The Union Jack
The majority of our trip was spent in Cambridge, and the nature of our business there was the demonstration of, training with, and delivery of a pair of our eyeglasses to a particularly sharp gentleman who's lost the vast majority of his ability to move or communicate.
However, before we got down to business, we got to spend a morning in the nearby town of Ely exploring the cathedral there.
Outside Ely Cathedral
Ribcage
The Octagon
And a few from a wander around Cambridge after dark one evening. Cambridge is the college town upon which all other college towns are modeled. Replete with maniacal wobbly cyclists, food from every corner of the globe, and exquisitely manicured grounds, places like Harvard wish they were in a different Cambridge than they are.
Punters
One of many churches in Cambridge
Now down to business...the aforementioned sharp gentleman is none other than Stephen Hawking, an example of absolute brilliance shackled in a body wracked by four decades of the slow decay brought on by ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease).
Examining our creation
Light reading
Portrait
Center for Mathematical Sciences, Hawking's office
And a couple from a daytime wander through Cambridge.
Cathedral at King's College
First signs of spring
With our business finished, we had a day to ourselves in London. Again, my first time there, so we got to familiarize ourselves with the Tube (confusing at first, but it goes EVERYwhere) and some of the classic sights of the city.
Good luck
We made a walking loop from Picadilly Circus to Trafalgar Square, across the river to the Eye, back across the river to Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey, then over to Buckingham Palace and back to Picadilly Circus.
The Eye
And on St. Patrick's Day, we met up with Ethel's mate Daniella, who took us to a few Irish pubs that were packed, as most of London wasn't really observing this holiday. You know, not being Ireland and all.
Near Covent Garden
After a pair of flights home that incorporated 9 out of the top 10 travel nightmare cliches, we got back into the normal swing of things in both life and work. Another country ticked off my big world map, the opportunity to meet a remarkable man, and more jetlag than I care to deal with in the space of 6 days!
