Our day started off with a walk back to our new favorite bakery in Bath, the Cornish Bakery, right across from the entrance to the Roman Baths. They sell pasties, a take on empanadas, usually stuffed with some type of meat, as well as delicious croissants and chocolate torsades, a twist of croissant dough with chocolate and sugar and dusted with powdered sugar. Then, we navigated the directions on the Mad Max tour site to get to the front of the Abbey Hotel. Everything that we’ve seen in Bath has been a five minute walk from our AirBnB. It’s been quite convenient!
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| Can you spot the white horse on the hill in the background? |
There was some construction going on at the bridge over the Avon River in Bath; and, our tour driver was delayed 45 minutes getting to us. However, Kevin finally arrived; and, he had us quickly up into the shuttle and on our way to Stonehenge. One of the interesting items that he pointed out along the way were white horses on the sides of hills. These are built out of chalk by the different villages. It's a bit of a competition of who has the best; and, the chalk is replaced in 12-18 month intervals to keep the horses looking bright white.
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| Stonehenge! |
The day was cloudy and overcast, threatening to rain. The benefit was that there were no lines to get on the shuttle from the parking lot to the stones, approximately 1.5 miles from the parking lot. Just like the Roman Baths, the Stonehenge Visitor Center includes an audio guide in multiple languages with the price of the entrance ticket. The shuttle to the stones is also included.
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| Fields of rapeseed (canola) along the highway that runs by Stonehenge |
Our guide explained how Stonehenge actually went up for auction in 1915 as part of several lots of land being auctioned. A local, Sir Cecil Chubb of Shrewton, remembered playing in the ruins as a boy and bought them at the auction for what would be ~700,000 pounds in today’s rate. After three years, he gifted the lot to the English Heritage Organisation to care for, with the stipulation that locals would always be able to enter the park for free, which continues to this day.
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| Stonehenge! |
Once the shuttle dropped us at the top, we started walking around the roped path far from the pyramids. For ~60 extra pounds, you can actually stand inside Stonehenge either before the park opens or after it closes. For the rest of us visiting during park hours, we are restricted to a path far from the stones. Along the path, there are markers letting us know which number to play on the audio guides.
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| Heel stone |
The stones were erected approximately 3500 years ago. There are no written records around Stonehenge. Therefore, everything is speculation about why these stones were erected. The stones do align with the summer and winter solstices. Other than that, they are a mystery, as are the way that the very heavy stones (up to 40 tons) were moved to the site. Scientists hypothesize that the stones could have been moved on barges pulled around the coastline and up the rivers, then rolled up the grassy knoll on logs. You can even attempt moving a stone on timbers set just outside the visitor center.
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| Rope for visitors to attempt moving this stone slab |
From Stonehenge, two parallel covered ditches stretch to the river Avon. These are actual “henges”. A henge is a covered ditch. Stonehenge is a complete misnomer. In addition, there are various mounds around the Stonehenge site. These are ancient burial mounds. Some have been excavated, including a skeleton in the small museum of a man from ~100 km away who stood 5’8”.
The museum itself is a great visit, because it gives you a chance to experience standing inside the stones. There is a round room with the stones in video on the wall; and, the videos play through the seasons, including the summer and winter solstice.
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| Avebury |
Back on the shuttle, our tour guide took us to a site that stretches across an even larger area than Stonehenge. This is Avebury. It is a small village with the stones at the edge of and around it. Our guide Kevin had brought with some copper rods to show us how the stones attract the rods. However, it was just too windy of a day to see the effect of the stones on the rods properly
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| Avebury |
It was more calming, though, to walk through half of the circle of Avebury stones, with hardly anyone else around, just a few tourists and locals on about their daily business. There was a small rise with wooden stairs going up that would have given a good view if it hadn’t been closed due to mud. Have I mentioned the grass yet? It was so lush and green! Our guide said that since it was getting longer, the sheep would probably be brought in to graze.
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| Avebury church |
We walked around the little village, entering the very old church with a baptismal fount from ~1100 AD. The church door stands open to all. There are postcards and requests for donations, all on the honor system with an envelope sitting ready. The old fount isn't even roped off. There is simply a handwritten sign asking you to replace the chair next to it if you move the chair to take a photo.
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| Baptismal fount in Avebury church |
While the cafe in town had been closed since the weekend with -6 C temperatures causing burst pipes and flooding, the industrious cafe management had set up a pop-up cafe in a building next door to feed the locals and those tourists visiting the Avebury stones. They were running out of their golden brown quiche and thick tomato soup as we arrived. Instead, I ate my first cheese and chutney sandwich (shredded mozzarella cheeses + what tasted like sweet tamarind sauce) and my first sausage roll (croissant type bread rolled around ground up sausage). The Australian lady on our tour recommended eating the sausage roll with tomato sauce (ketchup) which nicely accentuated
the flavors.
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| Wooden houses were a sign of wealth in Lacock |
Our next stop was to Lacock, another small village that has been made popular by being filmed in various films, including some portions of Harry Potter movies as well as an episode in the last season of Downton Abbey.
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| Inside the tithe barn. It's built like an upside-down ship |
Our shuttle parked behind the Red Lion pub. Our guide Kevin walked us around the town, showing off the oldest bar, the tithe barn (built by a shipbuilder -- it looks like the upside down hull of a ship) and the home of the richest man in LaCock. His home was made of wood, a sign of affluence, since wood was so much more expensive as a building material back in the day than brick was.
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| The abbey of Lacock |
Interestingly, Lacock Abbey was granted to a family by King Henry VIII with the stipulation that the abbey be decommissioned. The new land owner, happily complied. The land was then in the family for the next 400 years. It included the manor house, the tenant farmers and the village.
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| A guinea fowl and cat greet us outside the former poorhouse, now a potter's studio |
In the 1940s, many men had gone off to WWI and lost their lives and now men were going off to WWII and losing their lives. The inheritance taxes on these lands were in the 60-70%. Generally, the large land owners were going broke. Therefore, the lady of the house at that time made a deal with the National Trust to donate all of Lacock with the stipulation that her family could continue to live in the Manor house.
The benefit of this arrangement is that the National Trust gives first right to rent within Lacock to people who have a family history within the manor and village. It has kept more local businesses continuing within their families. Plus, since none of the properties can be purchased, it prevents developers from coming in and gentrifying the land.
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| Cream tea and scones at Sign of the Angel |
At Lacock, I experienced my first British tea service. At the Sign of the Angel, for only 7.50 pounds, we received a pot of tea, cream, and two scones (either sweet or savory). The sweet scones came with jam and clotted cream, a creamier butter. Per our guide, some people put the clotted cream on before the jam. However, he always puts on the jam before the clotted cream. Either way is a delicious combination on fresh, warm scones. Two of us ordered the same tea, which came out in a teapot so heavy full of tea, that I had to balance it on the table and tip it to fill my cup. Quick reminder to put in the tea screens, since the teas are loose leaf.
Like so many other establishments, even the Sign of the Angel had rooms to rent. Inside, there were rough wooden beams and whitewashed walls. We sat in front of a large fireplace, at least 5’ tall. On the walls were old looking paintings. Our waiter was also the receptionist for the rooms to let and was serving tables and escorting people through a little side door and up stairs to their rooms.
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| Castle Combe Manor House |
Our final stop on our Mad Max tour was Castle Combe, another abby/manor village. This village had not been sold to the National Trust. The old manor house has been turned into a hotel. In the old church lies the remains of a Sir Walter de Dunstanville who died in his second crusade. We know this only because his legs are crossed, a sign that he survived his first crusade. The grave is from 1270. Like the other village church, this one is also just open for anyone to walk in. The stone tomb is not protected in any way.
After returning to Bath, we ate dinner at a Nepalese restaurant near our AirBnB, Yak Yeti Yak. We ate momos, lamb, chicken and lots and lots of rice. The food was fragrant and flavorful, although all of our bodies were not so comfortable sitting on the floor for the entire meal. Afterward, a couple of us went on the Bizarre Bath walking tour. It’s a combination comedy / magical illusions tour.
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