Stonehenge
“Before stonehenge there was woodhenge and strawhenge, but a big bad wolf came and blew them down”
Eddie Izzard, Dress to Kill
On Saturday, I was up early to go to Bath and Stonehenge. It was a whirlwind bus tour that departed from one of the terminals at the Victoria Coach station, going to Stonehenge and Bath, and returning back to London in the evening. The weather was favorable all day, with clear skies above!
We arrived at Stonehenge mid-morning and had about an hour to see the site, the visitors center, gift shop, and bathrooms. It was up to each of us to decide how to use our time. I spent almost all of this time at the site, listening to the App store free audio guide from English Heritage, the group that maintains many of England’s historical sites.
In this distance, away from the stones themselves, there are burial mounds on the horizon related to Stonehenge.
Unbelievably, they are still finding out new things about Stonehenge. More advanced testing is letting scientists compare the rocks with geological data to determine what area each rock came from, based on its age, mineral composition, etc, upending previously held beliefs.
We had to stand in line to take the Stonehenge shuttle bus back to the visitor’s center from the site, and make it back to the bus at the appointed time. This stressed me out!
Rick Steves’ tours definitely have the upper hand over this kind of tour, because they use a buddy system and you get to know your tour mates. If I had not made it back in time, my buddy would be telling the tour guide.
Fortunately, I did arrive back at the visitors center with enough time to look around for a hot minute and use the restroom. There was not enough time at this site to hear the audio guide at the site and see the visitor’s center thoroughly.
Bath and the Roman Baths
“Lovernisca complains to the Goddess that her cape has been stolen.”
Curse tablet from Roman Baths
Next, we went to Bath. We did not get to go into Bath Abbey, but that was okay. By the end of my vacation, I had seen a satisfactory number of churches, so only getting to see the outside of this one was not too disappointing.
We were given a short time when we arrived at Bath to find something to eat, but considering how crowded it was, it didn’t seem like enough time to wait in line for food and eat comfortably, so I got an ice cream cone and spent time people watching in the main square.
We had time to view the Roman Baths. Again, it was very crowded, and that made getting through the areas in a timely manner challenging.
I enjoyed viewing the ancient coins and stones that had been left behind in the Roman Bath, and the miniature depiction of what the Roman Baths would have looked like when they were in use.
The best thing was the curse tablets which were ancient prayers to a goddess to seek justice against someone, etched into metal.
At the end of the tour of the Roman Baths, we had the opportunity to try the spring water, and it was… not bad, but it is warm, since it’s from a hot spring. Please note that this is different from the water that is in the great bath.
Tip: Do not try to drink from the baths or swim in them as the water is dangerous and untreated.
At 3:30, the tour guide led a walking tour around Bath to the Royal Crescent, and some other sites, and then back to the city square. We were told to meet up for the bus at 5 pm.
The air conditioning on the bus stopped working on the return trip, so we pulled over for a half hour for the driver and guide to try to fix it, before they eventually gave up.
Back in London, I went to dinner at MangiaTutto and had the Caesar salad and some garlic bread. The garlic bread was very good.
Total steps: 13930
Staycation No More 