On the Road...

The next morning found us up bright and early. After a light breakfast we boarded our tour bus to set off around England. A quick run around London and we off to Stonehenge.
Stonehenge has been something I dreamed of seeing as long as I can remember. As we approached it it seemed smaller than I expected. I thought it was just because I was on the bus. But alas, it is only about 9 or 10 feet tall. However this doesn't detract from the experience of seeing it. First off it is so incredibly old. You can no longer go right up to touch it, thanks to those who left their initials scrawled on it or chipped pieces off for souvenirs. But it is an amazing structure. Standing there on the bare plain it is overwhelming to think of the somewhat primitive people who dragged the stones, figured out how to stand them and make lintels, and used them for whatever mysterious purpose they chose. We all know the ancient calendar, astronomical, and nature worshipping theories so I won't dwell on them. Just know it is something to see.
We then visited Salisbury Cathedral. It was magnificent! Pretty much started as a Norman Cathedral in 1075, it wasn't actually dedicated until 1258. It's been added to and repaired so many times. What a beautiful building. Then we were off to Bath. I am not a great fan of Georgian acrhitecture but they also had a beautiful cathedral. At Chester we stopped for shopping at one of the places I was most eager to see. "The Rows" are essentially a Tudor shopping mall. The layout of the Rows go back to the 13th century. There were shops or warehouses at street level, with a long gallery above, reached by steps from the street level. Living quarters are on the gallery level. In the Middle Ages this would have been a hall, open to the roof and heated by a central hearth. The private rooms, or solar, were above the gallery.
In the Tudor and Jacobean period the upper floors were built out over the gallery, supported on long poles down to the street level. Shops at ground level used the space between the posts to display their goods to passers-by.
We finally ended up in Bristol for the night where Josh found an amusement park of sorts and went bumper car racing with a fellow traveler. Exhausted already and still days to go. But what a fantastic experience so far...