Sunday 2nd August - Old Sarum

As Jannie had read the book by Edward Rutherford called Sarum she really wanted to put that on the to do list prior to leaving New Zealand. So we got off the bus on our way back from Stonehenge at the appropriate stop and walked slowly up the hill the Sarum Castle. I had no idea of what to expect. We crossed the long bridge over the very deep moat surrounding the whole thing. Paid with our English Heritage cards and headed off to have a look around.

Old Sarum is steeped in history, it was Raised in about 500BC by Iron Age settlers and it was later occupied by the Romans. Then along came the Celts, the Angles, the Saxons, the Viking and finally the Normans. The Normans built a castle and a Royal Palace here but later differences between the Church and the military lead to a new settlement being built down by the river. This settlement is now known as Salisbury.

The Old Sarum Castle went into decay as stones and timbers were used in the new settlement and today the remaining walls are only defining the areas that used to be. The walls were originally laid with large blocks at the base and then stone of every shape and size were placed in rows similar to brickwork along the wall. Row after row and finally made the top where it was flattened off.

We wandered back down the hill as we had spied a lovely looking pub called the Harvester where we decided we needed a beer. So we sat at an outside table and ordered our beers and 3 appetisers for £10. Lovely time. The airfield was only over the fence and we were continually buzzed by small plane landing.

We caught the 2.30pm bus back to Salisbury as there was a Farmers and Craft Market on in the Market Square that we visited yesterday. Not much to look at really and the band was very loud so we headed for the river and walked slowly back to our hotel for a rest.