Now that we are back in London, we are going to meet Andrea again. We decided to take the train to the city of Bath, a small town in Southwest England about an hour outside of London. Once again, we met Andrea at Paddington station. The lady who we bought our tickets from sent us to the wrong platform and we ended up missing our train. Luckily, there was another one leaving thirty minutes later. We arrived at the Bath Spa train station and started walking into the town. We stumbled upon the Bath Abbey and the Roman Baths themselves.
Bath Abbey is actually one of the most visited churches in southern England and looks much like the churches we have been spending quite a bit of time in. Because of this, there was nothing that was really different or amazing to my mom, Andrea or I.
We then walked across the courtyard to the Roman Baths and picked up our tickets and our audio guides. When you first enter the main bath house, you are on the second level and have an overhead view of the pool. We looked at the natural teal colored water and the architecture all around it. Our audio tour pointed out six old statues around the second floor. They were Roman emperors and the only ones I recognized were Julius Caesar and Constantine. We headed downstairs and were at water level with the main bath. Steam was rising from the water and the winds were pushing it towards us. As tempting as it is, you are not allowed to feel the water but we did anyways. We got up close to it and saw the minerals in the water and building up on the side walls. I was surprised that it was only lukewarm but would have been nice to swim in. As we continued on the tour, we looked at the smaller indoor baths and the museum. We also stumbled upon a drinking area where you can drink the water straight from the spring. It was warm and tasted odd but there was nothing in it that could cause you harm. Starving, we dropped off our audio tours and went to find a place to eat in the quaint city.
We found a cafe that claimed to be established in the oldest house in Bath. We ordered a sandwich and soup. The sandwich was served on a Bath bun which was a light, fresh sweet roll. The tomato basil soup was also some of the best I have ever had and tasted like it was made fresh when we ordered it. This filling lunch was accompanied by a pot of tea.
We walked across the way to find something for dessert. Andrea and my mom found a bakery and each found their own little desserts. I went to Shakeaway, a milkshake shop, and had one of the best chocolate milkshakes I have ever had. Satisfied with our snacks, we walked back to the train station and headed back for London. For the first few minutes, it was hard to find a seat because we were travelling at the peak of rush hour which was bad planning on our part. Andrea and I were exhausted and fell asleep as soon as we sat down. I awoke to a sudden stop and Andrea was still asleep. I had to wake her up as we were pulling into Paddington.
At the end of the day, we took the tube to Belsize Park where Andrea was staying. My mom and I headed back to the hotel because she leaves early in the morning the next day.
Bath Abbey is actually one of the most visited churches in southern England and looks much like the churches we have been spending quite a bit of time in. Because of this, there was nothing that was really different or amazing to my mom, Andrea or I.
We then walked across the courtyard to the Roman Baths and picked up our tickets and our audio guides. When you first enter the main bath house, you are on the second level and have an overhead view of the pool. We looked at the natural teal colored water and the architecture all around it. Our audio tour pointed out six old statues around the second floor. They were Roman emperors and the only ones I recognized were Julius Caesar and Constantine. We headed downstairs and were at water level with the main bath. Steam was rising from the water and the winds were pushing it towards us. As tempting as it is, you are not allowed to feel the water but we did anyways. We got up close to it and saw the minerals in the water and building up on the side walls. I was surprised that it was only lukewarm but would have been nice to swim in. As we continued on the tour, we looked at the smaller indoor baths and the museum. We also stumbled upon a drinking area where you can drink the water straight from the spring. It was warm and tasted odd but there was nothing in it that could cause you harm. Starving, we dropped off our audio tours and went to find a place to eat in the quaint city.
We found a cafe that claimed to be established in the oldest house in Bath. We ordered a sandwich and soup. The sandwich was served on a Bath bun which was a light, fresh sweet roll. The tomato basil soup was also some of the best I have ever had and tasted like it was made fresh when we ordered it. This filling lunch was accompanied by a pot of tea.
We walked across the way to find something for dessert. Andrea and my mom found a bakery and each found their own little desserts. I went to Shakeaway, a milkshake shop, and had one of the best chocolate milkshakes I have ever had. Satisfied with our snacks, we walked back to the train station and headed back for London. For the first few minutes, it was hard to find a seat because we were travelling at the peak of rush hour which was bad planning on our part. Andrea and I were exhausted and fell asleep as soon as we sat down. I awoke to a sudden stop and Andrea was still asleep. I had to wake her up as we were pulling into Paddington.
At the end of the day, we took the tube to Belsize Park where Andrea was staying. My mom and I headed back to the hotel because she leaves early in the morning the next day.