– Spinal Tap
The kids and I finished up work Wednesday morning and jumped onto a bus to the surprisingly close by attraction of Waterworld. I know, it sounds cold – and for Kevin Costner aficionados, horrifying -- until you realize that this indoor, heated water park is the perfect place for winter fun! The mercury has plummeted over here, to the tune of the snowiest November in two decades, and last year was their snowiest winter in half a century, so the drama is building steadily. We needed a warm-up and you can see for yourself how perfectly Waterworld fit the bill.
Friday we rose and grabbed an early bus to the train station for a three hour plus ride to the middle of the fat bottom of England and the ancient town of Salisbury. We walked past the tallest cathedral in the country (maybe Europe?) and went into the county museum. They had some great primers on Stonehenge to help us get ready for the morning, plus a keen section on rock music in Salisbury. Check the photos for more on this. After dinner, we took a cab through the snow to our hotel far out of town, but more in the neighborhood of Stonehenge, a Holiday Inn at a place called Solstice Park near Amesbury.
Our room and breakfast were nice, and we were out the door and into the blustery cold by 11. We had a couple of maps and a couple of potential destinations. We also had about a quarter inch of snow on the ground. We started the pilgrimage to the west, but after reaching Amesbury had to go underground to avoid a giant traffic roundabout, and when we emerged and walked a mile or so, I wasn’t seeing any of the landmarks on my map. Then I saw the sign for Woodhenge. We had toyed with the idea of going by Woodhenge to whet our appetite, but in the weather, I wasn’t so much going there on purpose. Anyway, we were there and we checked it out, and then took to the paths that crossed directly across the plain and away from the car traffic… but very much through the snow.
It was cold, and we were alone on the paths with nothing but sheep for company. The paths were easy enough to follow, and it was easy to feel the millions of pilgrims that had been making this same journey for the last several thousand years all around us. We finally got a view of the monument across the plain, but our feet were wet and our toes were getting more numb by the minute. The last push across an open field took us to The Avenue and we made our way to the stones. (Okay, first we made our way to the WC and the hand dryers were we defrosted our socks, shoes and toes, and then we got hot chocolate.)
I didn’t know what to expect tourist-trap wise, but I’m pretty impressed with how they handle the historic majesty of Stonehenge. The stuff is underground and out of sight if you are looking across at it, and most of the drama is intact. There is no doubt that it is thoroughly impressive, but I have to admit that it was colder than we wanted it to be. The wind was howling on the hilltop, and we gave them rocks a good look and then headed for the warmth of the wind-free subterranean gift shop.
We were soon back in a taxi to Salisbury, and later on a 5:45 train north to home, secure in the knowledge that we had completed a trying pilgrimage to one of the greatest wonders of creation. All in all though, the kids would probably tell you that they would have rather gone back to Waterworld.
We’re off to Italy Wednesday morning. We fly into Milan, spend the night and then take the train to Venice. We have two nights back in Milan after that and fly home Monday. You probably won’t hear from us until next Tuesday, so have a good start of your December. We’ll be home soon…
Papa Glenn out.
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