Stonehenge Really Needs to Take A Bath

The second leg of our trip took us to Stonehenge and Bath. It was so exciting as we left London because it felt like we were finally going to England. London was fun because it was so diverse and chaotic, but as we left London I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief--I had gone to England to see the countryside and hear British accents and I was really looking forward to experiencing a less chaotic lifestyle. Ironically, pretty much everywhere we went in England was thriving and chaotic . . . it wasn't just in London! That kind of surprised me, I thought it would be much more tranquil the further we got away from the city, but there are so many people in England. I just had no idea. Shows you that all of my "research" netted me nothing.

We drove a lot on our trip, over 1,500 miles! Whoa. But I loved driving through the countryside and seeing the lush green trees and the fields that seem to be perfectly separated by old stone walls or quaint little bushes. The fields all seemed so tidy over there. I'm not sure if I am just missing something but the grass always looked like it had just been trimmed. I don't think I took a picture of that which is such a shame.

This is the view from our car (so I'm sorry if it looks a little hazy). Being from the desert of Washington as well as the desert of Salt Lake City . . . well, all of this green was just magical.

A look at our rental car . . . jam packed with luggage.

Carrie, our fearless driver. Luckily since Carrie served her mission in England she had also driven there as well. She did a great job and I was never worried with her driving.

I served as navigator. Thankfully we had GPS which we affectionately nicknamed Toma (yes, I'm supertitious. I never wanted to anger the GPS gods). Driving in England is definitely a new experience. If I ever had to do it I would need an automatic. I know that I don't really know how to drive a manual, but even if I did I think it's too many things to think about all at once. Shifting and driving on the left side of the road? Whoa . . . intense. I would have gone into overload.

The locals always made me laugh when they asked us what we thought about driving on the left side of the road, or as they said, the "correct" side of the road.

Driving (or should I say being a passenger) on the "correct" side of the road wasn't as difficult a transition for me as I would have thought. I had a lot of faith in Carrie, but basically you're still just driving on a road. I will say that your mind has to be fully engaged that the lefthand side is where you should be, I had many experiences where out of habit I just expected Carrie to drive onto the righthand side of the road. It made me wonder if I would ever have made that mistake if I were driving, which probably means I absolutely would have.

A funny thing happened as we drove to our first destination, Stonehenge. We got caught in traffic for about an hour. It was no big deal to us, Carrie was still acclimating to driving on the "correct" side of the road and it was so fun to just watch the scenery as we drove past. While we were caught in stop-and-go traffic a car of guys about our age slowly drove past us and then abruptly slowed down for us. And then the rear window rolled down. "Hey!" This guy yells (yeah, he was kinda cute), "Nice car." Hilarious. They rolled down their window to tell us they liked our car? Smooth. We chatted a little bit. Like I said, 5 American girls in England generated some attention. The same guy who complimented our car asked where we were going. I replied Stonehenge and he exclaimed, "Why the f*** would you want to go there?" We erupted into laughter at this.

This is funny to me for two reasons: 1) The obvious reason that he swore; 2) Someone else said the same thing as we were picking up our rental car. Okay, he didn't swear, but he seemed just as shocked as the other guy that we were going to Stonehenge. It made me think that either Stonehenge was a bust or that we were engaging in what old, retired people do. And yep, you guessed it, our entire trip was filled with events that apparently only the old, retired people do, which makes you wonder a little bit is all I have to say. Anyway, I had asked both people if Stonehenge was disappointing and they both admitted that they'd never been there before; the younger guy who stopped us from his car seemed more concerned about the nightlife than anything else. My initial reaction was shock, "You've never been to Stonehenge?!" And then I think about the fact that I live in Utah and have only been to Moab, Zions, and the Uintahs once. I wouldn't really consider myself an expert on stuff to do and see in Utah.

I should probably say that almost all of my pictures seem to be a little dark. It was really overcast that day and my pictures just seem to be shrouded in shadow. I'm a little disappointed, especially with my Bath pictures. I thought they would turn out better than they did. Anyway, you've been warned.

We arrived at Stonehenge first. One of the ways that England keeps their economy going is that they charge for EVERYTHING. This shouldn't surprise me, but apparently I'm cheap and never expect to be charged. Especially with Stonehenge because aren't they just rocks? Call me cynical and a miser.

The fun thing is that when you get to Stonehenge (and pay) they give you a handheld walkie talkie which you listen to as you walk around Stonehenge. The walkie talkie talks about everything from how they think it was built to the legends surrounding the mysterious Stonehenge.

Like I said, my initial thought about Stonehenge is that it's just a bunch of rocks. But once you see the view from the road I was beyond excited. The idea that I got to stand in a place that has caused so much mystery and unfulfilled theories kind of leaves you quiet with wonder.

Archaeologists believe that Stonehenge was erected sometime around 2500 BC, although there are many varying ideas as to when it was actually erected. There are many theories as to the purpose of Stonehenge--a burial ground, healing rocks, or that Merlin the wizard directed its removal from Ireland. There is actual evidence of cremated remains found on the site which makes it seem most likely that it did serve as a burial ground; whether it had any other purpose is unknown.

Listening to my walkie talkie . . . have to be a nerd and take a picture of myself as well.

There is actually no evidence how Stonehenge was constructed which is why a lot of people believe that supernatural powers were behind it.

I think my favorite nugget of information is that Merlin removed Stonehenge from Ireland and placed it in England. It was supposedly erected on Mount Killaraus by Giants who brought the stones from Africa. The stones apparently were healing rocks, called the Giant's dance, which giants brought to Ireland for their healing properties. According to lore, Merlin's father was sent by the King of England to go to Ireland and retrieve the rocks. They slew 7,000 Irish but the knights could not move the rocks with rope or force. Then Merlin, using "gear" and skill, easily dismantled the stones and sent them over to Britain.

Off the beaten path, one of those times when we just got lost. I think this is a barn, but I'm not really sure. Either way, I liked it enough to take a picture.

Another view from the car.

One of my favorite parts of the trip, Bath. These pictures will never capture the beauty of Bath. My only associations with Bath were mostly from Jane Austen novels and so I was really looking forward to seeing the city. But in my thoughtless expectations I just expected a small city. Instead, it was massive.

Bath is honestly one of the most romantic places I have ever been. The stone is honey-colored and smooth. You just want to fall in love there. Beautiful. And as hard as I'm trying to tell you how I felt or what I thought when I got to Bath, really none of it does any justice. If you go to England, you MUST visit Bath and spend at least a day there. The city is just gorgeous.

As I said before, my associations with Bath stem primarily from Jane Austen novels. Bath was the place where the fashionable and elite met during the summer months, and Austen writes about it in almost every novel. Both Northanger Abbey and Persuasion are largely set in the city of Bath and almost all of her novels mention it as the place everyone will be for the summer.

What surprised me is that Jane Austen did not like Bath. I thought Bath was so charming that I couldn't imagine anybody else disagreeing. Although she only lived there for a short time she felt the large, ornate buildings were more indicative of snobbery and excessive money as it was the generally wealthy who resided there. Even at that it was considered a place to get away--a vacation place of sorts. As Austen's father was a clergyman, they were probably part of the inner circle but only to a certain degree. They came from a respectable family but they were not considered amongst the elite. It sounds like an oxymoron of sorts--you come from a respectable family so you're allowed to interact with the wealthy but you're expected to marry in your own standing and not above. If any of you like Austen you'll notice this is a consistent theme in her novels of women's dependence on a good marriage. Anyway . . . I love Jane Austen just too much apparently.

I do really like this picture.

And this one.

Sadly, we missed seeing the Roman Baths and a few other Jane Austen things , but I'm not sorry that we went even if it was only for a couple of hours. I had a great time in Bath and thought it was so lovely. I'm trying to picture a place in the States that I have thought had as much charm and grace and I can't think of any.