Friday, December 10, 2004

The Longest Night

21st December is the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. The sun will rise over London at 8.03 am. A good, if cold, place to watch it happen is Brockley Stone Circle, a circle made by local artists and the like in Hilly Fields. This astronomically correct stone circle dates all the way back to 2000AD.
As with last year, no formal ritual is planned, come along and do your own thing, be it private or public, spiritual, astronomical or personal, before going to work (or bed or where ever). The solstice itself is at 12.41am.

The nearest stations to Hilly Fields are Ladywell, Brockley and Croften Park. Buses are the 171, 172, 122 and 484.
Info and map of Hilly Fields is here. Some useful information about the Solstices can be found on the National Maritime Museum’s website.

1 comment:

. said...

'You have never been in love, until you've watched the dawn rise over the Home for the Blind', or so says Morrissey. Does the same apply to trying to watch the sun rise over Lewisham from Hilly Fields? Four of us turned up at the not very ancient stones, the sun remained hidden behind the clouds, but we had a nice chat and a cup of tea.