Personal

Contrasting stones

"Be honest. What do you think of the scale," I asked. "I know everyone says it, but it is smaller than you'd think." was Emma's reply.

She'd never seen Stonehenge in person; I'd never paid to go in. Time to rectify both. But on our way there we stopped to see the much larger stone circle in Avebury. The contrasts just keep coming. Stonehenge was packed with American tourists and while Avebury was hardly quiet, there was plenty of room to breath. At Avebury we were able to lay both hands flat on the stones whereas a sturdy rope kept visitors at a good distance from Stonehenge.

That's not to say one henge is better than the other. Perhaps the lesson is that there's not just one Neolithic monument that's worth spending time with.