Stonehenge & Avebury

Let me start off by saying that the day was absolutely amazing - despite the difficulties I encountered. I woke up early so that I could catch the first bus to Avebury. It's about 1:40 bus ride through the southern English countryside, which is gorgeous! Nearly all of the houses have thatched roofs! I even saw a crew putting a new thatched roof on an old cottage! Strange, but very cool! As the bus rounded a bend in the narrow roadway, I caught my first glimpse of the stones! It was incredible! Out of the blue, theses massive stones greet you and welcome you to the tiny village. I got off the bus in front of the local inn and made my way to the TI, which was located in a 12th century chapel. I got a map of the village and the stone cirlce and began to walk. I wove my way through and around the stones and the village for several hours. It was indescribable, really. Many of the stones towered over me. And to think that they are older than Stonehenge is mind boggling! 6000 years of history.... you can almost feel it resounding off of the stones. I imagined all of the people over the past 6 millennia who have walked among the stones. It was incredible.

I headed back towards the inn and the bus stop around noon. I needed to be back in Amesbury no later than 3pm to catch the last bus to Stonehenge. So, I sat on the side of the road and started to enjoy my picnic lunch. Shortly there after, A bus came from the other direction, and 2 older men stumbled off. The stench of urine and cheap beer was impressive. Drunk and stammering, the banter was hilarious! The older gentlemen's trousers kept falling down... and since he had neglected - or chosen- not to wear undies.... well, I had a wonderful view of his lilly white arse. A few minutes into this scene, and disrupting my thoughts of Monty Python, they stumbled over to me. The younger one asked if I knew where the toilet was. I pointed him in the right direction, and after several attempts, he finally got it. Then he asked where I was from. Curious as to where the conversation might lead, I told him. Apparently, his sister lives in Arlington, VA and he was there just last year! Hmmmm... what are the odds!?! It was hilarious! So, yes they were drunk and reeked of their own piss and sick, but they were amusing and quite a few people were grinning! It definitely a great story, and I must incorporate it into my character studies and my writing!

So, the bus came about 15 minutes later, and I headed out to Stonehhenge. I got to Amesbury about 2:30pm. I walked around a bit, but there was not much to the town, so I headed back to the bus station. The last bus for Stonehenge was due to arrive at 3:18pm. When it pulled up, I waved to the driver to let him know I was coming and started to walk to the bus. Well, the driver did not even stop! He just pulled right out and left me! Oh... I was NOT a happy camper!! So, after talking to the other driver in the office, I hit the pavement. Yes, I walked to Stonehenge. I was not about to let a pissy driver keep me from enjoying it! So, I walked...and walked....and walked. Until I reached the very busy motorway. Of course, I had to cross it. I felt like I was in frogger. But I survived, and I could see Stonehenge up the hill in the distance. I finally arrived at about 4:45 or so. Since my ticket included regular admission as well, I went ahead and walked around like the other tourists. There were hundreds of people there and as expected, it was very sterile. Although, the stones are still impressive if you let them be. I sat on the picnic tables and chatted with a woman for a bit while waiting for it to close. I was getting incredibly excited!! A small group of us gathered and right at 6:30pm, they took us across and the roped off area was opened. I stepped through slowly, and made my way to the stones. As I crossed into the circle, I nearly started to cry. I don't know why, exactly, so don't ask. I'll let you know once I figure it out. I ran my hands along the stones and carefully made my way around the circle. The 2 different stones actually feel different! The blue stones have a warmth to them.... it's indescribable. After about 20 minutes, most of the people had taken their pictures and left. How ridiculous.... but I stayed until security said time was up (they actually gave me & the other girl about 15 extra minutes). I walked into the circle and simply experienced being there completely alone. The other girl was a photographer, so she was way out in the field trying to get good shots. So, there I stood with the sun setting and darkness approaching.... there are no words.

After all that had happened, both good and bad, I decided to take a cab back to Amesbury to catch the bus to Salisbury. I really did not fancy the idea of walking back in the dark, esp tireed and pensive. After a pricy cab ride and a rattling bus, I made it back to the hostel around 10 pm and passed out.