Bristol and Bath

I am in England right now, staying with my friend Marika. She's doing a study abroad program at the University of Bristol and has a very comfortable couch.


It is very cold in Bristol and, as no one knows to shovel their walks, walking around is a bit treacherous. Here we have frozen water chains at the University.






















On Sunday we made the short train ride from Bristol to Bath Spa. The centre of Bath is very much like Whistler village - open, spacious, cleaner than any normal city, touristy, and full of nice shops. But in January, the hordes of tourists are slightly smaller and it was quite nice poking around. It helped that for some reason it was considerably warmer in Bath than in Bristol.

Marika had work to do so I left in her a cafe and went to see the Roman Baths myself. The museum is quite good and once you pay your admission, everything else is free. You get an audioguide and there are half hour guided tours on the hour. I actually skipped most of the museum stuff because I didn't feel like reading placards and learning about daily Roman life.

These coins were interesting though. Look how tiny they are! (It's a bit blurry but says "Iron Age Celtic coins were found in the Spring and this suggests that local people gave them as offerings. Of the 18 found most were minted by the local tribe, the Dobunni. The smallest coin is from the Durotrigan tribe who were based south of here around Dorset. These coins are rarely found outside their tribal region.")


I did join one of the guided tours which was thorough and well-paced. It was a small group which was also nice. Older British men tend to be extra courteous so there were a couple in the group that always waited for me to follow our guide first. I very much like the Baths, as I did when I visited them with my family ten years ago. They are tranquil, despite the tourists and I find the atmosphere quite soothing.





Bath Abbey with the Roman Baths to the right:


I guess they're following the rules...


Bath at night