Punting!

Went punting for the first time today on the River Cam. After class (which was interesting but seemed very long because the professor likes to repeat himself a lot) a group of us went with the TAs and gave it a shot. Punting is really similar to a gondola; it's a long flat boat with a platform on which the punter stands on. Then that punter uses a long, heavy pole, pushing on the river bottom to propel the boat.

It was really difficult, but I hear we can go every week, so I hope to get better at it. My group volunteered me to go first and since I had no idea what I was doing I just did my best. Since I'm short and the pole is long and heavy I had a hard time lifting it. We took turns punting, and the views of Cambridge from the river are very idyllic, postcard-perfect. I have a few pictures posted in the album, none of me punting though, since other people took pictures of me on their cameras. When I get those emailed to me I will post them too. What a workout, definitely good for the upper body and especially the biceps and triceps!

The Buttery (cafeteria) was closed for dinner tonight for graduation celebrations, so a group of us went to a Thai restaurant, which they thought was delicious but I thought was mediocre. Sabieng's in Santa Cruz is by far much better! We sat at our table for a long time waiting for the check and found out that here in England the check is not brought to the table, but instead you have to go up to the register and ask for it. Interesting.

We leave for the north tomorrow morning for 5 days. We're going to go see Hadrian's Wall, a couple of medieval abbeys, and then stay in Edinburgh. I'm excited to go to new places but I'm not looking forward to the 10 hour bus ride. We just got to Cambridge and just got settled...now we have to travel again. Of course I will post lots of pictures when I return.

I miss everyone a lot and hope everyone is doing well. For some reason I got a little homesick today. I've made a lot of new friends but it's not the same as hanging out with people you know and love. I'd love to hear how everyone is doing and thanks to those who have emailed me already, it's so nice to see mail in my inbox, I really appreciate it.

Take care everyone, cheers! Jo