Nothing beats Bath. It is one of only two World Heritage cities in Britian (the other is Edinburgh), and it deserves the recognition! Bath was the Hollywood of the early 1800s, where the rich would go to see and be seen. Fashionable ladies strolled the avenues, and available young aristocrats looking for life partners spent nearly every night at the "pump rooms," dancing and mingling. It would have been a sight to see.
Nowadays, it is a different kind of site to see! Bath has been a popular resort destination since Roman times at least! Hot springs in the ground inspired the Romans to build a massive bath house for public bathing - this has been excavated and you can visit it - it's surprisingly similar to public pool complexes today. In the Middle Ages, people build another bath house (not knowing that only seven inches away the Roman baths lay hidden underground!), and then, after Queen Mary bathed in the waters and miraculously overcame her infertility in the 1700s, Bath became to place to be. Aristocrats from all over the country spent their summers there, bathing in the mineral water, drinking it, shopping, and socializing. During this heyday, pretty much the whole town was built up - and now it is one impressive monolith of grand limestone Georgian architecture. The city's historic center is just small enough to get around everywhere on foot (and lots of fascinating walking tours help guide you around).
But the cool thing about Bath is that it's full of really great museums that are sometimes half empty of tourists, or in the case of the delightful Museum of Bath at Work, totally empty!
The Bizarre Bath Comedy Walk at night is highly recommended -- a hilarious evening tour around the town! You'll need to stay the night in Bath to do this, which will make you happy.
The Bizarre Bath Comedy Walk at night is highly recommended -- a hilarious evening tour around the town! You'll need to stay the night in Bath to do this, which will make you happy.
Of course we mustn't forget Bath's most famous champion, Jane Austen herself. She lived in Bath for a while, as did most of the characters in her books. Bath is a Jane Austen mecca for fans, and a few museums and tours bring the novels alive. If you want your trip to Bath to be REALLY cool, I highly recommend the following:
Recommended Reading:
About the eccentric man who "made" Bath, Beau Nash: here.
Recommended Movies:
No comments:
Post a Comment