Christmas day. The streets were void of people and traffic. Regent Street became a exclusive pedestrian zone, only that there were no pedestrians. Shops closed for 25, 26 December making it one of the grandest holiday in the UK.
Our service was at St Mary The University Church. It was a 10am Eucharist service.
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| St Mary The University Church Cambridge |
We walked in the light rain to St Mary. The weather was considerably colder than the past few days.
9.45am. The ushers greeted us with the cheeriest Christmas greeting in the cold. We felt welcomed ! We sat in the center pews, so that Pat can have a view of the choir.
The service was well scripted, part Presbyterian, part Methodist. I felt comfortable in there. There was a short sermon in which the curator used the example of scam SMSs that demanded our credentials that are precious to us. Jesus's credentials as Messiah were his lineage from the house of David and his humble beginning in the manger with swaddling cloth. Unlike a library card that only gives access to the card holder and no one else, Jesus came to identify with humanity so that he could give us access to God's kingdom. He gave us sonship and full access to the Father.
After a solemn communion (we just went forward for blessing ,partly because to keep the queue moving!), we departed. I was a tad touched by the service in many ways;partly due to the sermon and reminder of God's goodness and partly because the rituals made me very aware of what I was doing and declaring before God. I thought it was very inspirational.
After church, we looped around the area a couple of times but could not find food. Every establishment was closed. In the end, we revisited Tiffin Truck for another excellent meal (35 gbp). The crowd built up unsurprisingly because nothing could be had for miles unless we get into a hotel.
We walked to River Cam again and explored the other end of the river walk (towards Bridge St). Weather alternated between overcast and rainy; it was very cold. Even so, we did a respectable couple of km before heading back to the flat.
4pm. The car remained in the carpark and we had movie matinee (Die Hard 2). It was a bit of a joke to be watching TV on Christmas day but that was what happened when nothing is happening in the town.
I baked a miserable pork rack and complained of no vegetables. Pat had a brainwave and remembered the kebab store was operating so he went to get some to top up our meal. In the end, we ended up with too much meat!
I left Pat to do the packing. I could not handle the stairwell and he would have to do the carrying all by himself on check out day on 26 December.
Without H, it felt quiet by a lot. That was how it would be like when we get back, so we had better get used to it.
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