A day out

Seeming to have had a hectic few weeks dashing hither and yon to various events I decided to have a relaxing day out with a couple of friends at Cambridge… about an hour’s journey by bus from where I am.

We (mate and I) had been talking about a photo-trip to Cambridge for quite some time, so with an unexpected break in my schedule of activities, and with him and his girlfriend both having a week off work, this seemed like the ideal opportunity.
But at the very last minute girlfriend was afflicted with some nasty lurgy and decided to stay at home.
Without wishing to be too unkind it actually worked out rather nicely, for few things detract from the joys of a photo session quite as much as one or more of the party not being into photography. They tend to get bored rather quickly, and the photo enthusiasts (if they have the least bit of sensitivity) rapidly find that the pleasures of snapping pics gives way to guilt and an inability to relax.
Thus, after the required commiserations, I don’t think either mate or I were unduly disheartened.

Early morning weather was bright and sunny but, on the verge of our departing, began to turn rather grey and overcast. “Oh well, providing the rain holds off”, we agree, “the light should give us some good shots anyway”.
But during the journey it began to brighten again, and by the time we’d reached our destination it was once more brilliantly sunny.

And hot!

Such that once again I got sunburnt… on the sunburn I’d got last week at Brighton. Great!

My mate being rather more familiar with the area than I, we headed toward one of his old stomping grounds.
And having sated ourselves on photographing this that and the other for what seemed like ages we treated ourselves to a brief respite at a hostelry we’d stumbled across.

The Green Dragon pub. The name itself was inviting, bearing all sorts of symbolic connotations for us both (don’t ask!). But what really did the trick was our spotting their “beer garden”… a fenced-in patch of grassland, complete with tables, seats, and some wonderfully shady areas courtesy of a few well-placed trees, all fronting onto the river.

Well, with us all hot and weary, how could we resist?

So, divesting myself of weighty backpack, I leave mate to establish us at a pleasantly shaded table whilst I wander into the establishment to organise the refreshments (“Mine’s a whisky and ginger; he’ll have a rum and coke; thankyou very much!”)
And whilst longingly waiting for drinkies to be served I spot a legend painted across the top of the bar to the effect that it was at the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge that the atom was first split in 1932 (not strictly accurate of course, but that’s how it used to be popularly described), causing me to wonder what links this particular establishment may have had with the pioneers of modern nuclear science (curse them!).

Yet even here the cameras don’t rest for very long, for whilst quaffing our beverages we’re joined by birds almost begging to be snapped. And who are we to refuse them?

Finally rousing ourselves though we re-commence our trek crossing the river at that point over the “Green Dragon Bridge”, and making our way back toward the city centre.

When we come across an utterly fascinating foot/cycle-bridge.

From a distance it had looked somewhat like Bedford’s Butterfly Bridge, but the closer we approached the more we began to realise just how different and much more magnificent it is.

An incredible, inspiring structure… mate’s convinced the designer must have been “on something” when he drew the plans for it.
So of course we spent ages there, photographing it from every conceivable angle…

…all made doubly interesting by the presence of the Cambridge Museum of Technology just across the road from it. A fascinating juxtapositioning of old and new.

And onward again when, crossing an open common we decide to take another break ‘neath the shade of a big tree.
Wondering why such an inviting spot has been totally ignored by the various folk leisurely sitting around, we rapidly discover the answer… in the presence of a hypodermic syringe rammed into the trunk of the tree.
Clearly, then, a favoured spot of druggies. I fire off a few shots of the offending object but they all turned out rubbish due to the damned thing wavering around in the breeze… hence very bad blurring. Mate may have had better luck with his close-ups/macros… have to wait and see.

Quick check of the cameras before setting off again. Dammit! A flaw in the glass of the long lens… as though the surface has been chipped, or flaked off!!!
Well. Not, actually. For what could have been some horrendously costly damage was avoided by virtue of the fact that the lens is protected (paranoid’s my middle name, remember) by a UV filter. Thankfully! Dunno quite how it happened, given that the lens is also protected by a hood, but sure enough right on the edge of the filter there’s a nasty little depression.

Well, having to replace the filter is no big deal, and fortunately I happen to have another one of the same size (not with me at the time though), but what really concerned me is the impact the flaw would have on the pics I’d shot. And of course not knowing precisely when the damage had occurred. But I fired off a few shots after this point and, on subsequent inspection, found no obvious additional blemish on the resulting pics attributable to the damage, so not as serious as I’d anticipated maybe. Nevertheless, a bit of a downer.

(Reminder to self: carry a set of spare filters in future!)

However, onward once more. By now mate’s feeling a bit peckish, not helped by me tucking into the sandwiches I’d been thoughtful enough to bring with me and, mates that we are, gleefully not letting him have one. Anyway, he doesn’t eat cheese. So there!
(His own fault though. Earlier in the day he’d gone into a shop to get himself some food-type stuff and came out with an ice cream apiece. Didn’t sell sandwiches there apparently. But they did in the shop opposite. Which, ever helpful, I pointed out to him. And then promptly distracted him by drawing his attention to some really grotty postcards on display in a stand outside the shop… next time they have a print run they should come to us for the pics, they were that bad. And so we started our photo journey licking away at those lovely mint ice creams and him having forgotten to get sandwiches. Heh heh!)

So, he’s feeling peckish and I’m beginning to feel in the need of a call of nature… and both of us could murder a coffee.
Which is how we end up back in the heart of the city, contemplating entering one of the shopping malls there.
Ever conscious of the pitfalls of encountering bossy security types in such places I suggest we pack our cameras away for the time being.
Which is when I discover I’ve lost a lens cap. After having rummaged through the multiple pockets with which my various bits of clothing seem to be endowed… repeatedly.
Damn! A minor irritation, but an irritation nevertheless, and the second glitch of the day.

(Reminder to self: carry a set of spare lens caps in future!)

Once attended to our respective calls of nature we find one of those fancy Italian-style coffee places where we top up the refreshment situation. Boy, are we looking forward to our first cups of coffee since leaving home.
And whilst gradually sipping away at the most disgusting coffee either of us have had in a long while, mate (brain no doubt enlivened by the sudden and massive intake of caffeine, compounded by the huge amounts of sugar he’d used to try to mask the bitterness) suggests we could take the elevator up to the rooftop carpark (he’d spotted the elevator diplay board indicating the existence of ten levels!) where we’d probably get some brilliant panoramic shots.

Great idea! So finally and thankfully finishing the horrendous witches’ brew, we jump aboard the elevator. And in next to no time we’re there, at the top (amazed at the speed with which we’d been catapaulted skyward… didn’t feel it was going that fast!???)
Dashing over to the safety barrier we’re greeted with the sight of… total disappointment. And the only vista that promised even the remotest bit of interest was in completely the wrong direction sun-wise. Oh pooh!
So down we go again. Very quickly again. When it dawns on us that the ten “levels” aren’t actually different “floors” as such, but refer to different levels split, so we sus out, between two towers. Hence we’d actually travelled only about four floors up, which explained the seeming speed of the journey, and the absence of any truly remarkable vistas.

At which point we think it probably best if we begin the trek homeward.

Just over an hour’s bus journey. Alighting at the homeward end we’d only walked some hundred yards or so from the bus when I realise I’ve left my hat on the vehicle! “Go back for it” mate suggests. But I resignedly shrug shoulders and mutter something about things always “going in threes”.
Quick as a flash, mate (remembering the lens filter and the lens cap) picks up on the implications and says something along the lines of “Yeah, you’re probably right. If you get that back you might lose a camera or something!” Not that either of us are superstitious or anything of course.

(Reminder to self: No! Buggered if I’m going to carry a spare hat with me!)

And here I am the day after, writing this. Filter replaced. New lens cap. New hat (bought dirt cheap at a local supermarket).

Despite the glitches it was a good fun day, and a few reasonable photographs as well. Looking forward now to checking out mate’s pics.

Check out the full photoset here

[Edit 15th June '08: My mate's photos are now here]