Some 900,000 tourists visit Stonehenge every year, but ahead of winter there are less as the wind is quite strong.

It might have been a sacrificial ground or a site for UFOs to land — no one knows for certain and Stonehenge remains a mystery.

There isn’t yet a definite answer as to why the stones were erected there, despite continuous studies and research, but this is what attracts about 900,000 tourists to visit Stonehenge every year.

Located to the north of Salisbury, 80 minutes away from London by train, Stonehenge is Britain’s most historic destination. UNESCO designated Stonehenge a World Heritage site in 1986.

For the sake of curiosity, I booked a round-trip ticket from London’s Waterloo Station to Salisbury that cost ¤20 (US$25.5). Leaving home in the morning, I hopped on the train, heading southwest and leaving the hustle bustle of London for the green cathedral city.

Upon arrival in Salisbury, I chose the easiest way and went with a Stonehenge tour bus, which cost ¤12 per adult.

The black-and-red double-decker bus then drove us tourists around the city — its historical background explained by a prerecorded audio guide — before going north to Stonehenge.

The Heelstone strengthens the theory that Stonehenge was used as an astral calculator.
The journey took about 30 minutes, where visitors could see vast fields on the way to Stonehenge. Square bales of straw were piled high and sheep and pigs were looking for food. The wind carried the unmistakable scent of farm life.

An entry pass to take a closer look at Stonehenge cost an additional ¤7.80, and included an audio guide to help unravel the mysteries behind the prehistoric site. Sadly, tourists can’t touch the stones anymore, unless it is a special occasions, probably to preserve the monument.

Looking at Stonehenge, I couldn’t help to think that it was absurd and at the same time magical. Why was it built? Why here? Why are there so many barrows (burial mounds) surrounding it? Was it a place for the dead? Or where the sick went to be healed?

Stonehenge has been estimated to have been built some 5,000 years ago. Construction took about 2,000 years, with a myth saying that giants lent a hand to erect the stones, the largest of which weighed over 40 tons.

“Henge” is said to come from the Old English word hanging. So, Stonehenge can simply mean the hanging stones, though competing definitions exist.

What was a castle now only ruins. Residents started to leave Old Sarum in 1220.
Some studies say that Stonehenge was built to sacrifice animals or even humans by the Druids — ancient pagan priests who looked like Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings films — while others believe that it was used as an astral calculator to determine the summer and winter solstices.

Even to this day, Druids and thousands of people from all around the globe observe the summer solstice at Stonehenge. Last June, there were more than 14,000 people celebrating dawn there by dancing and playing music, despite heavy rain. The solstices are the only time of year when visitors can touch the stones.

According to the audio guide, only half of the Stonehenge’s original stones remain. Some have been taken a long time ago for buildings or for healing. To preserve the remaining stones, there has been some restoration to prevent them from falling or to replace what is currently missing.

English Heritage, the organization in charge of the monument, has started an improvement project for Stonehenge in June. Expected to finish in the summer of 2014, the project will return Stonehenge to its natural landscape setting, surrounded by grass and far from parking lots, busy roads and tourist shops.

I can imagine that being there in a quiet state, where all you can see is green landscape and the stones, will add to the mystery around Stonehenge. Six miles away from Stonehenge is Old Sarum, which existed before Salisbury was built. Far less popular than Stonehenge, it was where the area’s first cathedral stood before the residents moved to New Sarum, a less common name for Salisbury.

Salisbury Cathedral with its 13th century look. It has the tallest spire in the UK.It only took five minutes from Stonehenge, with the tour bus going to a bus-stop near Old Sarum. Another five-minute walk and I arrived at hill fort, where what was once a castle has now become ruins. English Heritage charges ¤3.80 to visit this site.

Established more than 2,400 years ago, the oval-shaped hill fort, circled by a bailey and protected by ditches, was once inhabited by the Romans and Normans. The remains of the castle and the cathedral are now only memories of what was once must have been be a beautiful medieval city.

From Old Sarum I could see “new” Salisbury Cathedral and the current city, sitting at the confluence of five rivers, with green grass and blue sky in the background. It was a wonderful view.

The cathedral’s chapel, with a font designed in 2008 for baptisms.Old Sarum was abandoned about 800 years ago when the bishop proposed to move the cathedral nearer to the Avon River. After construction on the new cathedral began in 1220, residents made a new settlement around it, leaving the hill fort to decay.

Legend says the bishop shot an arrow in the airto determine where the new cathedral would be built. It fell to earth and struck a deer, who died in the place where Salisbury Cathedral now stands.

The tour bus doesn’t drive visitors directly to the cathedral, instead dropping us off in the city center. Though Salisbury is a small city, there are still a number of High Street chains, such as Debenhams and Marks & Spencer. I also saw a Pizza Hut, but it’s best to go to local eateries when traveling, in search of different tastes.

Walking from the city center to Salisbury Cathedral only took five minutes, and I was wowed from the moment I saw the building. No wonder the Anglican church attracts more than 500,000 visitors per year.

The cathedral has the tallest spire in the UK and Europe’s oldest working clock. It also stores the world’s best preserved of four surviving original Magna Carta, which inspired the US Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

While I’m no expert in architecture, I can safely say that this is one of the most beautiful churches I’ve ever seen. It is pretty in a different way from St Paul’s Cathedral in London.

There is no entrance fee to the cathedral, though there is a suggested voluntary donation of 6.50 per adult. Volunteer guides are ready to help visitors explore for free.

Exploring the tower, however, will cost £10. After climbing the roof and tower, visitors can enjoy the view of the city and countryside. I skipped this part as I had to rush to the train station.

Walking to the station with schoolboys around me, I thought that Salisbury and Stonehenge should be among the destinations for any visitor to the UK. A day trip is enough, and would be better made during spring or summer.

Five minutes, I was aboard the train, ready to head back to the hustle and bustle of London.

Travel notes

Plan your trip from London
• Catch the train at London’s Waterloo Station (From ¤20) southwesttrains.co.uk, uk.megabus.com

• Alternatively, go by bus from London’s Victoria Station (From ¤16) nationalexpress.com

• Tour bus direct from London to Stonehenge only, or including Salisbury and other cities such as Oxford and Bath (From ¤29) goldentours.com, evanevanstours.co.uk

• After arriving at Salisbury Station, book the Stonehenge tour bus (From ¤12 for tour only, or ¤24 with entry to Stonehenge and Old Sarum) thestonehengetour.info

• For further info of things to see and do around Salisbury visit salisbury.com, salisburycathedral.co.uk or english-heritage.org.uk

— Photos by Aditya Suharmoko