Cambridge

So it looks like it's been a while. And while I won't promise to be caught up on the blog any time soon, here are a few fall pictures from Cambridge. I started this post back in early October but added more pictures after my visit yesterday when the fall colors were on full display.

This is the newer of the Faculty of Education buildings. I have a desk and computer on the third floor of this building. This is also where one of the graduate level classes I am involved with is held on Wednesdays. It is very pretty and has won lots of architectural awards. It also can get quite warm inside when the sun comes through all that glass. The rounded glass part on the front right is the education library. It is incredibly nice to have the library right there and not across campus. I daresay it gets used more this way. Here it is on the inside.

The PGCE course that I teach in (graduate level course for pre-service teachers) meets in the other building, which is a few buildings down to the left of this one. There are 150 students in the primary grades program and five members of the maths ed team (3 faculty members and 2 clinical people), so I make 6. This is the auditorium back on the first day of the term. This is where we hold lectures, which is generally on Tuesdays from 9-10:30am.

After lecture there is a break and then we split into smaller groups of 30 for seminar. This is the view out of the seminar room. Sometimes in the middle of class it still surprises me when I look out the window and see this and realize that I am teaching at the University of Cambridge.

Here are a few other lovely fall pictures. I took all of these with my phone. I really wished I had my real camera with me. I'm sure by the time I go up again next week the leaves will be well spent. Here is a massive tree all aglow in front of the newer education building.

Close-up of the same tree:

So British:

Now, before I show you the picture that is "So Cambridge," I need to do some explaining. All over town you see signs like this one:

You may think that is because of the likely damage that would occur to the hedge behind the fence. But, here is another one:

Same message, but no vegetation in sight. So, what's the deal? Why would you have to post signs like this? Well, here is the answer. Because if you don't, in Cambridge, this is what happens:

There are bikes EVERYWHERE. I have seen them chained in very strange ways to very strange things. For example, there was a wall of a churchyard made of brick from the ground to about 5 feet up, at which point it changed to vertical metal bars. Well, people had hoisted their bikes to sit on the tiny ledge of the brick wall and chained them to the bars. I can't say that I've ever seen bikes chained to things at head-height before. And, while in London it is likely that we will be run over by a double-decker bus, in Cambridge you best look for bicycles before stepping off of a curb. The bike lanes are extra wide and often the bikes outnumber the cars. My favorite are the various contraptions that parents use to transport two children plus themselves all on the same bike.

Okay, now I think you're almost ready for the picture. The basic idea is old building + huge tree + lots of bikes, which makes it...

So Cambridge:

As much as I hate London, and 5 hours of commuting per day wears me out (let alone when trains are messed up and it takes 3.5 hours to get home instead of 2.5 like last night), I do love my days up at Cambridge. It is a lovely place and the people are very kind (not to mention brilliant) and the students are (generally) quite bright. And, if that weren't enough, there is getting to work and co-teach with Tim Rowland, who is beyond fabulous. This is the geeky equivalent of seeing your name in lights: