SALISBURY CATHEDRAL

STONEHENGE & AVEBURY

On a recommendation from the Rick Steves guidebook, I booked this trip with International Friends.

Cambria has turned me into a country girl because it felt great to get out of the city and take a day trip to Salisbury, Stonehenge and Avebury. It was grand, seeing all the greens from the comfort of a small Mercedes van!

We were a small group - about 10 of us, seven from the US and one young guy from Hong Kong, plus our driver Trevor and an amazing young guide named Oz.

Let me just say, if I lived anywhere near London, I would attend Salisbury Cathedral. Not only does it hold a copy of the Magna Carta, keep a candle lit at its Prisoners of Conscience Window for Amnesty International, but it incorporates new artists into this ancient space.

There are four originals of the 1215 Magna Carta; I have seen two - one at the British Library in the Treasures Room and the other, here at Salisbury Cathedral. In the Cathedral, it's enclosed in a booth, so as not to be exposed to sunlight and to give people the chance to reflect on it individually, as only 3 or 4 are allowed in at one time.

The Cathedral has made the Magna Carta an interactive exhibit, inviting visitors to express their own thoughts on what the Magna Carta means today.

"How relevant it is to the leadership in the U.S. today and the responsibility of the people to keep those in leadership held to account."

"Shadows of the Wanderer" and other works throughout the Cathedral by Ana Maria Pacheco

"To forget our differences and become one united world of peace."

An exquisite baptismal font by William Eye. Captured at different times of the day, the colors of the stained glass are reflected in the water. Check out flickr Salisbury Cathedral for some beautiful captures by other photographers.

Various artists' works can be found inside and around the cathedral, changing seasonally.

The charming town of Salisbury - delicious (giant) sausage rolls for 1 pound!

Our guide, Oz, looked a little like Justin Timberlake with a beard and more hair and he was a fount of knowledge! I mean, we covered the history of Britain from 3000 BC through the 1600's - from anarchies to monarchies - the etymology of place names - who invaded what and why.

We made a brief stop at Old Sarum - ruins here date from 500-1200 BC when the whole site was shifted to "New Sarum."

I don't know what the British obsession with airplanes is all about.The NOISE IS

EVERYWHERE!!

We wondered if this was an archeology dig or perhaps a group of wildflower enthusiasts.

Even with the noisy planes, nothing like the green of English countryside and, appropriately, a Yorkshire terrier.

From Old Sarum, we traveled about an hour to Stonehenge. There is a parking area where vans/busses drop off and then visitors walk up the hill to the monument.

The sky was spectacularly ominous so I tried to get views of Stonehenge from every angle.

I feel such a kinship with the ancient Brits, I almost expect the stones to speak to me. Of course, they don't - but then a bird flies right through the center of a passage just as I'm snapping - ah! They Speak! I am listening!

Caretaker of the stones.

I was fortunate to get quite a few pics of the stones without people in the background. By the time we left, it was quite crowded.

The white fur-capped person was some kind of shaman, who would erupt in loud cries every so often and then begin chanting.

The van stopped downhill at the Visitor Center briefly for souvenirs (Stonehenge Christmas ornaments, etc) before starting off to Avebury.

So, Oz says that the Vikings invaded the east coast of England; the Saxons invaded the south coast of England and my question was (drum roll, please) - who was populating the west of Britain, Wales? Oz's answer? Fanfare AND drum roll please: the indigenous peoples!! I KNEW IT - I KNEW IT - fist pump and huzzah - MY people were indigenous people - YES!! I AM AN INDIGENOUS PEOPLES PERSON!! When the Saxons invaded and found the indigenous peoples (aka Brythonic Celts), they had the temerity to call the peoples "wels" or "wals" which means foreigners (say guy who invaded who? and you're calling us foreigners - what the? ) hence the name Wales. What a great trip! Ancestry.com - here I come!

According to RS the Avebury circle is six centuries older than Stonehenge, and about sixteen times larger.

It was so large, I actually couldn't comprehend it as a circle. The stones were in one field, then across the road in another - so large, I couldn't "see" the pattern of a circle.

Must say, Spring was a beautiful time of year to visit - everything green and blooming and glimpses of blue sky. According to one sign, the rectangular stones are said to represent "male" entities and the diamond ones "females." But they are so worn by the elements, it was hard to tell rectangles from diamonds.