STONEHENGE. An Awesome experience

 Hello

This blog is about a tour I have done twice in my life.

Once when I went for a Sports Viewers vacation in 2015 with my friend (this is a matter for a separate blog: Sport Viewers vacation!) and once when I went with my wife in 2019 for a combined tourism, friends visit and ...you guessed it right.. for a Sports Viewers vacation!

Lets go to well before those times though

I read about the Stonehenge in school and wondered how difficult it must have been for ancient Romans in 2000 BC to transport stones that big at that age. I later learnt the stones didn't even come from the surrounding areas, they came from very long distances, something that could have been possible only by cargo ships...we are talking about 2000 BC here ... 2000 BC!

Later on as my interest in astronomy grew (yes, this is probably still my third area of interest after medicine and rock/Pop music , fourth are books), I read about the unique phenomenon that occurs here on the Summer and the winter solstices. Summer solstice is the longest day of the summer and winter solstice is the smallest day in winter. On these days, the Sun rises perfectly over the Heal Stone between two of the Stones arranged in a circle, year after year after year. I was astonished as to how astronomers and architects of the yesteryear could actually manage to do something that is Scientifically astounding even now. I decided to visit it some day in my life.

How did I book?

In each instance I booked using my favourite website Viator (no I have no conflict of interest or financial gain here!). It is a day trip that costs around INR 8000 per head from London and back.

How did the trip start?

I went in the winter both times, so the trip started at 8am. In summers I guess it starts just a little earlier. The bus started from the Victoria Bus Station. It is advisable to pick up some refreshments and use the washroom when you are there. Needless to say, English winters are not kind. It was dark and cold when we started. 

What does the trip include besides the Stonehenge?

I did two slightly different trips in the 2 times I went. in 2015, we went first to the Windsor Castle, then to the Stonehenge and then finished by going to the Roman City of Bath. In 2019, my wife and I went to the trip that included Windsor castle, Stonehenge and Oxford. For better emphasis on Stonehenge, I will describe the other 3 places mentioned quickly here.

Windsor castle is an alternate home for the British Royal Family and it is huge. The heritage, the architecture and the gardens were maintained beautifully. Contrary to the Buckingham palace where you can go only upto the gate, here you can roam around in many parts of the real estate. The change of guard, which is supposed a be a famous spectacle at the Buckingham place is much better viewed here at close quarters. It was an awesome experience here.(In London it was overhyped and very very crowded). The real museum and rooms are also well worth visiting.

Bath was a city that also struck me with awe. I have said many a time before that I enjoy the seeing the relics of the lifestyle of normal people who lived in the past. The Roman baths at the city of Bath was excellent. Unfortunately my camera lens had fogged up and I don't have good photos of the same, but needless to say, this place will remain etched in memory forever.

Oxford in 2019 was a different expereicnce. We reached age at 5 pm, and it was dark already. We took a quick walking tour and saw some universities (yes, contrary to what people think, Oxford itself is not an university! It contains numerous universities). We stopped at the statue of Bloody Mary as well (now, now, Bloody Mary was a person, not just the name of a drink!) We were lucky to be there at a day of the famous street market as well and enjoyed our time enjoying the street food.

Back to the place in contention..

Stonehenge

Both trips, we reached Stonehenge at 2 pm. Even in November/December you expect this place to be warm as it is in the open right? Maybe you require your sunglasses as well I suppose?

Absolutely not. If you ever wanted to experience the 'coldest you could feel when the sun is shining', you have come the correct place. It is damn cold, and be well covered, ears included. If you have long hair, better tie it up tightly as it will be a mess soon. Kilometers of no civilisation around makes this UNESCO protected site a very windy and cold place. (even in Summer)

The tickets can be purchased at the entry site to the site. The bus that drops you can go only upto this point. The office, washrooms, souvenir shop and cafe can be found here, and not later. So if u want to refresh, this is the place. After which you may be given some plastic raincoats as .. well, you know.. you are in England (no more explanation).

There will be common buses departing fro the office to the main site of the Stonehenge, which I guess must be 2 km from there. at the office you will be provided audio devices, which can be very helpful to understand the significance of each place that you visit. To be very frank, not many people actually listen to the audio, as the visuals in front of you make you feel so good, that you don't want to be disturbed otherwise. For Instagram users it is paradise. They will seen posing every 30 seconds to capture different scenes.

The Stones themselves are arranged in two main rings. Each ring contains vertical stones approximately 4x2 metres and there are stone on top that bridge the gap, which themselves weight tons in weight. God knows how the ancient man managed to get them up there. People say it was an ancient burial site, but it looked more like a calendar to me, which would have served the ancient man as a unit of time. 

(Practical tip: get someone else to take your photos. Selfies don't come out well here)

The area around the Stone henge are quite picturesque as well. If you have time, walk around in the farms,  with no sound of machines and automobiles heard whatsoever.

Almost surely, you will be drinking warm coffee or hot chocolate at the conveniently positioned cafe after u get back to the office

When did we get back to base?

Both times, we got back at 7pm at the Gloucester tube station. The first time, I was staying right there. The second time, it was a convenient tube station to get to the place where were put up. 

A day well spent, no doubt.