There are so many unexpected things in life. Some of them are tiny while some of them are a bit extreme. For example, I never thought I would ever go to university. I never thought I would dye my hair blonde. I never thought I would parachute, but mostly; I never thought that I will be interested in punting.
For those who don’t know anything about the topic; punts are gondola-like boats specially designed for small rivers. These fascinating wooden boats are typically used for riding the rivers with a handsome chauffeur on board singing ‘O Sole Mio’ by Pavarotti. Just joking. After getting a job at Let’s Go Punting, I’ve realized that although punting in Cambridge doesn’t involve romantic serenades, it has so much more to offer.
My first punting experience happened during my first week at work. I believe in destiny, and she’s been kind to me recently – the first time I went punting the weather in Cambridge was fantastic; the first warm rays of the sun warmed my skin and the scent of flowers spread through in the air. It was crowded at the riverside. Cambridge residents were sitting on the grass eating ice cream, children were running around playing and all the tourists wanted to do was go punting.
Quayside
I was introduced to my collegues at Quayside: English boys, without exception. ‘This is going to be interesting’ – I thought – ‘I’m like The Ugly Duckling: the Hungarian girl with a funny accent. I just won’t talk and will pretend that I’m invisible’. Well, being invisible didn’t last for too long. I was surprised how friendly the guys were from the begining. They welcomed me on the Quayside with their jokes, got coffee for me from the Punt Yard and they even shared ther snacks – best team ever! They posed for me to take pictures for the company’s Social Media and told the guests to show their ‘best sides’ while they were crossing under the bridges.
Food on the Quayside is delicious. If you are into Mexican food, Las Iguanas is your perfect choice. If you would like to have a lovely breakfast, sandwiches or coffe and cake before or after punting, I can highly recommend Cafe Foy, and to enjoy our new bottomless brunch offer with The Punt Yard all you need to do is just to book an Early Bird Tour with us at 10am (and of course, wake up early).
Check this short video out to get the punting spirit:
By the time of my tour, I’d lost all of the stress and anxiety of being the new ‘office girl’ and decided to enjoy the tour. I went on a shared tour with Liam as my chauffeur, one of the friendliest, funniest guys. Also on my tour were people from all around the world: France, The Netherlands, China and this one you won’t believe, but even from London.
My Punting Tour
Honestly, I didn’t expect the tour to be interesting at all. ‘I mean, come on, I know Cambridge, I’ve been living here for almost three years!’ The truth is, by the end of my tour I’ve realized I knew nothing apart from the name: King’s College and the Mathematical Bridge. While the tour was incredibly relaxing, Liam gave us so much historical information about The Sights; the seven colleges and the eight bridges we past and spiced up the tour with some jokes. We were laughing all together – strangers from different countries and cultures enjoyed special moments together in a small boat for a while.
All the 5 star ratings on Tripadvisor are well deserved. Punting with Let’s Go Punting is excellent – it involves friendly (and handsome) chauffeurs, wonderful sights, interesting historical information and good laughs. I am proud that I work for this brilliant company, but most importanly, I am happy that I don’t need to pretend that I love my job. I really do.
If my post inspired you and you would like to try punting with us for a bargain price, check our latest Early Bird & Night Owl Offers out!
– Zsofi Zsarnai
