Thursday we did a tour of things outside London that were on our list. Since June and I have seen 'Foamhenge' in Virginia, we felt compelled to see the real deal. Stonehenge is about 100 miles from our hotel so we booked a tour to get us there.
Our tour (Premium Tours) was about a 250 mile bus ride that left at 0730 and returned around 2100 but got us out to Stonehenge, Windsor Castle and Bath with lunch in the small town of Lacock.
Our route took us close enough to see Bristol and the country of Wales...we almost added a 9th country to the list.
To make the tour, we were up at 0515, catch a taxi at 0600 to Victoria Station and on the tour by 0745. The hotel gave us a bag breakfast but no coffee, but we got to Victoria Station with enough time to have coffee.
Our bus was a double decker and we sat up top, it was a nice view.
Our guide was Eugene and our Mistro (Driver) was Ricardo.
Our first stop was Windsor Castle. Our guide, Eug, said we left early so that we could get to the castle before the crowds; we were actually there before they opened and were the 3rd group in line. We had just a bit over an hour to spend at the castle, as our guide said, that this type of tour is like Tapas dining, taking small samples of what there is to offer.
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| The castle is huge and beautiful, pictures just don't do it justice. |
We were some of the first visitors, Eugene said it gets really busy later in the day.
Unfortunately, the Union flag was flying which indicates the King is not present, we would have liked to chat with him.
We toured the State Rooms and the Doll House Rooms, no pictures are allowed inside, so you will have to take our word for it, the State Rooms are beyond opulent.
The changing of the guards is at 1045 our bus departs at 1100, so we had to be out before they block the gates for the changing.
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| We lined up out side the castle to watch the procession, it is quite a show. |
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| The security is serious, several of these guys surround the procession and within their ranks are more. |
Ed recorded the parade. Windsor Changing of the Guards
We enjoyed our short visit to Windsor, next time we will call ahead so the King knows to be there when we arrive.
Our next stop was Stonehenge, I kind of expected it to be out in the middle of no where but it is right there just off the highway.
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| I took this picture from the bus. |
We were instructed to get off our bus and get on the Stonehenge shuttle without delay, don't pee, or anything else or we will hate our selves for the rest of our lives, Eug can be dramatic. There were only few people at the site and it gets very busy later. The weather was perfect, 60's, sunny with a stiff wind.
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| We had a great viewing of Stonehenge and walked completely around it. |
This is one of stones in the outer ring that aligns with summer solstice. The Stonehenge is not a clock but is a calendar that marks the changing of the seasons.
The Stonehenge's origin is still a mystery. Most of the stones came from 25 miles away but some came from 400 miles, and it is about 5000 years old.
We found the Stonehenge to be fascinating and were glad we made the effort while we were in England to experience it. Ed had some "tingling" in his neck that seemed to increase as he walked around; his ancestors knew he was there. :)
Our next stop was lunch in Lacock and it was approaching 1500 so we were all hungry. Lacock is a small town of about 8000 residents but the town is owned by the country of England. It was given to the country by the last owner in 1944 with the stipulation it will never be modernized and now attracts visitors due to its unspoiled appearance.
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We walked the town and had lunch at The George Inn, established in 1361, the oldest pub in Lacock. They served our group of 50ish people with amazing efficiency.
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| For anyone that cares, fuel in England is about $6.75 per gallon. The prices on this sign are in pounds per liter, I did the conversion. |
After Lacock we continued onto Bath, known for its Roman Baths and now shopping. They even have a street named Cheap Street where the most expensive items are sold.
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| The city is beautiful with nice parks and bridges. The cherry trees were in bloom. |
We walked the town for about an hour, it started to sprinkle but never really rained.
We could have toured the Roman baths and/or the Abby but it felt better to just roam the streets.
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| On our walk we found a maze and we all started on different paths to find our way to the center. |
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| June won and was quite obnoxious about it. |
After Bath we headed back to London, arriving around 2030 at Gloucester Station and then tubing back to the hotel about 2200.
It was another full day, Friday we have no real plans and will take our time getting going in the morning
It was a long day but a good one. We didn't get to see the King but his “home” is very grand. Even tho we didn’t get to time travel, Stonehenge is still impressive. A great site seeing day weather wise too.
ReplyDeleteThe Changing of the Guard was so exciting! We weren't inside, but marching in the street, the Security, just amazing!
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