We did out fair share of gallivanting through this fair city today, and my feet are certainly feeling it tonight!
We awoke to beautiful blue skies as you can see in this view from our bedroom window.
We awoke to beautiful blue skies as you can see in this view from our bedroom window.
And here you can actually see Bath Abbey in the middle of this photo in the distance.
I had picked Villa Claudia because of it convenient location to the city, about a 20 minute walk.
Today, we actually made the walk twice, as well as hiking all over the city, which might explain why my feet aren't happy!
We began the day with a lovely breakfast, then headed into Bath to attend Mass at St. John the Evangelist Church.
The views along the way were stunning.
The church itself had been bombed during the second World War, but I was told by a local that the Irish community had made the repairs to the West Wing in six days.
It stands majestically along the River Avon, and one would never know by looking at its exterior that it had been partially demolished at one time.
The interior had just received a make over with new gold gilding applied to add to the beauty.
It truly was amazing.
After the service, we headed towards the Roman Baths which had been on our list of interesting things to see.
These baths are one of the best preserved Roman remains in the world. This thermal spa continues to supply water at a temperature of 46 degrees Centigrade every day.
A stone among the artifacts date this geologic wonder bag to AD70. We learned a lot of history about the place via personal audio devices and we actually spent a couple of hours exploring the grounds of this amazing historical site.
The pools are lined with the original lead that was used when the Romans built them.
Statues of Roman Gods adorn the upper part of the main bath.
There is a pump room attached to the complex where one can enjoy a taste of the waters
but we thought we'd pass on that idea.
Directly across from the Baths is Bath Abbey.
and, actually, Marty was able to take this photo of the three of us, while we were actually on the top level of the Roman Baths, with the Abbey in the background.
You can get a feeling for the massive size of the structure from this photo of Marty standing outside the door.
We never did manage to get inside for a peek, as the hours were limited due to daily services.
We hiked to the Royal Circus
then onto the Royal Crescent, which was built in 1767 as a Royal Residence.
where Marty managed to get a photo of all three of us standing in front.
We traveled through Victoria Gardens
exiting at the Lion's gate
next to which stands a War memorial with the names of the many Bath casualties from World War I, World War II, and present day conflicts.
Our walk around town offered some interesting architecture as you can see by these photos.
And, now for a bit of a humorous story. When we purchased the tickets for the Roman Baths, we had the opportunity to purchase a "group" ticket which gave us entry into two other museums: the Victoria Art Museum as well as one other. I had been particularly interested in seeing the No 2 Crescent museum, which I mistakenly took as being the "other" museum. In all fairness, the attendant did say that the third museum was the History of Fashion museum, but I had thought that was contained in the #2 Crescent Museum, and I did mention my interest in the latter several times. But she never corrected my error, and we soon found out that the ticket was for a venue that wasn't what I had expected or planned. We never did see the #2 Crescent Museum, and I was pretty ticked that I had spent extra money for a museum of which Amy and Marty were definitely NOT interested in seeing, Plus, it was off the beaten track, and our feet were getting pretty tired.
So, we decided to compromise and at least see the Victoria Art museum so that we could reap SOME of the rewards of the extra money we had put out.
I noticed that no one actually asked to see our tickets and we were given free roam of the floor that held art throughout the years in a gallery.
Among the collection was this famous painting of Henry VIII from 1567
and this Adoration of the Magi dating from 1460
I was amazed at the richness of the colors that still held in these fine pieces of art so many centuries later.
Then there was this painting that reminded me so much of our dog, Buster, from years past.
It really captured my heart.
Marty caught me resting my feet awhile in front of a statue of a woman holding a lamb.
I was still feeling a little ticked that we had put out that extra money for no reason, when Marty brought to my attention that there was a special exhibit in the downstairs gallery that required the ticket for admittance.
"Well, let's do it!" I explained, filled with the satisfaction of knowing that the ticket would not be wasted.
We showed the ticket to the attendant, who marked our admittance, and we entered the exhibition.
And, here are two examples of what we saw:
This one was entitled, "The Smell of Feet"
And, here you see, simply: "Feet"
Well, that was certainly worth that extra money put out, don't you think?
At the risk of offending someone, I'll refrain from critiquing them.
Dinner was at the Huntsman which I had reserved prior to leaving for our trip.
The interior was very quaint and the staff was quite attentive and friendly.
And, as you can see, these two were certainly happy with the draft choices.
Dinner was, once again, excellent, and we headed back to our room, on foot, enjoying the night beauty of Bath.
Marty keeps joking that we are going to go back tomorrow to tour the Museum of Fashion, but I can guarantee you that won't be happening.
We will be moving on, and although I did enjoy our time spent here, I really am hoping for a more relaxing environment without the crowds of people whom we had to maneuver through today.
So goodnight for now. I need to recoup for tomorrow!
Good night. You have earned your rest.
ReplyDelete