent Street. It's a very cute shopping street with classic leather retailers and brands such as Burberry, Molton Brown and Jimmy Fairly. The latter is very popular for its inexpensive eyewear. But here, too, we didn't find what we were looking for.

So we continued on our way: back to the market square and down a small side street to Sydney Street and Urban Outfitters, where I finally found a denim shirt. Of course, we then had to check out the neighbouring bookshop, part of the Waterstones chain. And I have to say, I could really walk out of these shops every time with a whole new bookshelf full of stuff. But unfortunately, I couldn't carry that home with me. It has to be said: bookshops in England are simply much better stocked than ours in Germany.

To slowly make our way to our lunch spot, we took a detour through the next very popular shopping street, Green Street. Here, too, there are super cute shops and, very importantly, the Cambridge Gin Laboratory. If you're interested, you should definitely attend one of the classes, which start at £30. But for those who just want to enjoy the gin, you can buy a gin and tonic of your choice to take away in the shop. And it's really worth it!

On Trinity Street, we made a detour to a few more shops. Among others, we visited the currently very popular shop Free People. The clothing style is somewhat similar to that of Isabel Marant, and the blouses and scarves in particular are worth a visit.

But after all that shopping, we were very hungry and finally arrived at our destination restaurant: Dijoom. Dijoom is an Indian restaurant chain that we had already enjoyed in London, among other places. And now in Cambridge too. Once again, the food was very tasty. The spring rolls and chicken tikka are definitely a must-have. Just one thing to keep in mind: don't listen to the waiter's recommendation regarding quantity. Two small dishes and one large dish per person is definitely too much. Personally, I would rather order again and share the food.

In the evening, we finally went punting. It's really a must when you're in Cambridge. But there are a lot of different companies to choose from. We went with Scudamores Punting Company and were very happy with our choice.

However, I don't think there's much difference in the quality of the tours. Most shared tours cost an average of £30 for two people.

If you're wondering whether it's a bit boring to just float down the canal for 45 minutes, don't worry, because the punter talks non-stop about the history of the city, the buildings on the left and right, and information about the various colleges of the university. It was really interesting, so don't forget to leave your guide a tip. Definitely a great way to end the day.

And here's a little tip: I would definitely recommend taking a late tour in the evening. It's much more idyllic when all the day tourists have already left and the canal is no longer too crowded.