Ely’s Octagon

Ely, Cambridgeshire, in England, is a beautiful small city with a glorious 12th-century cathedral whose most outstanding feature, to me, is the Octagon Tower. Constructed of eight massive pillars which support 200 tons of timber, glass and lead, the Octagon seems to hang in space. It was added in the 14th century after the original Norman tower collapsed.

Ely also has a beautiful riverfront area on the Ouse River with all manner of boats, from narrow (canal) boats to cruisers. I visited in June ’02.

JACQUE J. WEYHE
Juneau, AK