I'll probably post another post tomorrow that talks about my tutorials (I have my second class tomorrow), but this post will be devoted mainly to the subject of Baths.
Not bathtub baths, the city Bath. My friend Nicole and I went last Saturday. We had our first real "English weather day" that day--rain, drizzle, and wind. Fortunately, it didn't rain on us while we were sightseeing in Bath, only on our way to the train station.
Bath is actually a really beautiful place. I didn't think I would enjoy my time there as much as I did--it's definitely a place I would return to!
First we caught our train from Oxford to Didcot Parkway, and then from Didcot Parkway to Bath. This was my first train adventure, and I was also pleasantly surprised by how efficient it was. The trains were either early or right on time, so it was a pretty quick and painless way to get from place to place. All told it took us around 2 hours to get from Oxford to Bath.
First we went to see the main attraction in Bath--the Roman Baths. I'm not 100% sure of all the history related--but if you have some time, you should google it or something. It's pretty cool! The Romans had a settlement there called Aquae Sulis. The Romans built baths there and a temple to Minerva. Here are some pictures of the Roman Baths:
Great Bath
Great Bath
Great Bath
Great Bath
Sacred Spring
Underground channel built by the Romans
Cold Plunge Pool
Sacred Spring
The Roman Baths museum was really cool, but because we went on a Saturday, it was also really crowded. Definitely worth the trip, though!
Bath was (and still is, to some degree) a very fashionable place. Jane Austen lived here for a while, and she set two of her novels in Bath--one of which, Persuasion, is my favorite!
So, in her honor, we just had to visit the Jane Austen Centre!
The museum's collection was sparse, to say the least, but it was very informative and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Then we had lunch (and tea, of course) at the Regency tea room on the third floor of the Jane Austen Centre. It was quite delicious!
Then we headed out to see the two main architectural features of Bath--the Circus and the Royal Crescent.
A cynical person would say that the Circus is no more than a glorified roundabout, but I think it's beautiful. The houses are curved so that they form a perfect circle. If you don't believe me--ask Google!
Then the Royal Crescent--a HUGE crescent shaped wall of houses. I couldn't even get it all in my camera!
Next we went to the Fashion Museum and the Assembly Rooms--giant, beautiful rooms where balls and parties would have been held. Jane Austen would have danced there, and her characters certainly did. Sadly, a very lucky couple was getting married in the Assembly rooms, so we couldn't go in--but we did get a chance to peek in the Fashion Museum.
Dress from around 1660
What's a fashion museum without dress up?
After that it was time to splash back to the train station and catch our train to Oxford. We were starving by the time we got back, so we grabbed a pizza and ate dinner on the stairs outside the Oxford business school. All in all, Bath was a delightful excursion to make, and I'm so glad that I went! I would jump at the chance to go back.
More tomorrow!
Cheerio!
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