English Hospitality

Next on my way north I headed to Cambridge. Why yes, I went to Cambridge. I camped outside the city and went to the central square for a farmer's market breakfast. The official university tours started late in the day, so I went for a “punt” tour that began every fifteen minutes. These are flat bottomed, person powered craft that sidestepped the strict trespassing rules by using public waterways, where most universities and monuments were at least partly visible. For me, it was a chance to sit and relax while our guide did the work and pointed out the sites we passed. It was another fantastic day, and soon the river was filled with boats of all types bumping into each other, and at least a few mishaps. The tour was about an hour, and I headed out of the city afterwords. I needed time to make it to the next campsite, after all.

It was another really good day of riding. The weather was clear, and a decent tail wind picked up to push me along. I flipped on the GPS, plugged in the campsite road, and off I went. This turned out to be a pretty miserable navigational failure as I was lead to the wrong road that had the same name. To make mattes worse, I was stuck between a highway and a river with no clear way out (aside from overgrown trail I used to get there.) There were no hostels nearby. It was getting late, and I was a bit tired. Fortunately I travel self contained with food, shelter, and everything I need for at least a day, except maybe for a refill of water. I was getting ready to pitch a tent in the woods somewhere, but felt I should ask permission, seeing as I'm now in an English speaking country.

What happened next I did not see coming. I really just asked for, and hoped to be let into one of the nearby fields and not have to worry about getting kicked out in the middle of the night. I was a bit hesitant to start banging on doors, and actually felt pretty ashamed in doing so. But one thing lead to another, and I actually stumbled upon a very posh neighborhood barbeque, and was invited in. After carefully maneuvering my bike around the Aston Martin in the driveway, I was allowed to shower, change, eat and drink wine until fairly late at night when candles and desert came out. In return I tried to share some stories of my travels and travel plans, but they seemed more curious and amazed at what I was doing.

I was still expecting a lawn, or perhaps a couch to sleep on, but I was setup in a bedroom (with private bathroom) in a renovated English estate. My host offered for me to relax and spend two nights, which I did, but I insisted on helping a little, and spent about half a day doing lawn care and other little jobs. Still, nothing was asked of me, yet I was provided really good food, wine, shelter, even laundry was done for me. I was, and still am, beside myself and humbled by the generosity and hospitality I was shown when a complete stranger showed up at their doorstep. It felt like a host family, or host community as I got to know the neighbors who threw back to back dinner parties. A HUGE THANK YOU to my new friends who are reading this. Your kindness won't soon be forgotten.

 Please note I've uploaded over 400 pictures from this, my trip to London, and other events to flicker.