We left Bath just before lunch and an hour or two later, after crossing the Salisbury Plains, we came to Stonehenge. Just unbelievable! You see it on the TV, you see pictures in books but to see it 'in the flesh' was another of the highlights of our trip. How was it built is the question no one can really answer. As you approach Stonehenge you start to see small mounds of earth now overgrown by grass. The mounds are 10 to 15 metres in diameter and 4 or 5 metres high. This is the first sign that Stonehenge is nearby! Stonehenge is a popular spot for any tourist to the UK.
Our next stop was back to London and the Thistle Marble Arch Hotel for one night. The bus got in about 4 pm on a Friday. Many group members were staying at the "Thistle" but others were moving straight on. We caught up with friends David and Lorraine for a few beers and a bottle of Hardy's red wine (about AUD$10 a bottle) in our room to relax after a hectic couple of weeks. That night the four of us hit the Marlborough Arms Pub (near the hotel) for a meal and quite a few 'frothy tops'.
The next day we were to move to another hotel, The Victoria Park Plaza which was the take-off point for our next tour. The cab fare was 11 pounds to travel about 5 kms through London's busy streets. It had a very good position near many major attractions (eg Westminster Abbey) but also there was a supermarket very near (see photo to left) by as well as internet access at another nearby shop. We also had access to many eateries. That afternoon we decided to 'explore on foot' and walked Victoria St, past Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Parliament Buildings, and the London Eye.
We only had three days in London this time before setting off for Europe. We had also arrived over a weekend and to top it all off it was a Bank Holiday weekend too. The final straw was that very unpleasant weather was forecast for Sunday morning as well as all day Monday! So we had to make the most of our time here! Trish has always wanted to go on the London Eye. I am NOT keen on heights so I was just going to watch. Holiday weekend and a poor forecast for next two days meant the Eye was crowded with long queues. We bought a 'Fast track' ticket which put Trish at the head of the queue so it wasn't long before she was up and away.
The 'Pods" on the London Eye each hold about 25 people and they were continually moving. Groups of people were always kept together to be in the same pod so there were several 'queues', each ensuring people had their turn but that groups were not separated. Very few pods were filled to the maximum number which meant everyone had their ride in comfort. The photo below was taken from the top of "The Eye".
After The London Eye we were both feeling a little tired so we returned to the hotel,, visited the local supermarket, bought some beer and apple cider and enjoyed a quiet relaxing drink. The view from our hotel room (photo to the left) was great. If you look closely you can see The London Eye and Westminster Abbey. There was a Pub 5 minutes walk from the hotel which is where we had our dinner. Great paying for a meal and a few beers in a Pub with your credit card!
The forecast was correct and we awoke on Sunday to a wet drizzly day. I visited the internet cafe nearby while Trish explored the supermarket. The weather cleared later in the day and as Harrod's was fairly close by we walked around to have a look. A 5 minute look was enough for me so I left Trish and found a Pub where I relaxed with a couple of pints! From the photo below you tell it was a good spot! We walked back to the hotel via some beautiful London Terraces.
We had a 'Roast Duck' evening meal at a Chinese Restaurant run by two Asian ladies, one from Ipoh and the other from Penang (both cities are in Malaysia!). We slept soundly.
Monday was the Bank Holiday and we awoke to heavy rain showers, strong winds and cold temperatures. The rain eased a little about 11 am so we slipped out and crept from cover to cover to keep dry and headed towards Westminster Abbey. Upon arrival there we saw there were no queues. (On Saturday the queues had been a couple of hundred metres long!). What a magnificent place Westminster Abbey is. We walked around enthralled by all the history and magnificence of the building and its contents. Just mind blowing what we saw. We stayed for over 2 hours before creeping back, scurrying from shelter to shelter to the hotel to dry out! We enjoyed a few drinks before finding another Pub for our evening meal. Tomorrow was the beginning of our Europe Tour and the bus was due to leave at 5:45 am!
We left Bath just before lunch and an hour or two later, after crossing the Salisbury Plains, we came to Stonehenge. Just unbelievable! You see it on the TV, you see pictures in books but to see it 'in the flesh' was another of the highlights of our trip. How was it built is the question no one can really answer. As you approach Stonehenge you start to see small mounds of earth now overgrown by grass. The mounds are 10 to 15 metres in diameter and 4 or 5 metres high. This is the first sign that Stonehenge is nearby! Stonehenge is a popular spot for any tourist to the UK.
Our next stop was back to London and the Thistle Marble Arch Hotel for one night. The bus got in about 4 pm on a Friday. Many group members were staying at the "Thistle" but others were moving straight on. We caught up with friends David and Lorraine for a few beers and a bottle of Hardy's red wine (about AUD$10 a bottle) in our room to relax after a hectic couple of weeks. That night the four of us hit the Marlborough Arms Pub (near the hotel) for a meal and quite a few 'frothy tops'.
The next day we were to move to another hotel, The Victoria Park Plaza which was the take-off point for our next tour. The cab fare was 11 pounds to travel about 5 kms through London's busy streets. It had a very good position near many major attractions (eg Westminster Abbey) but also there was a supermarket very near (see photo to left) by as well as internet access at another nearby shop. We also had access to many eateries. That afternoon we decided to 'explore on foot' and walked Victoria St, past Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Parliament Buildings, and the London Eye.
We only had three days in London this time before setting off for Europe. We had also arrived over a weekend and to top it all off it was a Bank Holiday weekend too. The final straw was that very unpleasant weather was forecast for Sunday morning as well as all day Monday! So we had to make the most of our time here! Trish has always wanted to go on the London Eye. I am NOT keen on heights so I was just going to watch. Holiday weekend and a poor forecast for next two days meant the Eye was crowded with long queues. We bought a 'Fast track' ticket which put Trish at the head of the queue so it wasn't long before she was up and away.
The 'Pods" on the London Eye each hold about 25 people and they were continually moving. Groups of people were always kept together to be in the same pod so there were several 'queues', each ensuring people had their turn but that groups were not separated. Very few pods were filled to the maximum number which meant everyone had their ride in comfort. The photo below was taken from the top of "The Eye".
After The London Eye we were both feeling a little tired so we returned to the hotel,, visited the local supermarket, bought some beer and apple cider and enjoyed a quiet relaxing drink. The view from our hotel room (photo to the left) was great. If you look closely you can see The London Eye and Westminster Abbey. There was a Pub 5 minutes walk from the hotel which is where we had our dinner. Great paying for a meal and a few beers in a Pub with your credit card!
The forecast was correct and we awoke on Sunday to a wet drizzly day. I visited the internet cafe nearby while Trish explored the supermarket. The weather cleared later in the day and as Harrod's was fairly close by we walked around to have a look. A 5 minute look was enough for me so I left Trish and found a Pub where I relaxed with a couple of pints! From the photo below you tell it was a good spot! We walked back to the hotel via some beautiful London Terraces.
We had a 'Roast Duck' evening meal at a Chinese Restaurant run by two Asian ladies, one from Ipoh and the other from Penang (both cities are in Malaysia!). We slept soundly.
Monday was the Bank Holiday and we awoke to heavy rain showers, strong winds and cold temperatures. The rain eased a little about 11 am so we slipped out and crept from cover to cover to keep dry and headed towards Westminster Abbey. Upon arrival there we saw there were no queues. (On Saturday the queues had been a couple of hundred metres long!). What a magnificent place Westminster Abbey is. We walked around enthralled by all the history and magnificence of the building and its contents. Just mind blowing what we saw. We stayed for over 2 hours before creeping back, scurrying from shelter to shelter to the hotel to dry out! We enjoyed a few drinks before finding another Pub for our evening meal. Tomorrow was the beginning of our Europe Tour and the bus was due to leave at 5:45 am!
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