Easter in Cambridge

I'm a little bit lost for words, as I don't want to sound like a gushing guide book or something equally grim. But basically, we couldn't have had a better weekend. Everything was perfect, especially the phenomenal weather. If I though that we had had summer previously, now I am sure that we have - we must have got easily into the mid to high seventies, almost too hot on Saturday.

Consequentally, many of the things that we were going to do didn't happen, especially the taking of many photographs through lots of colleges. although this was mainly because someone - mentioning no names, of course - had not got his alumni card (didn't know one was necessary now). But it was mostly too hot to wander too far, and certainly too hot to shop.

There were beautiful flowers and trees everywhere - even on the drive down, the hedgerows were foaming with apple and hawthorn blossom, and then there were both sorts of chestnut at the height of their beauty, and wallflowers and lilac everywhere. Sumptuous.



This is the wisteria at Sidney Sussex.



And this, although without blossom or perfume, a most elegant cedar.



We spent quite a lot of Saturday ambling along the Backs, or sitting in the shade admiring the view.



The view to King's - but not that of Queens' next door. Just don't get me started on what they have done there. I refuse to call it "created". The erecting of ugly constructions of concrete, corrugated "tin" and glass is a crime, and someone should be prosecuted! (The DSM thinks I go a little too far......)

Saturday evening, we in fact went to King's chapel for a concert - Pergolesi and Bach - which was magical, especially the final Bach cantata, the name of which escapes me for the moment.

We did a lot of socialising with our friends over the weekend, culminating in the actual birthday and retirement party on Monday, which was a delightfully happy occasion. The children all behaved extremely well, as did most of the adults......

Another of the highlights was seeing this.



It has been there for a few years, but somehow we had never noticed it before - or rather, I think that we had never actually walked past this corner. It is.........fabulous. Beautiful, and - as intended to be - slightly terrifying. One of the most spectacular pieces of public art that I have ever seen.

A close up, with the grasshopper in all its glory. You can in both shots just about see the blue lights that show the seconds, minutes and hours and the relentless passing of all of these.



Here is the Wikipedia link, rather than me trying to explain it all and getting it wrong. Go see it if you can.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_Clock

As you can imagine, little textile stuff got done, other than quite a bit of knitting on the cormo shawl. Now I am back, spindling in earnest will begin - has begun. Some pretty fluff to navajo ply to make the Alston weekend challenge tea cosy - as well as serving as a sample!

For now, feet back down to earth and onward and upward.....