The sun was two hours late this morning. It was supposed to rise at 4:52 but didn't show up until 7am, through a chink in the cloud.
Not a very good performance. Its wages should be docked. Or maybe the salary of those astronomers who organise all this stuff - the rising of the sun and the passage of the stars.
Or are the weather forecasters to blame? I don't know.

I was at Stonehenge waiting for it, in the dark, along with ten thousand or so other hopefuls, many of whom were on their way to Glastonbury. It's that sort of event. Not many suits and ties to be seen here. And a little bit of mud. Not much, just enough to ensure the suits are left at home.

When you visit Stonehenge on a normal day, you're kept well away from the stones by stout ropes and guards. No hugging or touching allowed. Thus the solstice is really the only time to visit for that 'up close experience'.

A fairly typical encounter: Close to sunrise I happened to be standing on a fallen stone at the edge of the circle. A Guinevere look-alike came up and asked, "Can you see King Arthur from up there?"
"Well, there must be close on a thousand people in there, what does he look like?"
"He's wearing a big shiny crown!"
"Oh, of course! No, I don't see any crowns. Lots of stag's heads and goat's horns though, if that helps."
An adventure back in time.

So, a few photos to add some variety to the blog. No bikes, nor cars are allowed within about a mile of the site on the night of the solstice. So only the stones, and people heading for Glastonbury feature in the pictures.

It's a funny thing, but there were lots of Guineveres there......

Where are you Beau? Still in Khartoum?

"Yes, still here. The music students have just done a jazz concert at the French Cultural Institute. A great time!"