Sunday, November 15th – Tuesday, November 17th
Bath turned out to be one of my favorite places on the entire trip, though it started out with our coach bus not being able to drive up the driveway of our youth hostel which happened to be located on the landmark hill that dominates Bath’s city landscape. By the time however, we were pros at carrying our luggage anywhere so it was nearly with ease that we lugged our suitcases up the steep driveway, through the hostel, up some stairs and to our rooms. We all agreed that it would have been worse had there been all stairs to get up the hill. Stairs are the worst; steep hill? No big deal.
Shortly after we got settled I called my (family) friend Michelle who lives near Bath (in Bristol) with her husband Paul. I had been looking forward to seeing her for a while – a familiar face does wonders while you’re studying abroad – and I had been planning on connecting with her later that night and the next day. We made plans for her to pick me up at 6:45 PM and take me to their church’s young adult group – Joshua Generation. Right after I hung up, a group of us were already ready to go out and explore Bath (and of course find a Tesco.) I’ve been amazed at the turn around we’ve been able to have in adjusting to a new setting; we come, we drop our stuff, we find a map, we leave. (Thanks to DR who set the standard of seeming to instantly know everything about a place as soon as we arrived, complete with maps that magically appeared in his hand – I never knew where they came from, haha.) Talk about learning adaptability. So we set out down the gigantic hill, passing a large field, and walking along the river. Eventually we found dinner and a Waitrose (grocery store), which sufficed in place of a Tesco; and retraced our steps all the way up the big hill in the dark, which could have been a lot more disastrous than it was.
At 6:45 PM I walked down to meet Michelle at the bottom of our driveway and we gave each other a big hug! It was SO good to see a familiar face, especially one I hadn’t seen in a really long time. (Plus, the last time Michelle and Paul were in the States, I hadn’t been home in Madison, so this was a treat double over.) We drove to their church in downtown Bath – which meets in an old movie theatre – and I was absolutely overjoyed to be 1) in the company of so many students near my age, and 2) at church ! Michelle introduced me to so many people left and right that I nearly thought she might have made a public announcement about my coming! Haha. It was so refreshing to be in a non-tourist atmosphere in relation to local British people; I would have liked to stay longer. The funniest part of the evening was when I followed Michelle to where we were sitting in the auditorium and she led me to sit in a spot practically surrounded by British guys. The whole front row turned around to meet me (I didn’t get a chance to turn around and meet those behind) and one of them even gave me a rather welcoming hug – let’s just say that’s not very British at all. Haha.
That night we had worship and a teaching and it just felt so good to sing again. The teacher spoke about dreams (as in goals) and I know God had me there specifically for a word about not being disappointed if you haven’t seen them happen yet. I knew I had recently slumped into a disappointed mood about my second semester because of how my expectations hadn’t been accurate, so it was good to hear from God that way.
The following day our group came down the hill into town – this time I took the bus – to meet a tour guide who would be giving us a walking tour of Bath with a literary emphasis on Persuasion. Thankfully we had a beautiful (and rare!) sunny day to walk all around Bath including down the promenade that is mentioned in Persuasion. Afterwards I promptly gave Michelle a call and planned to meet her at the tea room above the Jane Austen Center for lunch. (Mom, you would have loved this!) I didn’t actually take a tour of the Jane Austen Center, but I decided that would give me reason to come back someday; instead I spent some time in the gift shop which was worth it in its own right. Then I met Michelle for lunch; I had a cranberry and brie toastie, which was really delicious, along with Earl Grey tea. And here started my talking Michelle’s ear off for the rest of the afternoon!
We spent a good hour eating lunch and then drove back to her house in Bristol which is about 30-40 min from Bath if I remember correctly. Then we sat and had coffee and biscuits galore in Michelle and Paul’s living room until it was time to make dinner, which only made us shift slightly in our conversation. Michelle made spinach and mushroom cannelloni and a plum sponge cake for dessert. Everything tasted delicious, especially in comparison to the non-homemade food I’d been eating for quite a while. Oh, and need I mentioned that we still hadn’t stopped talking? It was amazingly therapeutic to talk with Michelle about my abroad experience thus far, process what God was doing in my life, and once in a while name drop a mutual friend from Madison, which made me feel all the more at home. The day really couldn’t have been better; I am so thankful that Michelle blocked off her entire day for me. I felt so loved and welcome, which is just what I needed. What a great girls’ day!
Being dropped off back at the youth hostel was bittersweet since I didn’t know when I would next see Michelle, but the day had been wonderful. Plus, I got a lot of “where have you been?” looks from my fellow students and questions about how the visit to my friend’s had been.
Just when I thought my visit to Bath couldn’t be any better, Tuesday was spa day! (Hooray for program expenses! Haha.) In the morning I took the bus down to the city to tour the Roman Baths which was a real treat. I had no idea they were so well preserved and that there was such history underneath this little city! Then for lunch our group met to eat at the restaurant in the Pump Room, which has a gorgeous Victorian interior and has been “regarded as the social heart of Bath for more than two centuries…where hot Spa water is drawn for drinking.” We all had a delicious three course lunch and took turns trying a glass of Spa water at the back of the room. Mark told us he had heard it was vile, but I decided it just tasted like extra mineral-ly, warm Milwaukee well water.
The second half of the afternoon, however, was what we had all been waiting for the entire day…The Thermae Bath Spa! Known as Britain’s original and only natural thermal spa, we had three hours to bathe in the naturally warm and mineral-rich spring waters! Many of us spent a lot of our time in the open-air rooftop pool complete with the breathtaking views of Bath both day and night – fortunately we even got to see the sun set while we were there. My other favorite section of the spa was the floor of steam rooms, each of which had circular glass walls and was infused with an essential oil – the lavender one was my favorite. After our time was up at the Spa a group of us walked over to Starbucks to sit and drink a holiday beverage to top off our wonderful day!
I’m sure many around the world are drawn to Bath just because of the Spa, but my whole experience – though short – easily convinced me that I wanted to return to Bath someday, which is a tad funny considering I really didn’t do a whole lot in the city itself. Yet I felt like it had everything that was necessary for a quaint British holiday, including a taste of home! Bath is definitely a place worth returning.
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