An Early December Week in Cambridge

Arrived in Cambridge for a week in early December, and the first order of business was getting the Christmas tree decorated. It was a tall tree, reaching up toward the high wooden ceilings of the house. It took a while, but it immediately made the place feel festive.

During the day, I walked around the city. Down by the river, houseboats were moored along the bank with rows of houses on the other side. The light was soft under a mostly cloudy sky, and the air was predictably cold. The evenings were dark early, but the city was lit up for the holidays. We went to a small party one night, and walking home, the lights on the trees in front of the brick buildings looked particularly nice.

I spent one afternoon at the Fitzwilliam Museum. The neoclassical exterior is grand, with its massive columns standing out against the grey sky. The entrance hall inside was even more overwhelming. I spent a long time just looking up at the incredibly ornate, gilded dome and the statues in their niches. Fittingly, another Christmas tree was set up on the main landing, bringing the holiday feeling into even this grand public space.