-
- "Now, don't feel strange about doing
this," says our tour guide as he strides between the giant stones
at Avebury Circle, dowsing rods aquiver. "The energy is coming up
through me now - yes, I can feel it." Our guide and driver, Nick Kendrick,
obviously feels less strange about this sort of thing than the rest of
us.
-
- This may be because he looks the part
of a New Age pilgrim with his blond ponytail, rainbow-hued homespun trousers
and Jesus sandals. We look like tourists as we collect our dowsing rods
(bent coathangers, actually) and parade up and down Avebury's invisible
ley lines, hoping to feel something strange ourselves.
-
- And it's happening. "Yes! Yes!"
cries one denim-clad girl whose aura has started to tingle. "Nah,
that was just the wind blowing them," mutters her boyfriend, whose
rods have failed to budge.
-
- The idea of a New Age coach trip - the
achingly hip combined with the cringingly middle-aged - may seem bizarre.
But for Nick, ex-paint salesman, world traveller and lifelong devotee of
UFOs, ley lines and Celtic mysteries, it is an idea whose time has come.
-
- Since he set up his company, Astral Travels,
five years ago with a grant from the Prince's Trust, business has boomed.
One psychedelic minibus has now become four.
-
- A generation of truth-seekers hooked
on The X-Files and alternative therapies has been eager to book his crop
circle expeditions and visits to the burial place of the Holy Grail or
the site where St George allegedly slew the dragon.
-
- "I don't like to call them New Age
coach trips," says Nick firmly. "I prefer the term Now Age, because
now is the time so many of us are exploring these mysteries. It's no longer
just a hippy-dippy, hairy-fairy thing for people who wear tie-dye vests
and go around hugging dolphins."
-
- We hand in our dowsing rods and set off
across a nearby field. At the top of a windswept ridge, Nick waves his
arms at the horizon. "Over there is the oldest man-made monument in
the world," he announces, pointing to the grassy blancmange of Silbury
Hill. "And here we are standing on the West Kennet Long Barrow, a
5,000-year-old sacred burial place."
-
- Someone hums the theme from The Twilight
Zone as we descend into the dark, empty tomb. "This is so spooky,"
whispers an American voice as we timidly finger the damp stone. Brian Gotterer
is a clinical psychology student from Pepperdine University in Malibu,
but he confesses to a fascination with all things supernatural.
-
- He's written a thesis on Satanism, studied
the Tarot cards and seen The Rocky Horror Show ten times so far. "One
of my frat brothers is a pagan high priest," he confides, "as
well as studying to be an attorney. People are scared of Satanism, but
the fact is, it's been helping to keep the Church going for years now."
-
- London business analyst Joanne Mitchell
prefers the gentler New Age stuff. "I'm slightly mad," she says,
"so I've got a big thing about fantasy and sci-fi books. Anything
about castles, wizards and King Arthur really turns me on. In fact, I'm
having an authentic Celtic bardic harp made for me right now."
-
- Suddenly a giant figure looms over us
in the doorway. Luckily it turns out to be a tall Texan in a baseball cap
and Bermuda shorts. Kevin Van Hoose, a twentysomething computer programmer
from Waxahachie, tells us he's come on today's trip to get his hands on
Stonehenge.
-
- When we're getting special access to
the usually prohibited inner circle at sunset, prehistoric tombs and crop
circles are merely bonuses. "I've been studying this kind of thing
since I was a kid," he booms. "The pyramids, the Bermuda Triangle,
the ancient Mayans and Celts. But Stonehenge is special.
-
- "I'm a Christian and I believe in
God, angels, devils and demons and stuff. I think they helped build Stonehenge
for occult purposes. It says in the Bible all the things they can do, so
if we don't understand something, it was probably them."
-
- Back on the bus, Nick drives us through
leafy country lanes, passing time-warped thatched cottages and perfect
fields of corn. "On the left!" he cries suddenly, stopping the
bus. "A large crop circle in the field below us."
-
- We pile outside and peer over a barbed-wire
fence into the corn, where a giant barometer shape has appeared. The design
is as precise as a computer fractal. "It's not a fake," Nick
tells us. "It's too perfect. Half the crop circles you see are hoaxes
- I know the people who make them. I've done it myself, years ago. But
that's the real thing."
-
- There's a buzz of excitement in the bus
as we set off again, old Cat Stevens tapes playing merrily in the background.
Nick tells us about the crop circle/UFO connection and how we are now driving
through the Wessex Triangle - "the UFO capital of Britain".
-
- People of a nervous disposition are liable
to break down in tears inside crop circles, he says, and anyone with a
heart pacemaker should steer well clear of them.
-
- "There are loads of theories about
what causes them," he muses. "Is it helicopters? Rabbits and
deer? Balls of plasma? Vortex wind? Or are they urgent messages to us from
another planet?"
-
- Speeding on to reach Stonehenge before
sunset, we pass a couple of eerie boxing hares. "To get you in the
mood," says Nick, mercifully ejecting Scarborough Fair from the stereo,
"I've put together a tape about the history and legends surrounding
this mysterious monument."
-
- Strange chanting now fills the air, backed
by Peruvian pan pipes. An echoing sepulchral voice that sounds a bit like
Nick addresses us: "Theories abound to explain Stonehenge . . . Monument
to Merlin the magician . . . giant calendar. . . white-robed Druids . .
. Celtic blood sacrifices . . . healing properties . . . strange lights
in the sky." Heads spinning with conflicting notions, we step out
of the bus to gaze on the ancient stones at last.
-
- "This is so awesome," murmurs
Brian as we stride past lesser tourists trapped behind wire fences and
step over the low rope barrier with its DO NOT CROSS sign, into the inner
circle. Jackdaws wheel above the towering slabs as we look up in wonder.
-
- "I won't sleep tonight. I never
do after this tour," enthuses Nick with shining eyes. "I call
this place the battery - can you feel all the energy coming out of it?"
-
- To be honest, most of us are running
amok with our cameras at this point, rather than wandering and pondering
the mysteries of the place.
-
- Gamely, Nick passes among us, discussing
ancient astronomy, telling us his bank manager is a Druid, pointing out
Iron Age graffiti and the signature of John Keats.
-
- "Have you read Chariot of the Gods?"
he asks Kevin as the sky begins to darken. For a few silent moments, we
stop to gape as the sun turns into a glowing orange ball, sinking between
black silhouetted stones against streaks of pink cloud. Then we suddenly
remember the folks back home and duty is done in an explosion of clicking
shutters.
-
-
- *Helen Chappell joined a Magical Tour
organised by Astral Travels (0870 902 0908). The Magical Tour costs £46,
plus £12 for Stonehenge special access. Available December to September.
Astral Travels' offbeat tours for small groups depart from pick-up points
in central London. There are longer residential holidays (eg King Arthur's
Cornwall). Personalised itineraries also possible.
-
-
- New Age breaks around the UK
-
-
- *Lowender Peran Celtic Festival, October
14-18 1998, Perranporth, Cornwall. Celtic Circle dancing, Celtic pipes
and drums, folk tales, pageant, ancient crafts. Tickets are £1.50
for day events and £3 to £6 in the evening; season tickets
for the entire event are £24 per person. Ponsmere Hotel offers a
special festival package: B&B £16 per person per night, season
tickets available for £22 per person. Contact: Gerald Morris (01872
553413).
-
- *Halloween Tarot Weekend, Glastonbury,
October 30-31 1998. Take part in a ceremony on the Tor to plug your Tarot
cards into the ancient energies of Avalon. Also explore your shamanic and
psychic powers. Vegetarian meals at a secluded retreat. Two nights' half-board
is £210 per person.
-
- *Crystals and Colour Healing Weekend,
Glastonbury, November 20-22 1998. Using crystals and colours for spiritual
growth and to promote love, peace and harmony. Chakra balancing and Reike
massage is £195 per person, including two nights' half-board. For
both weekends, contact: Karin Taylor (0171-622 2982).
-
- *Alternative Christmas at the Amitabha
Buddhist Centre, Taunton, Somerset, December 22-29 1998. Escape boozy parties,
TV films and plastic Santas and find peace through meditation. Large country
mansion, vegetarian food, country walks. Seven nights' allinclusive is
£140 for dormitory accommodation; £195 for a single room. All
facilities are shared. Contact: St Audries House (01984 633200).
-
- *Christmas House Party on Pembrokeshire
Coast National Park,December 24-27. Circle dancing, yoga, singing, log
fires, coastal walks, vegetarian food. Three nights' full board start at
£145 per person. Contact: VegiVentures (01760 755888).
-
- *Solar Eclipse Week, St Merryn, Padstow,
Cornwall, August 9-13 1999. Join Ed and Glynis, Archdruid and Archdruidess
of Cornwall, to celebrate next year's eclipse. Eve of eclipse mystic night,
sun dance, god and goddess ritual astrology, spiritualists, clairvoyants.
Help erect the Eclipse Monolith or have your own Druid wedding conducted
by Ed in his garden of standing stones. One night's B&B is £15
per person; festival events are free. Contact: Ed Prynn or Glynis Kent
(01841 521045).
-
- *Firewalking is Fun weekends, Chessington,
Surrey, dates all year, £140 for two days. Overcome your fears and
empower your life by daring to walk barefoot over hot coals. One nights'
full board is £130 per person. Also t'ai chi, Native American ceremonies
and meditation. Contact: Matt Pearson (0181-391 5993).
-
- *Alternative Holidays,Round Chapel Barn,
Higher Trewoofe, Lamorna, Cornwall, all year round. Detoxify your system,
rejuvenate mind and body. Organic food, swimming pool, Buddha garden, stream,
coastal path walks, stone circles nearby. One night's B&B is £17.50,
supper is £7 per person. Contact: Christiane Knight (01736 810244).
-
- *Wild Pear Centre,Combe Martin, North
Devon, available all year. New Age groups or groups of friends (from six
to 25) can hire the whole centre for courses or a relaxing holiday. Warm
woodblock interiors, sprung dance floor, comfy sofas, piano, sound system,
own kitchen. Catering can be provided. Five minutes from sea. Exmoor walks,
standing stones, silver mines, coves nearby. One night's full board £25
per person, one night's "museli and futon" £9, not including
use of the hall or group room; self-catering is £12 per person per
night. Contact: Juliana Brown (0181-341 7226).
-
- *Neal's Yard Agency for Personal Development
(07000 783704) offers a Holiday Pack of brochures for holistic breaks.
Send large SAE and 73p stamp to the agency at BCM, Neal's Yard, London
WC1N 3XX. Also (free) events guide and Places to Be guidebook to venues
for New Age courses and retreats (£7 plus £1 p&p).
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