Avebury, UK

Although not as famous as the nearby Stonehenge, the henge of Avebury is larger and older; dating back to around 5000 years ago. The standing stones are arranged in a circle with a 400m diameter, on a raised piece of land which has a deep external ditch, and surrounds the tiny village of the same name.

It is one of the largest Neolithic monuments in Europe but what’s really cool about Avebury is that, unlike Stonehenge, you can walk right up to and around the stones. In fact, in a move that would probably have upset those who assembled the stone circle, the A351 road cuts straight through the middle. Just watch out for the sheep droppings. Here's their web site and here's the wikipedia article. Their webcam used to be here but doesn't seem to be working any longer. Maybe it'll come back.

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PS. This may look like a duplicate of the Avebury entry on Googlesightseeing but that's because I submitted that.

Marlborough, UK

On our drive from London to Wales in 2003, we stopped for lunch in Marlborough. You can't go anywhere in England without stumbling across history. Here's their website and here's the wikipedia article.

Stratford-Upon-Avon, England

Stratford-Upon-Avon is William Shakespeare's hometown. This map is centered on New Place, Shakespeare's final residence. Here's the wikipedia article on the town.

If you scroll due East, you'll see two bridges across the Avon. Between them is the Swan's Nest hotel where we stayed. The long bridge is the Clopton Bridge built in 1490. Here are some old postcards of the bridge and the nearby foot bridge.


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Warwick Castle, England

Warwick Castle is a Norman castle near Birmingham, England and literally just down the road from Stratford-Upon-Avon. The river just to the South is the Avon.

Here's the wikipedia article and here's their web page.

They do reenactments on the grounds and the interior is a Tussauds exhibit. You can climb that tower in the upper right.

Stow-on-the-Wold, Cotswolds, England

Stow-on-the-Wold is a pretty little town in the Cotswolds. Their web site is here and the wikipedia article is here.

Stow was a big market for sheep. There are narrow alleyways called "tures" leading from the Square to the perimeter of the town that were used to herd the sheep to market.

We ate lunch in the pub of the Stow Lodge Hotel which has a false bookcase in the lounge that once concealed a spiral staircase leading to a secret room. There are also tunnels from the basement allegedly leading to the nearby church.