We got
home last night after a relaxing 2-day break in Bath. It's one of those places
where a short jaunt is the perfect amount of time; the historic core of the city is very compact so it's easy to get around on foot and two days affords a leisurely look at the main historic sites and gave us a feel of the city. Our hotel was in a perfect spot, easy walking distance from the train station and a block away from the famous Roman Baths, the Pump Room and Bath Abbey. Our first morning had us walking up the 212 steps to the top of Bath Abbey
. Since we were the only two people on the tour (the first of the day - it pays to be an early riser on holiday) we got the chance to ring the Abbey bells and also got to clamber into the underside of the church roof. We then went to the beautiful Assembly Rooms where big parties were held in the 18th and early 19th centuries. We then walked up to the famous "Circus" (a circular street of Georgian houses) and the beautiful Royal Crescent pictured here. We wandered thro
ugh Victoria Park, enjoying the first sun we had seen in more than a week. Afterwards we went to the Jane Austen Centre on Gay Street, one of the streets she lived on. The museum presents the Bath of Jane 
Austen's day, both what she enjoyed and did not enjoy about living in the city. Since it's such a small place it was amazing to recognise the areas on the map where she lived during her years in Bath. That evening we enjoyed a lovely dinner at a restaurant set in the old Green Park train station, where a jazz trio performed featuring a great young female singer.
home last night after a relaxing 2-day break in Bath. It's one of those places
where a short jaunt is the perfect amount of time; the historic core of the city is very compact so it's easy to get around on foot and two days affords a leisurely look at the main historic sites and gave us a feel of the city. Our hotel was in a perfect spot, easy walking distance from the train station and a block away from the famous Roman Baths, the Pump Room and Bath Abbey. Our first morning had us walking up the 212 steps to the top of Bath Abbey
. Since we were the only two people on the tour (the first of the day - it pays to be an early riser on holiday) we got the chance to ring the Abbey bells and also got to clamber into the underside of the church roof. We then went to the beautiful Assembly Rooms where big parties were held in the 18th and early 19th centuries. We then walked up to the famous "Circus" (a circular street of Georgian houses) and the beautiful Royal Crescent pictured here. We wandered thro
ugh Victoria Park, enjoying the first sun we had seen in more than a week. Afterwards we went to the Jane Austen Centre on Gay Street, one of the streets she lived on. The museum presents the Bath of Jane 
Austen's day, both what she enjoyed and did not enjoy about living in the city. Since it's such a small place it was amazing to recognise the areas on the map where she lived during her years in Bath. That evening we enjoyed a lovely dinner at a restaurant set in the old Green Park train station, where a jazz trio performed featuring a great young female singer. On Friday we spent several hours making our way through the fantastic and recently refurbished Roman Baths museum. This was a huge Roman bath and temple complex in the years 40 to about 400 AD, dedicated to the goddess Sulis Minerva (Sulis being the goddess worshipped by the local Celts and Minerva one of the Roman goddesses). The natural h
ot springs in Bath had always been a place of worship for people before they figured out a more mundane explanation for where all that warm bubbly water was coming from. The museum presents artifacts fo
und in and around the hot spring and temple - one of the most fascinating of which I think are the "curses", little messages written to Sulis Minerva complaining mainly about petty annoyances (like the theft of clothing at the baths!) and wishing death, blindness and all other manner of horrible things on the culprits. I think these little scraps of metal on which people poured out their anger really bring you close to the people who lived there millennia ago. After seeing the ancient Roman baths you can go to the Georgian Pump Rooms above and sample the famous Bath waters. Although I am glad we did this, I am also really glad that I have never been prescribed a gallon of this water a day like some people were back when they went to Bath for healing. It is a bit like drinking liquid metal!
ot springs in Bath had always been a place of worship for people before they figured out a more mundane explanation for where all that warm bubbly water was coming from. The museum presents artifacts fo
und in and around the hot spring and temple - one of the most fascinating of which I think are the "curses", little messages written to Sulis Minerva complaining mainly about petty annoyances (like the theft of clothing at the baths!) and wishing death, blindness and all other manner of horrible things on the culprits. I think these little scraps of metal on which people poured out their anger really bring you close to the people who lived there millennia ago. After seeing the ancient Roman baths you can go to the Georgian Pump Rooms above and sample the famous Bath waters. Although I am glad we did this, I am also really glad that I have never been prescribed a gallon of this water a day like some people were back when they went to Bath for healing. It is a bit like drinking liquid metal! We really enjoyed our time in Bath and found the smaller crowds and nearly non-existent traffic noise a great break from London!
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