Blogs from Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom, Europe
Stonehenge and Bath
Published: April 10th 2012Europe » United Kingdom » England » Wiltshire » Stonehenge
April 2nd 2012
Last Sunday I took a train to London and got up early Monday morning for a day tour to Stonehenge and Bath. Stonehenge needs no explanation, but Bath, in case anyone doesn't know, is a city in the southwest of England known for the Roman baths built on the site of a hot spring. Back in Roman times, its name was "Aqueous Sulis," which is Latin for "the waters of Sulis" referring to the Goddess deemed responsible for the springs. Later, the Brits took over and called it "Bath." I'd love to be around when someone from Bath meets someone from Wall and they have the "so where are you from?" exchange. Oh Britain. I found this day tour through Groupon, which many of you know offers mediocre deals on a variety of things and - ... read more
March 5th 2012
Six thousand years ago, Neolithic man started ripping big lumps of rock up and arranging them in a nice circular pattern. Nobody knows why they did this for sure, although I suspect that the reason was much the same as why we are trekking around the country looking at them: they wanted to see something impressive, and they wanted something to do. Perhaps the people of the late stone age left these for us to find as examples of the oldest waste of time known to man, the ‘team building’ weekend, or lifetime, as was probably the case with Stonehenge, which appeared to take around 1,500 years to complete before it was abandoned as a pointless and futile project, much like ‘The Public’ building in West Bromwich, if we are looking for a modern equivalent. It ... read more
Stonehenge, Salisbury, Old Sarum, and a play
Published: October 30th 2011Europe » United Kingdom » England » Wiltshire » Stonehenge
October 15th 2011
On Monday the 10th we went to a play called the Pitman Painters in the Duchess Theatre. We sat in what is called the stalls and that's the ground floor that is eye level with the stage. I've found that I like the seats that are on the first balcony because you don't have to look around other people's heads if you're short. I also like the feeling of being able to look down on the stage and seeing it from above. This play is by the same guy that did Billy Eliot so of course I was expecting great things. It was about a group of miners in the 1930's that wanted to take some art appreciation courses. They eventually become good artists themselves and have a couple gallery showings in which they become popular ... read more
Rain. Not always bad.
Published: September 19th 2011Europe » United Kingdom » England » Wiltshire » Stonehenge
September 17th 2011
I think everybody likes travelling in their own country less than any other country in the world, especially when your country rains as much as mine. When you want to visit somewhere in my home country you have to expect it may rain or in my case absolutely pour down. Nikki booked a coach trip for us to Stonehenge, Windsor Castle & Bath, from London that is quite a distance to cover in a day. When we arrived at Victoria station to get our coach, as expected, we were the only Brits on the coach, our guide was also British but from the second we met him the first thing I noticed is how much of a British stereo type he was. Tweed jacket, ‘granddad’ cap and the most British accent I have ever heard. I ... read more
Euro Trip Day 4, Fourth Blood (you'll get it near the end)
Published: June 21st 2011Europe » United Kingdom » England » Wiltshire » Stonehenge
June 21st 2011
Day 004, Tuesday June 21 10:45, on the train from Salisbury back to London, only as a stop over to another train to Brussels, Belgium. There was a man, our age, leaving the same hostel at the same time as us, says he's been travelling Europe for 6 weeks, with tussed up hair under a baseball cap, oakley sunglasses, headphones connected to an ipod he was clicking away at, he looked luke a cool young traveller, though he also walked slowly, with a slight limp, a full dark tan, and had litterally everything hanging off his very large back pack. Alyssa and I had the same thought, wondering if we will look as worn out as him at the end of our 8 weeks. I told her we already do, and pointed out that my towel, ... read more
Stonehenge- BIG STONES
Published: June 19th 2011Europe » United Kingdom » England » Wiltshire » Stonehenge
June 19th 2011
We had both dreamt of Stonehenge for as long as we could remember, its one of those places that is intriguing and awe inspiring. Most people that visit Stonehenge walk away from it and say ' it’s just a load of rocks', but thankfully we had some appreciation of the site with an early morning private tour. We left Water Mill very early one morning to drive our beat up old land drover to a place in the English county of Wiltshire, about 3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi) west of Amesbury and 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones. It is at the centre of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments ... read more
September 19th 2010
We managed to get up and get in the car by 5:40 a.m. Kim opted to drive because Rich was having a little difficulty getting his body to understand that it was morning. We had the trusty GPS, which marked our way to Stonehenge. Leaving Salisbury we headed north (I think) and raced the sun. The sky began to lighten, even though it was only 6:00 a.m. Our appointment was at 6:15 a.m. but it looked like dawn was going to break momentarily. Kim did a super job, exceeding the speed limit, I’m sure, but luckily there weren’t many cars on the road. We pulled up to the Stonehenge parking lot on our left. We could barely see the outline of the stones beyond the chain link fence which blocked ingress and egress … gotta go ... read more
October 20th 2009
Stonehenge - its exactly like the pictures. If you've seen it on the Internet, you've seen it in person. What was wonderful was the drive from London to Stonehenge. It takes you across lush green fields and all you can see is occasional cows and sheeps grazing. I was really excited about being at Stonehenge after all that stuff I'd read on the Internet. Stonehenge is a "henge monument" meaning that it consists of menhirs or the large rocks in a circular formation. Archaeologists believe the standing stones were erected around 2200 BC and the surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC. There are a series of standing stones, earth, and timber in a decorative form remodeled. Each stone is in different ... read more
Mini-trip: Stonehenge & Bath
Published: October 7th 2009Europe » United Kingdom » England » Wiltshire » Stonehenge
October 7th 2009
The girls and I spent October 4th, in Bath & Stonehenge area for some touristy fun! Bath: No rubber duckies here Stonehenge: Big Rox The city of Bath was reminiscent of Oxford, with its beautiful architecture. From a distance you can see the honey coloured stones that the buildings are made of. Quite beautiful. We were here mainly for the Roman Baths not to be confused with ensuite baths (harhar!). The history, again was fascinating. That's what I love most about England. It's older than any place in North America, and all the famous places I've only read in books or documentaries are HERE, a stones throw away! Amazing. Stonehenge: During my first trip to England, I really wanted to visit Stonehenge. Its mystery is so fascinating. -=- ... read more
