Holiday in Ely

 

We had booked a short break in Ely, mainly because this was a good way to include Cambridge on our itinerary. On Monday, 1st June, we set out just before 10am and arrived early at the National Trust's Wimpole Estate near Royston in Cambridgeshire. It's quite a long walk from the car park to the centre, and we went straight to the cafe for tea and cake. Refreshed, we wet out to explore the parkland.

We first toured the gardens of Wimpole Hall; see the top photo. The parterre was bare and very disappointing. See 6 and 7 on the map. We then headed out into the deserted parkland to reach the Chinese Bridge and the Serpentine Lakes (8 and 9). Still not a soul around, that is, except for this herd of cows who seemed to follow us to the water.

We crossed the bridge and headed for The Folly (10) at the top of a hill. The map above shows the way back as that circular route in blue. Arriving back at the centre, we found the area where everybody else was there. We found the walled garden (absolutely superb) where I stayed while Alison went off for the 2.30pm feeding of the pigs at Home Farm.

After we met up, it was off to the other cafe for tea and cake. It was then 4.30pm and time for the drive to Ely and our little terraced house on the main road. The owner was there to show us round. He had made it as perfect as it was possible, even though the triple glazing could not block out all the road noise.

After we unpacked, we walked down to the centre of town and found a brand new restaurant called Limora Mediterranean Kitchen and Bar. Very smart, top class, great service and a good menu (Greek moussaka and lamb casserole). Hope it does well.

Tuesday was forecast to be rainy, so we stayed in Wells. A walk around the cathedral, then a nice circular walk down the hill to the river (the Great Ouse) in the countryside. Then off to Oliver Cromwell's House, a much better tour than I imagined with a digital handset and headphones. See their website, olivercromwellshouse.co.uk, with a taster tour.

A great lunch at Gail's Bakery; see gails.com. Then to Ely Cathedral for our 2pm tour, only four of us and our guide. Photos were taken care of by Alison's phone, as my ancient camera was faulty.

Our guide was excellent, very informative. I especially liked the Octagon Tower and lantern that was rebuilt after the collapse of the old roof. It took around fourteen years to rebuild – see klmagazine.co.uk – Wonder of the Mediaeval World. After the tour I just sat to take it all in.

Dinner was at Wildwood in town. It was a much brighter day than forecast; I think the rain came while we were in the museum.

So Wednesday was the day for Cambridge despite a more mixed weather forecast. A drive to Milton Park and Ride and the bus into the city. We started with a cuppa and a bun at Cafe Nero before finding our way to Kings College Chapel. (The colleges were closed due to exams). But the chapel, whilst not as impressive as Ely Cathedral, had some even better features. The free brochure told us enough about its history and how it was started by the then nineteen-year-old Henry VI in 1441. 

It's the roof that is most impressive with that wooden fan-vaulted ceiling. It was completed in three years between 1512 and 1515. The world's largest fan vault.

However, even more impressive for me were the heraldic stone carvings, five on either side of the ante-chapel. All the same, except the doors were on opposite sides to match positions. The brochure explains all the emblems, and I spent some time identifying each one. Absolutely outstanding. 

Next stop was the Round Church, founded between 1114 and 1131, so pretty old. We found out all about its history. There is a video with headphones.

It was late afternoon when we left and decided to have a very late lunch or early tea at Bills. This time we had a selection of nibbles which went down well. We had missed some heavy rain while we were there, only to get soaked on our way to the bus stop. We had a quiet evening in and watched some cricket.

We left Ely on Thursday morning and headed for the National Trust's oldest nature reserve at Wicken Fen.

We took one of the trails to see reed beds, open water and wet grassland. It was very quiet. We saw some school parties in the distance and ignored the boat trip. Which was fortunate, as when we arrived back at the cafe, it poured with rain. It was time to head for home, a quite tiring, for me, four days.