Cambridge – the home of the University of Cambridge, which was founded in 1209 and ranks among the best universities in the world.

Isn’t it wonderful when a family member lives someplace you want to travel to?

It’s even better when the weather is kind and you can get outside and walk around without having to be huddled under an umbrella… which could often be the case anywhere in Ireland or the U.K.

As it happened, Kevin and I went to Cambridge for a McGrath family gathering in May — just an overnight stay — in a place sister Veronica recommended very close to her home. After all, she has lived there for 46 years, so she would know just the perfect place for us.

We checked into The Fellows House and discovered they had underground parking. Oh happy day. A handy lift took us up to our suite where our Key Card allowed us to “Unlock the secrets of the universe” — so we tapped ourselves right in. Even the key card sleeve holds some astonishing wisdom: “Those who can imagine anything can create the impossible.” – A quote from Alan Turing. I already think Cambridge is a great place.

Kevin standing in front of Gonville & Caius College

After our sumptuous meal with the McGrath clan, it was the next day, before our flight back to Dublin, that Kevin and I were able to stroll into the heart of the town from Veronica’s house. Kevin had been many times before since his daugther, Nicola, studied for three years at Gonville & Caius College. Caius is pronounced “Keys” and it is one of the oldest of 31 constituent Colleges that comprise the university. Founded in 1348, it is particularly esteemed for excellence in medicine. Along with producing 15 Nobel Prize winners, it counts the physicist Stephen Hawking among its famous alumni.

It was fun to explore even a tiny bit of Cambridge University, which their website claims is the fourth-oldest in the world, having been established in 1209. How did it come about? A group of scholars left Oxford following a dispute and settled in the town of Cambridge. 

A rare 12th-century Norman landmark, the Round Church was built around 1130 by the Fraternity of the Holy Sepulchre

The thing about old, well established and maintained places like Cambridge is that anywhere you look you’re seeing something marvelous and often a testament to long history. The iconic Round Church building was built circa1130, around which later the university was built. It is one of only four surviving medieval round churches in England. 

People punting on the river Cam. A “punt” is a flat-bottomed wooden boat, propelled with a long pole against the riverbed.

See what one hour of wandering around the town inspired? Perhaps the thing that amused me the most was seeing the little boats known as “punts” gliding along the River Cam. The river has its own story.

Cambridge’s original Anglo-Saxon name was Grantebrycge, which literally meant “bridge over the river Granta”. After centuries of Norman influence there was a linguistic shift and it evolved to become Cambridge. When the town’s name changed to Cambridge, people assumed the river that cuts through the city was called the Cam. Interestingly, further upstream it is still called the Granta.

Celebration of authorship and friendship

We had the official Terroir of Golf book launch event on Sunday, May 7th at Troon Country Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was the perfect setting, with the view of Pinnacle Peak right out the window beyond the lush, green practice range.

The event was fun and festive with a special group of friends and fans of my writing. The celebration was shared by many who have been with me on my writing journey for a long time. While I was talking we had a rolling slide show of more than a dozen spectacular photographs from inside the book running on the large flat-screen TVs in the dining space we call The Roost. It was a privilege addressing this joyous crowd who mingled and created such a celebratory atmosphere.

I started by thanking many people who were important in getting the book published. First of all was Cori Brett, who upon hearing just the title — Terroir of Golf, A Golf Book for Wine Lovers — said, “There is great synergy between golf and wine. You are onto something Taba!” Mind you, I hadn’t written a single word yet. I also wanted to point out all the other authors in the room,— starting with Cori — there were at least half a dozen who have published books on a range of topics.

I wanted to acknowledge my partner, Kevin McGrath, with my profuse thanks since this book would never exist without him. We shared so much travel, golf and wine tasting experiences — I could not have done it without him.

Once I got down to the business of signing books, there was a steady stream of people wanting one, two, three and even four books inscribed, not merely autographed. And we all wanted a photo together to memorialize the moment.