Hello hello!

I hope your weekend is off to a great start! I am headed to a Writing Center conference today…and I had to get up at 5:30. Not fun on a Saturday, but I’m thinking the conference will make up for that! (I wrote this post Friday night, if you were wondering! 😉 )

Before I start the recap of Bath, I just wanted to say something really quickly….:

Happy First Birthday, Ella!

Her birthday was actually yesterday, and I’m so bummed I wasn’t there to “celebrate” with her on her first birthday. Buuuuut she’s definitely going to get some toys and bully bones next weekend. 😉

Question of the day: Do you celebrate your pet’s birthday?

Anyway, on to the recap!

Bath, England

My British Life and Culture class headed to Bath after we finished taking pictures of and enjoying the wind views at Stonehenge.

I managed to snag one of the front seats on the double-decker coach we took. The scenery was beautiful and made for an enjoyable drive.

As you drive into Bath, you get a glimpse of the rows and hills of buildings and houses. It’s breathtaking.

If there was one word to describe Bath, it’s regal.

The architecture definitely has a somewhat Italian feel to it (because, of course, Bath was created by the Romans), but the stone color, gardens, shops, and streets are distinctly English.

Apparently, Sally Lunn’s buns are a huge attraction in Bath. Of course, with my allergies, I didn’t want to risk trying one, and the line was so long, I didn’t even want to wait to ask about the ingredients.

So, instead, my friends Kim and Nancy and I wandered around for a bit in search of food. We found a tiny pub, and Kim ordered a traditional English breakfast, which I just had to get a picture of:

Love it. I think that’s Dr. Oz’s worst nightmare! 😛

After lunch, we continued exploring.

The bridge that you see in the picture above is one of only four in the world that has shops on it.

This cathedral was amazing. I could have spent hours in front of it and still not caught ever detail.

Angels climbing:

Walking around the Roman baths was so interesting. There is such a rich history behind the city! (If you want to know more about it, this page has lots of interesting facts.)

The ruins were pretty amazing, too.In the late 1700s, Bath was the place to be. It was where all of the rich and popular went to see and be seen.

If you’ve watched the movie The Duchess with Keira Knightly, you might recognize this room, known as the Pump Room. People would come here to “take the water”, which came straight from a geothermal spring.

If you ever visit Bath, know you can still drink a glass of the water in the Pump Room! People in the early 1800s swore by its healing powers, claiming it cured them of illnesses ranging from minor headaches to leprosy! It is very mineral-y and earthy tasting and smelling, and, truth be told, awful. However, it is a piece of history, and when in Roman Bath….

I honestly could have spent ages wandering around the city. Being a huge Jane Austen fan, it was fun to visit the various sites mentioned in her novels, and of course the ones in the movie adaptations!

This incredible building is called the Royal Crescent.

The Crescent is made up of 30 houses, and has been used in many movies. Plenty of notable people have lived in the houses in the 250 years the building has been around. Here’s an amazing view of it from the sky:

(source)

The picture below is actually another row of houses that was modeled on the Crescent. Lots of famous actors/actresses and other types of celebrities have lived here.

In far too short of a time, we were headed back to Kingston. We did get to enjoy some of the most gorgeous scenery, though. The area we were traveling through is known as the Cotwolds, and is full of rolling hills, fields, and little white sheep.

I’ve uploaded a video that I took from the bus…you probably will want to turn off your computer speakers (it’s just a bunch of people talking in the background) when you watch it.

Note: if you’re an email subscriber and can’t see the video, you might want to click HERE to come straight to my site!

I love the setting sun coming through the trees on the hill here:

Thanks so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed the pictures! Have a wonderful day! 🙂