Lincoln Cathedral dominates this town

I love a great English cathedral town, and we’ll be visiting several of them on this journey. I booked a stop here in Lincoln for two good reasons: 1) it’s reasonably on our trajectory up the East side of England toward Scotland; and 2) the town is dominated by a huge medieval cathedral. So here we landed for a couple nights.

What I didn’t realize when I put Lincoln on our map is that 1) it’s kind of a smallish town; and 2) it’s off the American tourist route.

It turns out there are places Americans go and places they don’t. Our previous stops have all seemed flooded with American tourists. In hotels and restaurants it seems like half the voices you hear have American accents. Not so here in Lincoln. Sitting at breakfast you hear all English accents of one sort or another. One woman here just used the word “bloody” twice in one sentence.

On our first evening, two college age lads were sitting at the table next to us, and they seemed to take some interest in us. Finally, they asked where we were from, admitting that they were just baffled as to where our very exotic sounding accents could be from. We enjoyed quite a bit of conversation. Just as we are Midwesterners who made our way to the big city of New York (which they are fascinated by), they are from the Midlands, contemplating a path to better places.

Turns out they are brothers from the very industrial town of Derby, famed for making cars, including Rolls Royces. Fergus, 26, has managed to move up a bit, landing in Lincoln, where he is doing a PhD in neurosciences. Malachy, 20, is still back in Derby — and dreams of going to New York some day.

Fun dinner conversation with Malachy and Fergus

A view from the lower town toward the upper town and cathedral — before the road gets steeper and steeper

An elegant gateway just before the roads starts to really climb

The actual road name gets right to the point

Tantalizing views of what’s at the top of this monster hill

The features that really stand out in this surprisingly small-feeling town: 1) the 12th century cathedral that just dominates the place, hulking over the town from every angle; 2) the huge 11th century Lincoln Castle, built under orders from William the Conqueror; and 3) the incredibly steep road that gets you from the train station up to the town.

Now we’re set to climb back down that crazy steep road to catch the train to our next stop, which is York. I was in York with my parents 33 years ago and loved it. York, too, has a huge cathedral. But, as Fergus and Malachy insisted, we’re going to really love it because it’s a real town!

Did I mention that the cathedral dominates the town? That would include the view from our room!

An interior shot of Lincoln Cathedral

The cathedral is so huge that the services take place inside this large but comparatively intimate choir area

Inside the roof of the cathedral

Details from the roof

Lincoln Castle from the cathedral roof

One feature of Lincoln Castle is a Victorian era prison. Prisoners had private cells because the jailers believed that they were more likely to reform if they were kept from each other’s wicked influence. They would also bring the prisoners to services in this chapel, with little stalls built so they could see the preacher — but not each other.

The prison had a special exhibit about record album covers. You could sit in various prison cells and look at old album covers while they played the music for you. Very weird.

On a somewhat more sophisticated level, the prison also displayed one of the four existing original copies of Magna Carta from 1215

These people have the right attitude

Glorious views of architecture representing several centuries from lunch at a great tapas place

The dining choices here were limited enough that we went right back to the same tapas place for dinner

It was a good idea to change the name of this club

Mark and Jim on a bridge over the River Cam, with punts aplenty below us

After living in Cambridge, MA, for some 18 years we’ve finally made it to the real Cambridge, the one after which our long-time home was named. It was a quick two-night stop, just enough to drink in some of the ambience of an ancient university town. Ancient and lovely, I should add. On arrival we wandered around parts of the University somewhat randomly and found some gorgeous parks and lawns belonging to the colleges that were open to the public. It was really beautiful.

While some of the colleges restrict access, this area in Pembroke College was open to the public. Just a tiny hint of all the beauty behind the closed gates.

The main reason to come here, of course, was to see the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1209 by students fleeing the anger of locals towards the students at Oxford – an early version of town-gown hostilities – it is one of the great universities of the world, known particularly for its scientific excellence. Stephen Hawking, Watson & Crick of DNA fame, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Alan Turing – they all studied here. Oh, and a guy named John Harvard, whose 1638 deathbed bequest to a then two-year-old college in Massachusetts so delighted the Massachusetts Bay Colony that they named the school after him. They even decided that the village across the river from Boston where the college was formed, then known as New Towne, was renamed Cambridge in honor of his alma mater.

Thus the link between our old home and this original Cambridge is formed. One fun little fact we learned on our tour of the University was the origin of the name Cambridge itself. The city, you see, sits on the River Cam. And when a bridge was first built across the river the then-small settlement became known as Cam Bridge. Or something like that, of course, in olde English. At any rate, that’s what one of our tour guides told us, and it makes sense.

King’s College Chapel, perhaps the most famous site in Cambridge

Though we are typically not tour people, we actually took two tours on our one full day in Cambridge, one a 90-minute walking tour of the University and the other a 45-minute boat tour up and back on the River Cam. The walking tour was great. Led by Annie, who had recently finished her Master’s Degree in Linguistics there, she explained all we wanted to know about the history and structure of the University. I had been confused by the structure of a university with 31 colleges and how they relate but now that’s been cleared up. In capsule form, the University handles academics while the Colleges handle student life. Simple enough.

The river tour was less informative but wonderfully relaxing. Basically there are hundreds of “punts” – small, flat-bottomed boats with square-cut bows – that are poled along the shallow river. Here in Cambridge they travel essentially behind many of the Colleges, giving you a view of the architecture and lawns you can’t see otherwise unless you’re a student here.

Mark and our punter, a local kid going to college somewhere else, but working for the summer at home

Beyond the tours and the immediate university vicinity, the parks and walks along the River Cam were really great. Bucolic, quiet, green – everything you would want, and the foot paths go on for miles. And on the weekend at least you’d see kids swimming, canoeing, fishing, all very relaxing.

Oh, and some good food, too. Steaks one night, Turkish another, and a spectacular Indian place (Dishoom) that was so good we had lunch there both days. There are a couple Dishoom restaurants in other parts of Great Britain where we’ll be stopping and we already have them marked. Now northward to Lincoln!

On arrival the weather was pretty typical for what we’re expecting in England. Later on though it was beautiful – just about perfect in fact.

Fabulous foot paths along the River Cam

A glorious riverside reading spot

Did I mention bucolic?

Back in town, here is Mark at the Eagle, a famous pub where Watson & Crick announced the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA. As they modestly described it, they’d found “the secret of life.”

Speaking of science, here’s our guide Annie pointing out where Stephen Hawking lived with his first wife and their girls. She still owns the building and Annie, in fact, lived there while she studied at Cambridge!

Out for steaks one night, this was the view from Mark’s seat

The Bridge of Sighs over the River Cam, named for the more famous bridge of the same name in Venice

The back of King’s College Chapel as seen from the river

St John’s College, again from the river. You’ll notice that the clock tower is missing the clock. The story is that they just ran out of money!

The imposing gothic towers of Canterbury Cathedral rise above the lovely town

Stunning stained glass windows

Somewhat more contemporary windows

Our first stop outside the capital was a two-night stay in Canterbury, an easy one-hour train ride from London’s St. Pancras station. This ambitious stay also included a day trip to Dover to hike along its famous White Cliffs.

Canterbury is a lovely town that is packed with English history. Its soaring cathedral is the spiritual center of the Anglican Church. Its walls have witnessed 1,400 years of tumult, including the infamous murder of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170. Becket’s grave then drew centuries of pilgrims until Henry VIII’s war on Catholicism led to its destruction.

This is also the setting for Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, perhaps the first masterpiece of modern English literature. Characters and themes from these stories appear in shop and restaurant names everywhere in this picturesque town.

As the most popular tourist spot in Southeastern England, Canterbury is bustling with energy, yet you are always just steps from calming riverside parks. The Great Stour is a river that breaks into a couple little branches in town on its way to the North Sea. They feel more like creeks, lined with pretty parks and colorful gardens.

The glorious nave of today’s cathedral hails from the 14th century

Jim tours the choir

Henry IV is the only monarch buried in Canterbury Cathedral, along with Queen Joan. He tried hard to associate himself with the holiness of Thomas Becket to legitimize himself after usurping the throne from Richard II.

Also resting here is Edward the Black Prince. A model of chivalry, he was supposed to succeed his father Edward III, but his untimely death left the throne instead to his unworthy and tyrannical 10-year old son Richard II.

The River Stour just below the medieval gateway to the city

Exploring the beautiful riverside parks

A heavenly dinner at a tapas place

Another quick hop on the train took us 30 minutes to Dover, the gateway to the European mainland, just 20 miles across the English Channel from Calais, France. As such, the place is loaded up with fortifications, going back to Roman times. Towering over the town and the huge port is the massive medieval Dover Castle, considered by some to be England’s largest castle.

After spending part of the morning touring the castle we grabbed a quick lunch and set off to explore the White Cliffs that stretch for miles from the bustling harbor. The weather bounced around from warm and lovely to cold and rainy, adding its own drama to the singular beauty of the place.

We packed an awful lot into this two-night stop. From here we’ll head pretty much straight north through Eastern England, making stops in Cambridge, Lincoln, and York, before heading into Scotland. Let’s hope our stay in Cambridge is a tad more relaxing than this one!

Exploring Dover Castle, high above the town

Looking out from the castle, across the English Channel to France

No matter how gloomy the weather would get, you could always spot Jim pretty easily

The Anglo-Saxon church of St. Mary in Castro built around 1000 AD. To its right is a Roman lighthouse, dating to 130 AD, considered the oldest standing building in England. At some point it was converted into a bell tower for the church.

An elaborate old lock on the church door

Hiking from the harbor onto the White Cliffs

Views of the gorgeous cliffs

The spectacular landscape

The landscape atop the cliffs

Me taking a break atop the cliffs

The weather didn’t always entirely cooperate

Exhausted from a long day of travel, touring, and hiking, we had 45 minutes to kill before our train back to Canterbury. We were looking for a place to get some water, but then spied this table at a wine bar just as the sun was coming back out. So we sat down for our water — and a nice refreshing rosé.

Back in Canterbury, a fun (if misleading) sign