King's College and Chapel Roof Tour

There are several perks to being a new graduate student at King's College, but none better than the option to have a private tour of the King's College Chapel roof. King's Chapel is one of the most iconic images of Cambridge, undoubtedly what appears when you see a photo that says "Cambridge." The Chapel is over 500 years old, with construction on it beginning in the 1400s. Still in use, the beauty of the Chapel makes it one of the bigger tourist attractions in Europe. During Christmas, the King's Chapel service is watched by an estimated audience of 100 million.

Now that I have said some of the facts, let's get to the photos from the day. I tried to take some pictures on my way to the tour, so I can finally post some of King's College.

King's College across the Cam

The southern part of King's College

Once I arrived to the chapel on such a beautiful day I had to take a few more pictures from outside.

King's College Chapel (left) and the main entrance to King's

It took about 100 steps to reach the top of the chapel roof, where we crawled into a small attic above the ceiling to the chapel (500+ year old ceiling, I might add). I was absolutely amazed to be in such an ancient structure, and an area within it rarely seen. We could see on the walls and stone around us carvings from people over the last 500 years. The earliest date I saw in my quick search was 1600's, but you can see names throughout the 1700s and to the early 1900s carved everywhere in the attic. And no, they wouldn't let me carve "Josh was here, 2011"

North window of King's College Chapel Attic

We moved from the attic to the roof, where I had many photos of both the scenery and the roof itself. Despite being such an old building, it was very safe to be on top (no need to worry, mom).

Northwest Cambridge from King's College Chapel roof.

Northeast Cambridge from King's College Chapel roof.

Facing north on the King's College Chapel roof.

Southern Cambridge and King's College.

Panoramic of King's College Chapel roof, facing south.

Me on top of King's College Chapel.

After our tour concluded we headed downstairs and through a narrow corridor before being reunited with the ground.This was certainly a rare opportunity that I am very glad I took part in. I am also happy to finally put some photos up of King's College and Cambridge, all taken during a surprisingly beautiful day in late October.

A trip to Bath

This past Saturday half of the 2011 Marshall Scholars came together for a visit to Bath, an old city about 100 miles west of London. I hadn't seen any of the non-Cambridge Marshalls for over a month before this trip, so I was really looking forward to reuniting with everyone and catching up. Bath is one of the most historical cities in all of the United Kingdom, founded by Romans as a spa. The first site I saw when I arrived at Bath, on my way to meet up with the Marshall group, was the Bath Abbey - beautiful architecture reminiscent of the King's College chapel (both made from Bath stone and during a similar time period).

Bath Abbey

The 17 of us took part in a great free tour of the city of Bath, where we went to the circus area of homes built in a beautiful circle the exact diameter of Stonehenge. We traveled through Bath to many different sites, but then we were all a little bit tired and decided to relax in a park and catch up. The Marshalls are such a great group, and its very easy to feel like you have known each other for such a long time, thanks in part to our shared experiences and the intensive week of orientation we had together.

Bath Circus

Downtown Bath

Bath Abbey

The day ended with a bit of tea followed by a game of mini-golf for half of us, which had to leave that evening, while the other half went off to a spa treatment at the baths.

Mini golfing!

I arrived back to Cambridge late Saturday night, and had to wake up very early the next morning, because New Zealand was playing France in the Rugby world cup. My new friend Jake is from New Zealand, so he cooked everyone breakfast that woke up at 8am on Sunday to watch the game with him, which was great fun. Not sure I completely understand rugby, or that it would ever replace college football for me, but it was definitely fun to watch New Zealand narrowly defeat the French.

A trip to Madrid

After a few weeks settling into the U.K. I had the opportunity to travel to visit Katherine in Madrid! Keep in mind, I had never been to Europe before, so I was a little nervous about traveling to a country that speaks little English (and I know almost no Spanish). This is where it comes in handy to have a girlfriend that is fluent in Spanish.

Katherine lives near a great area of Madrid right by one of the biggest and most beautiful parks in the city, so that was our first destination on Friday.

Parque del Retiro - Rose Gardens

Retiro Park

Katherine and I in front of a sculpture by the Estanque lake in the Retiro

After walking around the Retiro we ended up at the center lake, called Estanque, where we rented a row boat for an hour around the lake.

Rowing on the Estanque in the Retiro

Katherine rowing on the Estanque in the Retiro

Once we finished rowing we moved on to one of the most famous places in Madrid, Plaza Mayor, where we had a late afternoon lunch. We spent the evening having dinner with other teachers in Katherine's program before heading back to Plaza Mayor under the moon-light for a relaxing evening.

Plaza Mayor

On Saturday, we went to the Royal Palace of Madrid, one of the largest palaces in the world! While we didn't tour the palace on this trip (maybe some other time), we were able to enjoy great views from the garden.

Katherine and I in front of the Royal Palace of Madrid

After the palace trip we went to one of the largest parks in Madrid, Casa de Campo, where we walked around to a small hill to get a great view of Madrid.

View of Madrid from Casa de Campo park

On way back from Casa de Campo

On Saturday evening we went to the Prado Museum, which is right near the center of Madrid. On Sunday we went to the Reine Sofia museum, which focused a little more on modern art.

Outside of the Reine Sofia museum with Atocha station in the background.

Overall a fantastic weekend and an amazing tour of Madrid for such a short time period. I may have even learned a few Spanish phrases during the weekend, but for that I definitely have to thank my tour guide, Katherine!

Grantchester trips

On Sunday afternoon we had tea and cakes at Grasshopper for the graduate students living in the area before Sam, David, and I set off for a walk to Grantchester. Grantchester is a local village near Cambridge that is historic for the intellectuals that have or currently live there.  The walk was an easy 45 minutes down a long hedge-road before we arrived at the village.

Church at Grantchester

We spent a couple hours walking around Grantchester, including The Orchard where Rupert Brooke, Virginia Woolf, John Keynes, and E.M. Forster among others spent a great deal of time while attending Cambridge. Rupert Brooke was famous among other things from his poems about Grantchester, where he talked about the beauty of a small village epitomizing England. The last line in his most famous poem was “Yet stands the Church clock at ten to three? And is there honey still for tea?” We also visited Lord Byron's (poet) pool, which has been replaced in areas by a large concrete Dam, a strange decision by the government. Sunday night was relaxed because I needed to wake up early for my first full-day in the laboratory, Day 24 of my Marshall experience, where I would begin my research.

Byron's Pool

On Monday, I went in to the lab early and began reading background information for my project, wanting to be as prepared as I could for my talk with my supervisor. Unfortunately, the King’s College Chapel Roof tour was cancelled for today, on account of wind. They were concerned we would blow off the top, I guess. So I spent the entire day in the lab until our candle-lit walk to Grantchester with King’s graduates in the evening.

Instead of taking the road to Grantchester we walked the dirty path along the river Cam, which was a beautiful path, even in the dark. However, candle-lit walks and windy weather do not mix well, and our walk quickly turned a little darker than expected. We also stopped mid-way to release small hot-air fire balloons (more like fire missiles on a windy day). A full-moon helped guide our path, and we made it alright to a pub in Grantchester where we had a few drinks before a walk back on the road. Although I'm glad my adventures at Grantchester were done (it’s a long walk!), I am confident it will become a new site that I take friends and family that come to visit.

Releasing the fire missile

My friend David and I at Grantchester Pub

Fresher's week: Part II

The week of “fresher” events continued on Thursday with a fun bar hop through Jesus, Emma, Clare, and King’s College bars. It was a great time to go out and around and meet with students from other Colleges. The highlight of the night was Clare bar, an amazing underground pub/bar in the basement of Clare College (right near King’s).

On Friday I had my all day induction by the Graduate School of Life Sciences. This 8 hour series of talks by different lecturers was only interrupted by a complimentary lunch and a coffee/tea break. I took advantage of the complimentary lunch, eating no less than 13 sandwich squares (about ¼ of a sandwich per square, in my defense). Needless to say I was feeling quite full by the end of the day, where we had drinks in the Museum of Zoology. The museum itself was absolutely gorgeous, having fossils and samples from nearly every animal that ever lived – now a definite stop for any guests that visit me at Cambridge.

Saturday’s big event was the Grasshopper Lodge party (where I live), which was a great chance to finally meet everyone that lives in Grasshopper as well as the other graduate hostels nearby. Tomorrow – a walk to Grantchester, and hopefully rest from the end of a very long, but unbelievably fun Fresher’s Week.

Fresher's week: Part I

Fresher’s week, as the first week of the term is called for new graduates and undergraduates, has been an amazing experience. The day after matriculation we had a King’s College societies fair, where I signed up for much more than I can do (kayaking, hiking, climbing, snowboarding, football, basketball, debate, etc.). I will have to decide what I have time for as the term rolls on.

On Monday I began working in the lab, though my supervisor is out for the weekend, so it was fairly low-key and only an hour or two (as it was the entire week). I also had a chance to clean up my room and continue to unpack my belongings. Both Monday and Tuesday evenings were spent hanging out with new fresher graduate friends at the King’s College bar. The idea of a College Bar may sound strange back in the United States, but the idea is that it gives students a low-cost and safe alternative to city pubs, bars, and clubs. Since the drinking age is 18, it is utilized by almost all undergraduates and graduates.

King's College Bar area

On Wednesday, the 19^th day of my Marshall experience, we went out for a graduate only dinner at La Raza, a local Spanish restaurant. For such a small amount of money we were able to get an enormous amount of delicious Spanish food, more than any of us could eat. The evening ended with a trip to a local pub, as most evenings tend to at Cambridge.

Overall, the first half of my fresher’s week has gone fantastically, and I have met a lot of great people. I really enjoyed getting to know those from around the world and especially British students. I have been amazed at the number of interesting, intellectual conversations I have had with fellow students about political issues, humanities, current events, and the sciences. Cambridge truly is an amazing gathering of great minds, and I look forward to continuing my education, both in and out of the lab, for the next year.

Matriculation

Matriculation day! I realize now that I have not made a point to emphasize the unique weather in the U.K. during the last week. Hot. That is all. Records for October were broken today, I am told, as well as year-long highs this entire week. I thought England was supposed to be rainy and cold, just like Oregon? Oh well, it is hard to complain. However, matriculation day meant 15 hours in a suit, a tad uncomfortable.

The day started with a meeting in the chapel of King’s College, where we officially signed ourselves in as students at the University of Cambridge. We then received a great speech from King’s provost, the head of the college. I had a great conversation with the provost at the Marshall Reception in London. This time, he was much more serious and gave a rousing speech about the importance of your education at Cambridge. He then reminded us that it was our opportunity to lose, and turned and walked away without saying another word. Fairly intense, you could say.

We then lined up for our matriculation photo, followed by lunch and a discussion in groups over The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, our summer reading assignment. A few briefings about housing, safety, finances, and college life later, we were able to take a brief break before the matriculation dinner. I did not take photos of the matriculation dinner, but if you have seen any of the Harry Potter movies you can imagine what the grand dining hall looked like. After dinner and another rousing speech, we were set free to the college bar to celebrate our matriculation.

King's dining hall set-up like it was during matriculation (from King's website).

King's dining hall set-up like it was during matriculation (from King's website).