Cambridge, Beef Rendang, and the Open Air Market

We began our day with a walk with Tillie and Gracie.  After a quick breakfast, we made our way to the Royal Mail Post Office to pay the tax on Frankie, our little Renault Clio.  We couldn't believe how easy it was.  The post office was in a little village market in Bourn.  The postal clerk was so very helpful, as we have found all the British people we have encountered to be.  She explained the process, we paid our taxes with our credit card (everywhere we have been so far I have been able to use my credit card with the chip), got our receipt and then we were off to Cambridge.  We decided the best way to visit Cambridge is to use the Park 'n Ride.  We parked the car, then, with help from a very nice gentleman, paid our parking and bought our tickets for the bus ride into Cambridge.  Using the ticket machine is a bit of a challenge.  We saw many people who struggled as we had.  Doreen, a neighbor or Michael's and Janet's, said you almost had to have a degree from the University of Cambridge to figure it out.

We rode the purple bus into Cambridge. While Chuck has driven in Cambridge several times, the traffic is crazy.  The bus makes so much more sense.  We got off at the first stop. Everywhere we looked there were people and bicycles, so many bicycles. Our first stop was Hardy's Original Sweetshop.  This shop is the real deal. I don't think I've ever seen so many sweets in one place:  chocolates, candies of all kinds, sodas, teas, and even cereal (Lucky Charms).  There were 2 levels and each level was chock full of goodness.  I found Bertie Bott's All Flavour Beans for Rip (if you're a Harry Potter fan, you'll know what these are) along with Chocolate Frogs (another Harry Potter favorite).

 

We found a souvenir shop called Jack's.  I found a Cambridge tote bag, a Cambridge ball cap, and postcards. Chuck wants a hoodie and we found one, but he wouldn't buy it. We're going back soon, maybe I can talk him into buying one. We walked around Cambridge taking in all the magnificent architecture and found an open air market.  We ended up at a Dosa stand.  The gentlemen there, one from Sri Lanka and the other from Malaysia, made and sold Halal food.  I found out through research on Google that Halal according to Islamic law, means the food is permissible as described in the Koran.  We chose the Beef Rendang based on a conversation with a patron at the stand.  It was delicious and so different from anything I've ever eaten. As we were wandering around Cambridge, we found the Grand Arcade, the largest shopping center in Cambridge-3 stories and of course, as soon as we walked in we saw a Krispy Kreme Doughnut store.  I guess they are as popular here as they are at home.

We caught the purple bus back to the Park'n Ride and headed to our home away from home. After walking Tillie and Gracie, we decided to visit the Caledcote Grill, a food truck that comes every afternoon.  We had stopped to talk with the Turkish gentleman who operates the food truck several times on our afternoon walks.  The odors emanating from that food truck made my mouth water.  We both ordered the doner (gyros), Chuck got a large and I got the small. There was so much food and it was as good as it smelled.

 

I thought I would post a photo so that you could see what we see each morning when we get up. A lot of work has gone into this back garden and we're the lucky ones that get to see it every day we're here. Of course, I have to share a couple of photos of Tillie and Gracie.