How to go
<train>It takes one hour and twenty minutes from London's, Liverpool Street station to Cambridge.
<bus>It takes two hours from Victoria, coach station.
<In my case>I used the coach on both my first and second trips.

　I have been to Cambridge twice. My first visit to Cambridge was during my second trip to England. The second time was while traveling in England by myself for three weeks.
　On the first occasion, the reason why we visited Cambride was that Mito, who was my collegue's friend, stayed and studied English there. When we visited Oxford and York with her, she told us about Cambridge, so my collegue became eager to visit. Therefore, we changed our plan and visited Cambridge by bus. After about a two-hour ride from Victoria, we finally arrived.
　Mito welcomed us and took us to a tea room, which had a casual atmosphere, for example, university students dropped by. She said, "I want you to eat this tea room's scones." The set included two scones, tea and some sandwiches. This was the first time for me to eat scones. They were very tasty. Mito taught us that if we wanted to drink more tea, we simply could ask a waiter more hot water.

　Cambridge is a college town as is Oxford. There are a lot of colleges like King's College (right) and Trinity College and so on. In my opinion, Cambridge has a quieter image than Oxford and has an old poetic atmosphere. Furthermore, I think that the River Cam has it's own very special beauty.
　On the second time, I visited Cambridge from Ely going back to London. I saw around the city by a bus named "Guide FRIDAY". I thought that £6 was a little expensive, but the bus had a tour guide, so it was good for me to study English. I also used this bus tour at Stratford-apon-avon. I think that it is convenient because you can get on and off the bus whereever you please.

	the scenery of Cambride from a tower
	The River Cam which flows across Cambride. You can enjoy going down a river in a boat like this. Unfortunately, I haven't tried yet.
	Mathematical Bridge(first) and Trinity College Bridge(second) over the River Cam. I visited there a long time ago, so my memory is gradually fading. Therefore, I thought that the Mathematical Bridge is the Bridge of Sighs till fairly recently. However, John M. pointed out my mistake a few weeks ago. " I don't know how to tell you that your photograph is not 'The Bridge of Sighs'".He continued, " That bridge is enclosed and made of stone and connects with St John's College. I think the bridge in your photo is made of wood and is called the "Mathematical Bridge" which connects with Queen's College. The story goes that it was designed by Isaac Newton to be built without using bolts or nails - all the pieces of wood interlocked to hold it together." Oh, my God!! Does it mean that I have told a lie to my homepage visitors for more than a year? I'm really sorry! Now, I began to remember a little that Mito said something related with Newton. Then, I added another photo(second) which I thought is the true the Bridge of Sighs to the page, "Cambridge". But… Again, John M. said, " I think your photo shows Trinity College bridge!" Wow!! (How incorrigible I am!) So, haven't I been to the Bridge of Sighs in reality? I'm disgusted with myself for scamp work and saw my album again. I finally found another photo of a bridge. The bridge which is enclosed by stone! "This is it!", I shouted. However… Unfortunately, Setsuko, my friend, and I stood in front of the bridge. It isn't possible to delete us from the photo. Therefore, I was totally at a loss, but thanks to John, I've got photos of the bridge! Wow!! Recently, John visited Cambridge to fulfill his promise and took some pictures of the true Bridge of Sighs. Moreover, he bravely entered the bridge and took a pictures inside! He said, "The inside picture is not very good, but I took it in a hurry as I don't know if I was allowed to be there and didn't want to be discovered!" His photo shows me what the inside of the bridge looks like even though I’m in Japan. “Thank you so very much!” Talking about the origin of the name, the Bridge of Sighs, I had written, "Why do they call it the Bridge of Sighs? Is it because it is too beautiful that we sigh?". Kana, one of my homepage visitors, answered that question. "The origin of the name is that the bridge in Cambridge looks like the Bridge of Sighs in London. Moreover, people call the bridge in London the Bridge of Sighs because before entering the prison, prisoners usually sigh. " Besides, according to John's research, "the bridge was based on the famous bridge of the same name that can be found in Venice….The bars on the windows of the Cambridge bridge are to stop students climbing in late at night not to stop them from escaping!"Thank you, Kana. I've learned a lot. However, I had expected that it had some romantic meaning, so I was a little disappointed after hearing the actual reason. If you want to see more bridges in Cambridge, please visit this cite which John M. has introduced. ※The third and fouth pictures were taken by John Mingins who lives in Norwich. Copyright(C) 2003 John Mingins.

Oliver Cromwell's House. It has become the tourist information center. His family lived there for 10 years from 1636 to 1646.

Ely

　The second time I visited Cambridge, I particularly wished to go to Ely. From Cambridge, I planned to get a bus to Ely which was supposed to take an hour. However, on Sunday, there were not any buses at the time which I had planed to go, so I changed my plan and decided to use a train. It took only about 15 minutes! Don't you think that it is wonderful to arrive at Ely 4 times faster using a train?
　It is said that Oliver Crommwell's house, the leader of the Puritan Revolution, is in Ely. Hiroshi Imai, who was a history professor when I was a university student, specialized in the period of the English Revolution. I was reminded that he made an impassioned speech about these ages and Crommwell, so I decided to visit Ely. However, the tourist information center was closed because it was Sunday, so I couldn't get enough information about Ely. I could only see Crommwell's house, which has become the tourist information center, Ely cathedral and Ely Museum.

Ely Cathedral

(2002.3.1, 2003.1.23, 2003.7.19)

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