July 7th - Bath

Welcome again to another post!

Today we traveled to the magnificent city of Bath in Somerset. It’s known for its ancient Roman baths and is considered one of the great spa towns of Europe.

After about a two-hour bus ride, we arrived in Bath and met our tour guide, Liz. She was lovely and walked us around the city, sharing its rich history. According to legend, Bath was discovered by King Bladud in 850 BC. After contracting leprosy, he noticed that pigs with blemished skin would wash themselves in the hot springs. Deciding to give it a try himself, he bathed in the waters, and miraculously, his leprosy was cured!

Royal Crescent

The Circus

Bath Abbey

 

Once our tour with Liz wrapped up, we broke into smaller groups. I went off with Connor, Piper, and Giulianna, and we popped into a few local shops, including a bookstore and an aqua glass store. Then we decided it was time for lunch. We stopped at Cornish Bakehouse inside The Corridor (a shopping arcade) and picked up some traditional Cornish pasties. They were excellent and stuffed full of meat. Very satisfying!

After lunch, we walked around a bit more and admired the city.

Then, it was time to explore the Roman Baths Museum. This museum offers a look at the remarkably well-preserved baths that were used over 2,000 years ago. It also had plenty of fascinating and interactive exhibits, including projections showing how the baths might have operated, as well as hands-on displays of ancient artifacts. The experience came with an audio guide for both adults and children; the kids’ version was even narrated by Michael Rosen. I also tried a sample of the ancient Roman bathwater (thankfully treated before serving), which was once prescribed by doctors in Roman times, with patients drinking up to 5 liters a day. It tasted disgusting 😄. 

You can't swim in this pool (you used to be able to) because of the lead and deadly bacteria

Sulis Minerva, the goddess of wisdom and health. People came to this bath to worship her.

After the museum, it was time to experience the Roman baths myself. I headed down the street to the Bath Thermae Spa. This place uses the same natural hot springs as the Romans, just thoroughly cleaned for modern guests. The water was warm and rich with over 42 minerals. The spa had several levels to explore.

On the top floor, there was a giant warm rooftop pool with bubble jets and little fountains perfect for soaking your neck and shoulders. Below that were the wellness rooms, which featured a Georgian-style steam room with rose fragrances, a milder Roman-style steam room with botanical scents, an infrared room, an ice chamber, a celestial relaxation room with heated loungers and twinkling lights, plus hot and cold showers that used different color lighting, fragranced air, and calming music. Down in the basement was the Minerva Bath, named after the Roman goddess. This thermal pool had more bubbles, another playful fountain, and even a lazy river.

After my two hour session in the spa, I met up with a small group for dinner at the café in the same building. We shared antipasto platters with assorted meats, cheeses, chutney, hummus, and crackers, which I enjoyed with sparkling water. For dessert, they served us vanilla ice cream topped with chocolate sauce.

But we weren’t quite done with treats yet. Not satisfied with just the ice cream, we stopped at an Italian gelato shop afterward. I picked a walnut fig caramel flavor, and walked around the city enjoying my gelato while listening to the gorgeous church bells of Bath Abbey.

And that's all for now! See you next time!