Upon our arrival...June 25, 2008

After our arrival at Heathrow, Deb drove us to Stonehenge. It is such a cool place. After paying for your admission you can grab this little handheld device that you can also hang around your neck that acts as an electronic tour guide. Along the pathway that encircles the stones there are numbered markers. You stand at each one and press the corresponding number on your handheld device and you are told details about Stonehenge in general as well as particular details you can view best from each numbered marker.

The inner edge of the path is lined with small posts with which the circumference of the grass where the stones are is roped off. So you are never closer than about 30-50 feet from the stones (my rough estimate).

Driving up to Stonehenge you can see it from quite a distance since it is up on a hill. So, you come over a ridge on the drive up to it and all of a sudden there it is! It is truly awe-inspiring.









In this next picture, in the middle of the frame and in the background along the treeline you will see uniformed shaped humps in the landscape. These are burial mounds, called barrows.



Relaxing "on" Stonehenge. Pretty cool mural on one of the walls of the path to enter and exit by. Funny, huh?



After Stonehenge, Deb brought us to a little town called Lavenham and this is the place we had an early dinner. (Gotta love the name! Hahaha!!!)



Here's the inside. To order you have to go up to the bar and place your order with the bartender.



Deb and I enjoying a Carlsberg offered there on draft, as well as lots of other beer, ales, lagers and "spirits" (as they call hard liquors here).



Chantelle finally enjoying the "fish and chips" (aka: fried fish and french fries) she was dying to try. According to Deb, though, the fish and chips we had there are not as good as others around the area. So, we will likely try them somewhere else. Oh, and spices, including salt, are not much used here. I can understand why English food has been stereotyped as the worst. Although, in defense of it, it isn't bad, just somewhat bland, but absolutely edible.



After dinner, we walked up to the church there in Lavenham, not far from The Cock pub. I have got some really nice pictures of the stained glass windows from the inside of the church. But because of the access problems from here to get on the Net, I opted not to include those just yet. I might add them later; not sure.



Then, we walked around the town a bit to burn off all those fat calories from our fish and chips. This town and several others that date back to the same time period (not exactly sure when that is) have houses that, once their foundations settled, ended up leaning, and not all in the same direction. If you look closely, you'll see one section leaning forward, the one next to it leaning back, etc.






From Lavenham, Deb brought us to her house. We were all exhausted from staying up (more or less, we slept in the car somewhat, from being so exhausted from the overnight flight). I fell asleep in Deb's recliner and napped from 7p-10p
that evening, then got up and went to bed.