Road Trip - Day 1 - Bath

I arrived in Bath around lunchtime, checked into the guest house, and headed back into town to do some site-seeing. I started by walking up the hill behind the guest house to reach the Royal Crescent, a supposedly famous place I've never heard of. I then walked towards the Royal Circus, a place I did know about. It's a circular grassy area with some huge trees and then buildings built in a circle with three roads entering the round-about.

Some of the buildings in the Royal Circus.

I then wandered down the hill into the main part of the city and got lost along the way, but the city is so tiny that I knew I would find a signpost quickly. All these touristy places have well-marked signposts to guide the way to the key sites and tourist information centre.

The Roman Baths was the first site I wanted to visit - I figured since I didn't know how long it would take to explore the city, I should start with the most famous site. While I was waiting in line to buy my ticket, my phone rang with a call from an employment agency! For the fourth time I had a job dangled in front of me and this seemed to be the most promising. (I found out the next day that the company decided to hire someone they already knew. Frustrating, but felt like a nudge from God telling me He'll provide when the time is right.)

Me at the 2,000 year old Roman Baths.
The columns are Victorian, but the footings and lead lining in the pool are Roman.

Gem stones found during excavations of the pools
The stones have tiny images engraved on them - speculation is that they either fell out of swimmers' jewelry or somebody tossed in a bagful as an offering to the goddess.

The baths wind around under the city and only a portion have been excavated. Wooden walkways are built over the rough remains underground and it's quite damp in order to keep salt from forming and the rocks from deteriorating. Hand-held audio devices are provided and numbers are on the walls at certain points so you can turn on that chapter and listen to a description of what you're seeing.

A drainage area from the pools - the orange deposits are found in many of the waterways.

I've only ever seen pictures of the classic Roman bath, as seen in the first photo. There are actually other baths that have been excavated and viewing them is part of the tour, they're just not as photogenic as the open one. There's a cold bath, a semi-circular bath for sick people, and other open areas for ceremonial purposes.

Sections of the floor were held up on massive areas built up on these "stilts". Hot air passed underneath and out through chimneys to warm the buildings.

Roman lead piping.

Original Roman footings in the main pool.

After wandering around the ruins I took the exit through the Pump Room. This room is a huge restaurant where cheap tourists like me have an area where we can walk through the room to wait for a server to come and let us taste the hot springs water. People describe it as "disgusting" so I was a bit apprehensive about tasting it, but it's actually not bad. Tastes fine as you drink it but then there's a metallic after-taste which doesn't last long.

The famous fountain in the pump room.

Pre-Road Trip Note

My train is arranged, I've booked the B&Bs, my car is reserved, and my route is roughly mapped out. The overall plan is to head to Bath first thing tomorrow morning, Monday, December 8, and spend a couple of days exploring. I'll pick up the car rental on Thursday morning and head south to Lyme Regis (I've dreamed of going there since the first time I watched "Persuasion") and then head west, taking in a good portion of the coast. I'll wrap back up around near Bath and head north to the Cotswolds. A couple of days in that area, hopefully including the tourist trap of Shakespeare's birthplace, Stratford-Upon-Avon, and then return the car to Bath on Tuesday, December 16. I'm taking along my laptop and I'll try to post every day if I can get internet access.

For those who are concerned about my safety, it's ultimately in God's hands, but my mom has access to an online map where I've marked my plans and I've included details of the B&Bs where I'll be staying. I'll check in every day and I have a cell/mobile in case I get stuck.

That's the overall plan. But I'm a Piechnik after all, and we're notorious for getting into crazy situations. Nothing turns out the way we originally planned, but that's how the best stories are created.

Hook Christmas Cracker

Tonight I attended the Hook Christmas Cracker! It's a community event with rides for the kids like you'd find at a fair, booths selling things like cheese and fudge, cotton candy and balloons all over the place, some shops put out snacks, and there are choirs, dancers and magicians performing in the central area. It's a small village so you could easily walk from one end of the festivities to the other in less than 10 minutes. We watched a school choir sing for a while and out of five songs, only one was about Santa, the rest were about Jesus. I think pretty much every resident was there - crowds of kids and families with some seniors mixed in.

Ann and I walked in and wandered around for about an hour. I succumbed to the temptation and bought four kinds of fudge - lemon, because I was curious; chocolate, because I had to have a classic; mocha, because it's the only yummy way to consume coffee; and maple, for a little taste of home.

Lights on one of the rides.

The police station had a little room they had set up as Santa's Grotto. Santa seems to always be tucked away in a cave of sorts over here - some place with lots of presents and Christmas lights and a tree but hidden away from passersby. Back home, Santa is usually out in a big sleigh or he sits on a huge throne so it's different to not see Santa having his photo taken with kids when I'm walking through the mall.

Outside the police station there was the saddest Santa Claus I've ever seen. With all the retired men in town, they had to resort to a mannequin? So sad... and funny. It was a cold night and I burst out laughing when a woman near us said mournfully, "Aw, Santa is frozen."

Merry Christmas...?

A close-up of the face, so you can get the full impact.

I've never seen a booth like this back home!
Made me wish I wasn't allergic to them.

Me and Ann bundled against the cold.

Moments in Life

Here are some random moments in my life...

The woman I stayed with in Cambridge gave me a little cutting of a plant that she said blooms incredibly well. She said she was on vacation and saw a massive plant with impressive blossoms and snipped a little leaf from inside the pot. She stuck it in dirt when she got home and it has thrived ever since. I forgot to plant the cutting and when I opened the little bag a couple of days ago, the tiny stem had a huge blossom on it. I figured if it's so determined to survive, I might as well give it some dirt and see if it perseveres in spite of my forgetfulness when it comes to watering indoor plants.

My determined little Christmas Cactus.

I went to a garden centre with Ann today and as we were driving she pointed out a little steeple peeking from a cluster of trees near the road. She said it belonged to the smallest church in Hampshire. I asked if she'd ever visited the church and she said she hadn't. On the way home she decided to stop by and see if it was open; one of those things you never bother to do when you live in a place for a long time. It was an adorable little church from the latter part of the twelfth century called the Church of St. Swithun. I was thrilled to discover it has connections to Canada! Check out the link for info if you're curious - a man buried there was Governor-General of Canada in 1766. Sadly I didn't have my camera with me, but I had my cell phone so I snapped a few shots (and re-shot it with my camera since I don't have the ability to upload the images to my laptop). One of my favourites is below. The mermaid is carved into the side of the front door as a warning to flirtatious youth. Boys, don't flirt with mermaids when you're away at sea or when you return home and find a girl to marry, the mermaid might show up at the church on your wedding day and drag you back to sea.

A warning to flirtatious youth.

This morning Ann pulled out her Christmas decorations and we put some up around the house. We put garland up the banister, ivy and holly on the mantle in the living room, and little bits around the house. My train is booked for spending Christmas in Eastbourne. Snow is falling in different parts of the country. Christmas is coming!

Decorations on the banister going upstairs.

I know most people hate shopping at Christmas, but I love it. When I was a youth leader about 10 years ago, our youth group held a weekend retreat and the theme was love languages. It was the first time I was introduced to the idea and it really helped me understand myself and relate better to those around me. My strongest love language for expressing love to my family and friends is giving gifts (although, oddly enough, that's at the bottom of my list for receiving love). I think that's one of the reasons I love Christmas; it's an excuse to shop for hours to find the perfect gifts!

But not this year.

I'm trying to save money and shipping costs are too high to send a bunch of presents to Canada (and almost everything you buy here can be bought in Canada anyway), so my friends who are used to receiving gifts will be going without this year. I have ideas for gifts for my family that won't require shipping, but it still means I won't be spending hours at the mall. It's strange to miss out on that part of Christmas.

I still haven't found a job and whenever there's a good prospect, the job is put on hold or my resume is submitted too late by the agency. The economic downturn isn't helping. I trust God to work through all this... I don't know what He's doing so I'll take steps and push on doors and trust Him to open or close them one step at a time. I was feeling really lost until a few days ago when I decided to continue looking for work but pursue travel until I find a job... no point in sitting around moping... I might as well spend some of my hard-earned savings!

I've been looking around and most last-minute travel deals are booked up as they're to towns holding Christmas markets (high demand). I decided to book my own trip! I've reserved a room at a B&B in Bath for two or three nights next week. I have discovered that room rates are open to negotiation so I'll be saving a nice little wad of cash on my accommodation. Never be afraid to ask... the worst they can do is laugh and say no. Hopefully I'll find a way to get into Europe soon for a decent price... I really want to get a European stamp in my passport.