[November 20] Stonehenge & Salisbury

Wow. Stonehenge! I'm not entirely sure why, but as long as I can remember knowing about Stonehenge, I've wanted to see it. Then all of a sudden (more like 2 hours on a bus later) we were there. Ultimately, it is a pile of rocks in the middle of the countryside and you can only spend so long looking at it. But what's interesting is imagining how people got those rocks there, why they arranged them like that, and what aliens are... well, nevermind.

How English... sheep in the gray and misty countryside:

A rock that wandered off from the others:

A cute little birdie:

A drawing of what I guess Stonehenge used to look like?: 

This struck me as pretty hilarious... Chewing Gum Disposal? HAHA! Then look at all the gum on the ground!

Then we got back on the bus and headed to Salisbury... and one of the first things I saw there was this swan with it's head under water. I just thought it looked funny...

First, we went on a walking 'tour' of Salisbury. Well, there wasn't much to it! First we stopped at a 'small' cathedral:

There happened to be a parade of soliders:

We went to the Salisbury Cathedral which, of course, was huge, impressive, gorgeous... I say "of course" like that because well... you can only see so many cathedrals before they lose their impressiveness. It's too bad, but it's exhausting to constantly be in awe. Don't get me wrong—I still really enjoyed seeing it and it was truly beautiful.

This is stained-glass window is my absolute favorite that I've ever seen:

I really liked the music this band was playing on the street:

Mmm then lunch time! I went with a couple friends to this bakery:

And ate a chicken curry pasty! It was SO GOOD!!!

Hung out with these two cool cats the whole time:

I bought this little mouse cork at the Cathedral... it's kind of silly but I just thought it was SO cute! And she's holding a violin... and she's pink... she's just really cute... and before going out with friends here, I like to drink wine. Really, really cheap white or pink wine. :]

[November 13] Liverpool: BEATLEMANIA: ladies and gentlemen... THE BEATLES!

I've known Beatles songs for literally as long as I can remember. I'm pretty sure this is because my parents always listened to the local 'Oldies' radio station in the car... I mean, me and my brother probably know most of the songs they played on that station in general. But, I digress!

I remember one year for Christmas I got the Beatles '1' album and then some other time I got the Yellow Submarine soundtrack. I had fun listening to these albums for a few years. Then when I was 13 or 14 years old, for some reason, I became more obsessed with them. I got really into listening to the lyrics and trying to figure out what was going on in the song instrumentally... then I got Abbey Road for Christmas... and my obsession with the Beatles spiraled out of control. The following summer I checked out every book about the Beatles from the library I could get my hands on and read them obsessively. I wanted to know every little fact and silly detail about the Beatles.

So, coming to England, I knew I HAD to go to Liverpool, the city the Beatles are from!!! Luckily I found another obsessive Beatles fan, Anne, and we made plans along with my new friend from Dublin, Peter, to make a pilgrimage to the home of the Fab Four. Anne and I left the dorm a bit before 6am (yes, this is how dedicated we were) to take the tube then take the train to Liverpool, about a 2 hour train ride. First, the three of us went to the Beatles Story Museum, a very well-done museum about the Beatles. I felt like there were some gaps, especially in the later years, but nonetheless, I very much enjoyed it.

John Lennon's hideous suit they all wore in the beginning:

I very well may have been one of these girls back in the day... I mean, you can't even tell which one is me...

WE'RE SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND!

WE ALL LIVE IN A YELLOW SUBMARINE

There was actually a Yellow Submarine you could go inside but the pictures didn't turn out. However... this one did:

At the end of the museum, there were four sections devoted to each of the Beatles solo careers. These are a couple George Harrison quotes that were on the wall that I like... In case you can't read them, the first one says:

"There's high, and there's high, and to get really high—I mean so high that you can walk on the water, that high—that's where I'm going." -George Harrison

And then: "The world used us as an excuse to go mad."

After the museum, we had plenty of time until the MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR departed... so we walked around Albert Dock for awhile.

THE MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR BUS:

First, we visited Ringo's childhood home:

And then drove down Penny Lane...

"Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes... There beneath the blue suburban skies..."

George Harrison's childhood home:

Brian Epstein's home:

"Let me take you down, cause we're goin' to... Strawberry Fields..."

John Lennon's childhood home, where he lived with his aunt:

Paul McCartney's childhood home:

I think the guide said this is the largest Anglican church in... Europe perhaps?

Me and John Lennon just chillin' out:

The Cavern Club! Where the Beatles first started out playing!

The people of Liverpool must be so sick of The Beatles!!! After having dinner, we got on the train back home... pictured below is the train station, obviously. The guide said that Brain Epstein would go into London to try to them them a record deal and when he'd return the Beatles would run to the station to see if he had. Cute. ;)