We rise to a lovely Fall morning in an idyllic
location, our own private Manor House with attached Gardens. It isn’t really
like that, but it sure seems it. We prepare for the day and head downstairs for
a delicious, full-English breakfast.
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| Spread-Eagle Inn Courtyard |
We pack, check out and load the car. We then go for
one more short walk in the Stourhead Gardens. Now this is the way to start a
day!
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| Pantheon Across the Lake |
Returning to the Spread-Eagle Courtyard, we get into the car
and set MapMe to our next destination, Stonehenge. It’s only a half hour drive
away and we make it with no fuss from MapMe. Last night, Amy decided that it
would be a good idea to get a timed entry slot, just to be sure. It was a good
idea! The line to buy tickets on the day-of is fairly long and we queue up in
the much shorter Prepaid line. Time
spent is minimal and we are ready to visit the Stones. We decide to forego the
bus ride and instead take the 2km walk through the sheep fields.
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| Path to Stonehenge |
We pass some lazing cows just after our first glimpse
of the Stones:
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| First Glimpse of the Stones |
After we arrive at the main viewing of the Henge, we listen to the audio guide as we walk around the
Stones.
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| Stonehenge from the South |
It may sound like a bit of a bummer that one can no
longer walk to and touch the Stones, but it actually improves the ability to
see the stones. It is easier to have sight-lines without other tourists getting in the way. The photo-ops are better/easier.
This is an astounding site. I’m so happy that we are
here and able to see this place that must be one of the most well-known sites
in the world. It’s out in the middle of the Salisbury Plain (aka nowhere) and
yet over a million people come here every year. It is really well preserved;
the National Trust is doing a great job here.
We opt to take the bus back to the Museum/Admission
site. We walk through the stone age abode re-creations houses and visit the museum. We
also have lunch; Amy has the Hot Pot and I have a Cheese and Onion Pasty.
All done with Stonehenge, we get back to the car for
the 20-minute ride to Salisbury. We check in at the Cathedral Hotel and park
the car in a nearby CarPark. We then head to the Cathedral.
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| Salisbury Cathedral |
We enter the Cathedral and are awe-struck!
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| Interior of the Cathedral |
Stonehenge in the morning and this building in the
afternoon? Is this great or what? We take the guided tour of the Cathedral. The second
stop is a clock that was installed about 1386.
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| 730 Year Old Clock |
We continue on the tour, hearing about the building of
the Cathedral. The history is way in the past and is hard to get a good understanding
of. But the interior is spectacular. There is a Font, recently installed (2008), that
is very beautiful:
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| 2008 Font |
After finishing the worship space proper, we proceed to the Chapter House. This octagonal room hosts one of the four surviving copies of Magna Carta (and the best preserved). Sadly, no photos of the document are allowed. Several exhibits in this room display the relevance of Magna Carta to the present day. We thoroughly enjoy our visit to the Cathedral and heartily recommend the tour!
We head back towards the center of town, taking a path along the river. We find the Town Square and stop for a pint. Refreshed, we return to the Hotel. We rest a bit and at dinner time, head out to the Giggling Squid, a Thai food chain that we have seen before (in Bath).
We head back towards the center of town, taking a path along the river. We find the Town Square and stop for a pint. Refreshed, we return to the Hotel. We rest a bit and at dinner time, head out to the Giggling Squid, a Thai food chain that we have seen before (in Bath).
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