Vacation 2010 Day 11: King's College Chapel

While I was in Cambridge I took one of the guided walking tours on offer so I could get inside the chapel at King's College.

It has the largest fan vault ceiling in the world as well as some wonderful stained glass.

Construction began in 1446 and it took more than a century to complete, spanning the reigns of Henry VI, Edward IV, Richard III, Henry VII, and Henry VIII.

The Master Mason John Wastell was the architect of the ceiling which was constructed in just 3 years. It has been called "the noblest stone ceiling in existence".

The superb organ dates from the 17th Century.

The chapel escaped damage during WWII but the stained glass was removed and repaired as a precautionary measure.

The detailing is also incredible.

Vacation 2010 Day 11: Cambridge

I arrived in Cambridge to a drizzly, grey day, though it was possible to find a little color in the grounds of a small, old, church.

I had visited Cambridge once when I was a schoolkid, but I have almost no memories of it.

One thing I do remember is punting on the River Cam.

A lot of the colleges have nice gardens.

Like its older counterpart in Oxford, Cambridge gets a lot of tourists, but I think Oxford gets more.

You are never far from one of the 31 colleges that make up Cambridge University, the oldest was founded in the 13th Century.

More Nobel Prize winners hail from Cambridge University than any other single institution in the world.

Every college has its own chapel.

I also stopped in at the Fitzwilliam Museum.