Today I took a day trip with a tour group called Mad Max Tours, which was absolutely phenomenal. Not only was the weather the epitome of perfect all day long (it started raining the minute we arrived back in Bath, by the way), but the tour guide was knowledgeable, humorous, and great fun.
We started out the morning by going to Castle Combe, a quaint little village with one street and picture-perfect cottages along a swollen stream. We snuck a peak at the Manor House, now an extremely expensive hotel, from the grounds of which our guide has been banned after a run-in with Michelle Pfeiffer not long ago. It certainly added an extra charm to this unassuming, perfectly typical middle-aged Englishman.
Next we stopped in Avebury, which is a bigger, more accessible, and less expensive version of Stonehenge. Despite the mud, we were able to walk all around, and even touch, the stones of the nearly one-mile-circle of huge stones. Charles (the tour guide) added great commentary to the sight, including a rather tragically hilarious story of a barber-surgeon who was crushed by one of the stones in the Middle Ages when the locals, under directions from the area church, were burying the stones and thus their pagan references. The charm of the sight was richly apparent.
Over lunch we stopped in Lacock, another (although slightly larger) cute town, which has been the sight of scenes from Harry Potter and the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice, not to mention the pub with the longest, uninterrupted license in the whole of England. The food was just ok.
For the finale, we went to Stonehenge. While Avebury was neat in its accessibility, Stonehenge is, well, THE Neolithic sight of all time. Though we were hindered by a rope from getting very close, you do not need to touch the gigantic stones to feel their historical power and energy. Even the memory of them recalls a sense of importance. The pains it took to get the stones there, the ingenuity they demonstrate, and the knowledge of the surrounding world that they reveal are incredibly intense. I joked to friends at home that I had to travel for a month because I had to see Stonehenge, and once I got here I thought it would be a plan unfulfilled. Now, I am extremely happy to say that I got what I came for.
Tomorrow, back to London, so that I can fly back to Germany on Thursday morning. Don't worry, Dr. Schramm, Erfurt IS my ultimate destination and settling spot, and I will eventually take a class or two, amidst further travels and adventures.
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It's so funny that you got to see Stonehenge - we learned tons about it in archeology. I will have to see it someday. So it sounds like you are ready to head to Germany - hope all goes well there. Let me know ur address. I am not doing much for break, so I would have time to write you a letter :) Have fun!
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