Stonehenge, et al.

I've had my first outing on a double-decker bus. To accommodate the 55 students on the program, we all piled into the monstrosity and embarked first to Stonehenge (this is several weekends ago, by the way). Supposedly many people come away disappointed from their view of the looming boulders, but I was actually impressed (perhaps because I didn't have high expectations). It's true that the site is situated just off the road and there's an obnoxious tourist check point and it's incredibly too crowded.

Nonetheless, I admired Stonehenge not for its grandeur but for its mystery. The monument was built over a period of 1000 years. The smaller blue stones on the inside were brought 240 miles away from South Wales, and the stones for the horseshoe formations were dragged from Marlborough, 20 miles away. I find the immense effort to transport the rocks across water and land, a feat that required extensive organization and manpower, absolutely remarkable. Only about half of the original structure still stands, though. And for those of you buy into the whole alien idea, no definitive theory exists, but it's more likely the site was a place of ritual for the dead (according to the esteemed Mr. Butterworth, ASE traveler and guide extraordinaire). I took the most pictures here but am incompetent and haven't figured out how to load them onto the blog. I'll figure that out.

After Stonehenge, we went to Salisbury for lunch. The main attraction this town claims is the Salisbury Cathedral, the only medieval cathedral in England. My camera died at this point so don't have too many expectations. They were of course doing renovations so the tall scaffolding was a temporary eyesore for our visit. The building is incredible; the tall spire stretches 404 ft. high. Though it is very common, I was surprised to see tombs marked inside; the entire floor was an extensive puzzle of the deceased aristocracy and clergy. There was also one of the four original copies of the Magna Carta in a little museumish room adjacent to the cloisters. Awesome.

Our last stop that weekend was Lacock. The town had four main streets: West St., East St., High St., and Church St. Any electric or T.V. cables are run underground to preserve Lacock's village ambiance. It was quite beautiful and was a snapshot of old England; many of the buildings, such as the Abbey, date back to the 13th century. Because the village maintains this look, it is a popular site for movies...including Harry Potter! There were photos all over the George Inn (where we had dinner) of actors and directors (not just from good old Harry Potter) working on the movie of the time.

This wrapped up our first weekend here and was brief introduction to the varied English landscape. I've made also made it to Bristol, which is a 10 minute train ride from Bath. Mostly I had to go to the Mac store because my computer charger was crap, but I spent the afternoon walking around. Bristol trumps Bath in size but certainly not in beauty. My friend Jaqueline decided it was comprable to Cleveland. I've never been to Cleveland so I don't mean to imply it's an ugly city, but Bristol is certainly no New York. The best part that I saw was Castle Park, which was an ideal place for walks or picnics. There was also a sweet (and aptly) castle-themes playground. I think I scared the British children.

I've also had a day trip to London this past weekend. I was meeting up with some friends who were abroad--fellow Rochesterian Ben Wrobel and my buddy Chelsea Smith from St. Louis. There was no real plan for the day, as I decided to go kind of last minute. We visited the Tate, stopped in at a wine tasting, walked along the Thames (so many crazy street performers, including a Charlie Chaplin who had the crowds laughing nonstop), got lost in King's College, saw Piccadilly Circus. I normally get very overwhelmed in big cities, but this proved to just be a fun adventure. My roommate Mary Ann met me after her study trip, and we didn't let it bother us when our housing arrangements fell through after a delicious Indian dinner and then couldn't find a hostel on short notice (it was a Friday night). Instead of trying to solve the problem immediately, Mary Ann and I opted to go to a pub instead. It wasn't until midnight (when all the pubs closed) that I got through to Ben, and his friend was kind of enough to let us crash at her flat. I'm convinced people do just want to help out those in dire situations.

I'm off to Stratford-upon-Avon today for a study trip--I'm taking a Shakespeare course so it's appropriate. I'll be checking out the archives and then seeing The Tempest. I'm not sure how I feel about Shakespeare's romances, but I'm still pretty pumped about the excursion.