07 September 2009

Paddling a punt in Cambridge

After a short stay in Stirling, I travelled to Cambridge on 10th August and then spent 4 days there. One afternoon, Yung-Yao, his family and I went punting on the river Cam.

Apart from academic achievements and historical buildings, punting is definitely one of the several images people would associate with Cambridge. A punt, a flat-bottomed boat with no keel, is steered with a long pole by a punter who stands on the platform at the back and pushes the pole against the river bed to move the boat.

As Yung-Yao is a former member of Darwin College, we could hire a punt from the college for a small fee and didn't have to queue up at the dock with other tourists. Thanks to Yung-Yao's arrangement and hard physical work, we had a wonderful trip on the river.

However, while perhaps most people would comment that nothing could be more pleasant than punting on the river Cam on a lovely sunny day, I would say, instead of pushing the pole against the river bed and then pulling it all the way back out of water over and over again, I prefer paddling.

What could be more absurd than canoeing in Cambridge? But that's just something I enjoy.

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