The Nyberg Family Circus: Updates from London

Hi everyone. Blogger has been having some problems for the last few days, so I have a TON of photos to share and things to write. Here it goes:

May 13, 2011

Yesterday was awesome. I got to ride on the Evans and Evans bus tour
to Stonehenge, Salisbury, and Bath. It was well worth the money and
my guide, Kevin, was terrific. He was a very funny, energetic chap
with eyes that reminded me of Josh. He was also fluent in Japanese
and would alternate his explanations in Japanese for the benefit of a
few people in the front of the bus.

Backtrack to before I got on the tour bus: I rode the London
underground into Victoria station, and exited onto the very busy
platform. Within seconds, I realized with a sinking feeling that I
had just left my favorite fold – out sitting cane on the tram that was
now pulling away and gone forever. I spoke to an attendant about it,
though figuring it was probably a lost cause, but he told me there
might be a way to get it back by checking with an attendant at the
Baker Street's station, which I intend to do today.

But anyway, on to the tour. First of all, Stonehenge is older than
dirt. When the first wave of Romans invaded in 43 A.D., it was
already an ancient monument over 2000 years old. That fact alone
impressed upon my mind more than any other. But I was also quite
impressed with the immense size of the stones and the skill with which
they had been latched together. Truly, there's so little we know
about the ancient ones. Every time we think we've got them figured
out, they baffle us. At least as interesting to me were the burial
mounds scattered all over the plain around Stonehenge. I was
immediately reminded of the ancient mound builders who inhabited the
American continent and wondered if there might not be a connection.
I'll have to check on the dates.

Being at the monument finally drove home to me the fact that it was a
precise marker of the winter and summer solstice. I thought the audio
guide did a great job of painting a picture in my mind of the
procession that would've taken place across the plain, past the heel
stone, and by the bloody altar.

I also really loved the quality of pictures that Shelly's camera took.
I'm in love with it because it makes me look like a professional
every time I take a picture of something, and Stonehenge was no
exception.

We boarded the bus, and continued onward another 15 minutes to
Salisbury. On the way, I took in the beautiful, green English
countryside, with its rolling hills and idyllic farms and forests.
These bore a striking resemblance to the beauty I have become
accustomed to in East Tennessee. Perhaps the English and Irish
settled there because it reminded them of home.

Salisbury Cathedral was an impressive and imposing structure. Massive
in size and height, it dominated the landscape. Inside, I was amazed
by its high arched ceilings and the beautiful blue stained glass.
Unlike Westminster Abbey, I got to take pictures inside. Though it
wasn't as ornate as Westminster in my opinion, it still had many tombs
of interest with beautiful carved effigies. One notable one was of
Catherine Grey, sister to Lady Jane Grey the Protestant martyr-Queen
of nine days. After some wandering, I found my way to the chapter
house where the best preserved copy of the Magna Carta was kept, one
of only four remaining originals. What struck me about it was that it
mostly addressed the practical concerns of life, such as use of lands
and rivers, and a hodgepodge of different topics and grievances. But
in several choice lines and in the spirit of the charter generally, I
could see the foundation being laid for a constitutional system
consisting of equal rights before the law. They sure wrote small
though, and in Latin at that! I had to brush up on my Latin a bit
yesterday due to the many ancient monuments we visited.

With lunch in hand, we proceeded on to Bath. The town was bustling
and looked like an enormously fun and interesting place to spend a
day. Even the Roman baths alone could have consumed a whole
afternoon. I loved getting to see this amazing archaeological site
for myself, and reading the Latin inscriptions. History is simply
amazing. How did people do these things? I thought the tour did a
good job of explaining the layout of the ancient bathhouses, including
the Temple of Sulis Minerva. So much about the Temple on this trip,
but I haven't even reached the real thing yet! But it makes me very
grateful for the real thing, as I see time after time that the ancient
peoples have tried to emulate it and imitate it. Its ordinances are
holy and of benefit to all humanity.

There was so much to take in at the Roman baths that I had to skip
most of the audio commentaries and just keep walking through, reading
the signs as I went. It was interesting to see how worn down the
stone steps had become at the entrance to the bathhouse, as well as
the steps leading up to the Temple. Gave me the chills to feel that
close to history.

I had read the reviews ahead of time and knew that it would be hardest
to leave bath because there was so much to do and not really enough
time to do it. But thankfully, our bus driver was kind enough to
drive us by some more of the city, including the Georgian architecture
of the Circus. We passed the home where Jane Austen used to live, and
I snapped a picture for Shelly. On the way back to London, we also
passed through part of the Cotswolds and I took pictures of more
beautiful English countryside with the iconic piled up stone walls
dividing the fields.

All in all, a most excellent day.

Our tour guide, Kevin.

On the bus

English countryside

Stonehenge

The light from the summer solstice passes directly those two center columns

The "heel stone". It marks the position of the summer solstice in line with the picture above.

Sheep grazing nearby.

More pictures, just to be artistic.

Sweet.

Okay, are we impressed yet?

These photos are not flattering, but I share them anyway.

Me again.

Our tour bus on the Salisbury plain

Near Old Sarum, the original Salisbury settlement.

Salisbury Cathedral is even more immense than it looks in this picture.

Yeah, it's huge.

See?

A close-up of the high windows

Inside looking up at the high arched ceilings.

I couldn't take any pictures at Westminster so I splurged on this one.

Moses lifting up the brass serpent so that the children of Israel might be healed. This stained glass window was way up at the top; I had to zoom in to even see it.