Bath

6:00:00 AM Out And About Global 9 Comments

We took a day trip out to Bath and Stonehenge. With just a few hours to enjoy Bath we had to prioritize our time. We chose to tour the Roman Baths, the Bath Abbey and then took a guided tour of the city.

I notice the Abbey has taken priority in my photo taking. It does have gorgeous fan vaulting and large stained glass windows, but its current predicament is more macabre and interesting. Over the course of 500 years as many as 6000 bodies were buried beneath the flooring. Over time the decaying bodies created a honeycomb of holes under the flooring destabilizing the foundation. Archeologists and structural engineers were called in and the problem has been addressed and is stable...for now.

The Roman Baths for which the town is named after are first rate. Perhaps not much to look at from the outside, but the museum is fantastic--even if a little pricy. We've seen a lot of ancient baths, but to see one in working order was super interesting. The museum tells the story of how the hot springs were discovered, how the Romans harnessed its power, and how for centuries it has been a source of medicinal relief for thousands of people.

As for the rest of the city, well, I didn't take any pictures. We took a free volunteer led tour of the city. It was very highly rated on Trip Advisor and I thought it would be a good way to maximize our time in the city. I am sorry to say, but it was such a disappointment. I felt like we would walk 5 minutes and stand for 15 minutes while our guide told us bit and pieces of non-essential information. He didn't talk about Jane Austin, he didn't take us down to the river or bridge. When I look at photos of the city I asked myself, "where was that? I didn't see that!" So, I don't have any pictures of the city because what I did see wasn't all that interesting.