Trafalgar Square, National Gallery, Stonehenge and Old Sarum

       This is my last week in London before the big trip to Northern Europe and then to Lancaster. Despite papers and presentations we've actually had a good amount of free time and took some trips. This weekend we went to Trafalgar Square, a busy intersection where the National Gallery is located as well as a big fountain and a fair number of shops and pubs. There was some sort of robotic display going on that I couldn't really figure out, but otherwise there were statues and a bunch of street performers.

Phase 1 of the takeover

       The National Gallery was excellent. Obviously it had the standard Italian Renaissance painters including some unfinished Michelangelo's and a couple really excellent Da Vinci pieces (they have another version of the Madonna of the Rocks). They have some great Impressionist stuff too, Degas, Monet, etc. The best though was their Northern European stuff, specifically Dutch painters. They have a good number of Rembrants and his constituents, and some Vermeers as well. The Dutch are a little overlooked when you aren't talking about still life but this was definitely one of the strongest couple of rooms in museum. The British section was again, obviously strong and also interesting since Brits aren't the most talked about painters but they did have some really good landscapes.
      Later in the week was a trip to Stonehenge. The little town of Salisbury that you take the train into to get to Stonehenge is a really small, countryside village with a lot of charm. We went to a pub right by one of the many small rivers that run through the town and it was nice and relaxing. The bus cost about 15 pounds to get to Stonehenge but that included our admission to see the stones as well as admission to the ruins of an old castle nearby. Stonehenge was impressive, its still mind boggling to think about how people actually moved those huge stones so far without power tools. We had perfect weather and the whole place is surrounded by plains and farmland, making it seem isolated and as if the lanscape hasn't changed. Near the site are a few scattered burial mounds that are a nice walk, but they were closed off to prevent erosion. The trip included these little audio devices that really didn't offer much information, especially for someone who knows a thing or two about Stonehenge anyway. Also they just offer speculation, and kind of ruin the whole feel of the place if you choose to listen to them

      The next stop was Old Sarum, a castle and cathedral that has roots to even before William the Conquerer. It's closer to Salisbury than Stonehenge and was the original site of the town. The ruins were really cool, there was a good amount of the older foundations left and its all on the top of a large mound with steep ditches surrounding it, offering a great view of the little town down the valley. It was less touristy that Stonehenge, and offered more freedom to walk around (at Stonehenge you're on a little track). Down from the upper levels of the castle lie the remains of a cathedral. You can see where the pillars would hold the whole place up and there is a really well preserved part of the old treasury left over as well.

      I really like the older history, so this week was a blast. Its our last in London and we finally made the trip to the Icebar as well. It was really cold in there, so we didn't mind that our cover charge only let us in for forty minutes. Not something I would do again because of the cost, but definitely worth visiting.