In England Tuesday morning, hundreds of pagans and others trekked out to Stonehenge to greet the first sunrise after the Winter Solstice. Several British news organizations have covered the event, which organizers say has grown in recent years with the understanding that the Druidic monument was more significant at the Winter Solstice than at the Summer Solstice.

"It is the most important day of the year for us because it welcomes in the new sun," pagan leader Arthur Pendragon tells The Daily Mail.

"We're here for an anti-religious reason, if any," Alison Marcetic tells The Guardian. "Pagans seem to have more fun so we'd thought we'd give it a go. We'll be celebrating Christmas but this is about showing the children that this season isn't just about getting presents. What goes on here is more basic, more tangible."

"It's one of those things you must do at least once in your life and for many of those that come they will come again and again," Stonehenge official Peter Carson tells the BBC. "It's a very special time for Stonehenge."