I read Bill Bryson's Notes from a Small Island during my first week here, and his paragraph on Stonehenge describes the experience in a much more amusing manner than I am capable of:
"Impressive as Stonehenge is, there comes a moment somewhere about eleven minutes after your arrival when you realize your fascination has peaked, and you spend another forty minutes walking around the perimeter rope looking at it only out of a combination of politeness, reluctance at being the first from your bus to leave, and a desire to get 3 pounds worth of exposure from the experience."
I think this sums up Stonehenge rather well; I must add, however, that those first eleven minutes had me really questioning why some people 5000 years ago decided to drag a bunch of stones here from Wales. But more importantly, why here? Stonehenge is on top of a small hill, and in the middle of nowhere, surrounded on all sides by pastures, sheep, and a few trees. I think the decision would have made more sense if they built it on a cliff, or over a river, or pretty much anywhere that seems to have some kind of geographical significance. For me, the absence of any obvious connection between the stones and this specific place was what made the experience spooky. I really like that no one can figure out why the hell Stonehenge is there.
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