Being in Cambridge, it just had to be done!
A walking tour and punting trip entertained our touristy spirits for the afternoon, offering a taste of Cambridge history and charm, writes Jess Williamson.
The walking tour was bravely led by super knowledgeable Carol Atack, kindly volunteered by husband Alex van Someren, and a group of walkers hit the streets to sight-see the lovely town and Cambridge colleges. A surprise highlight was running into Rory McGrath on the tour, or perhaps Carol sneakily arranged (nicely done in any case!), but in a place like Cambridge you never know what famed people you’ll encounter.
At the same time 50 of us sight-saw from a different perspective, hopping into punts for a classic Cambridge adventure. Punts, by the way, are these stereotypical Cambridge boats that get propelled along by long poles & ideally a punter to do the hard work for you (I had a few adventurous sign-ups for ‘punting, whatever that is’). I’m not sure who managed to pitch on their punts, but Daniela gave us a good 30 second rendition of PlayMob‘s pitch while having a go at punting herself. I, on the other hand, turned our punt 90 degrees into a wall in just one stroke – apparently my navigation skills are as impressive on water as they are on land.
In the continued theme of Investor Day, we passed wine bottles around the punts and turned our lack of cork screws into a team challenge. No surprise all the bottles did get opened with clever minds onboard, and our boat likewise managed our screw top without great struggle. The funniest sight was surely the punting monkeys, as MiniMonos took their cut-outs for a ride, and I’m sure they’ve made their way into photos of many punters passing by. It was all quite a good laugh!
Meanwhile Jon and Brad Feld ran off with Eric Van Der Kleij for a cuppa at Number 10, as one does, meeting with one of David Cameron’s senior policy adviser to talk business. This, Jon claimed, was the reason for his suited attire in place of the usual Friday cowboy hat – combined with the beard shave, he was hardly recognisable! I hear it was a productive startup-related chat with those parties around the table, but have yet to get all the gossip – will see if I can reveal more later in announcements to come.
In the evening we viewed the world from above once again, with a drinks party on the roof terrace of The Varsity Hotel. We were all wowed by the views of Cambridge from the 7th floor, which almost felt like the 100th, and more than half our morning crew reconvened to join in. Formalities went out the window – or roof – as everyone relaxed and enjoyed themselves, and we poured through the planned 30 bottles of wine in half the time. Another 20 bottles later, I was just thankful for the sturdy glass walls so we didn’t lose anyone.
Festivities continued for the Springboard team members with dinner at La Mimosa, where our waitress fell in love with the monkey, and eventually led us to the usual late-night haunt of The Fez. I was impressed mentors Jens Lapinski, Katy Turner, and visitors Lukas Hudecek, Josh Russell, and Robbie Beak kept up with us the whole way, and by the end of the night even Jon was breaking out his dance moves.
3am goodbyes in the street took over half an hour, full of hugs and promised visits. I know with people’s jet-setting styles we’ll be crossing paths in no time, but it really was hard to walk away. We could hardly have concluded on higher note, though, so thank you again for everyone’s incredible hard work, dedicated support, and utmost positivity. Let’s bottle up all the goodness and tap into it for years to come!
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