Stonehenge and Salisbury
Thursday, May 9th, 2024
The last port of call on the cruise was Southhampton, England. We decided to take a tour to Stonehenge and Salisbury. This worked out perfectly because the tour ended in Central London, which was the next stop on our trip.
We had an amazing tour guide, James and a very talented bus driver, Annie. James had very informative commentary from the port, through the forest, into stonehenge. He explained almost everything we were looking at - from what was in the fields to the thatched rooves that we saw in some of the towns. Later we found out that he had just graduated from the British Guild of certified Blue Badge Tour Guides and this was his second tour! He certainly was a wealth of knowledge and did not disappoint! And then our driver Annie was able to thread the huge tour bus into the smallest of streets and parking spots! Amazing!
From the cruise ship terminal, it took about 2 hours to get to Stonehenge. We got off the tour bus and then walked over to another bus shuttle that takes visitors from the Exhibition Center to Stonehenge. For as crowded as it was, the two most popular days to visit are the Summer and Winter Solstice. Those are the days when the sun makes a path above the Heel Stone and shines into the temple through two of the large sarsen stones that make up one of the "doors." James said that on those days, watching the sun rise and set are amazing and very spiritual, but it is so crowded, that you can barely walk around the monument.
We had about 75 mins at Stonehenge, which was not enough time to see the Stone Circle, the Exhibitions and the Neolithic Village. In that time, we just barely finished checking out the Stone Circle and visited the shop. Since we were part of a tour, we were beholden to their schedule. If we ever visit again, I would rent a car and drive (or have Scot drive) so we can take our time - there is a lot to more to explore.
On the way to London, the tour stopped in the town of Salisbury, which is home to the Salisbury Cathedral. The original cathedral was built at Old Sarum, but the priest (?) did not like the location. The next Salisbury cathedral was built in the town, but some found it hard to locate it. After they finished the main part of the structure, about 100 years later they added a tall tower to the church which can be seen for miles away. The style and design of the tower is different than the church because of the time difference that they were built.
