Beautiful Bath

Working away on "Star Spangled Sampler". 

Today we toured Bath as part of a London Walk's "Day's Out" tour.  We met at Paddington Station and caught a train; arriving in Bath about 11:00am .  

Nearly all of the buildings in Bath are constructed with Bath Stone an Oolitic Limestone. It was originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England.  The beauty of its warm, honey colouring is why Bath is a World Heritage City. Even now new buildings and houses must be constructed using Bath Stone.  The stone gives the city a certain harmony and unity of purpose. 

First off we toured the lovely rooms of the Guild Hall.

And what is Bath without its baths?  Bath is the only place in Britain where geothermal springs come to the surface. From prehistory to the Romans to Georgian England, Bath was a place to enjoy the waters. Even now people come to Bath for hydrotherapy. 

In Georgian times Bath Spa like London, had an active Social Season.  Presided over by Master of Ceremonies, Beau Nash, the Assembly Rooms were the place to see and be seen.

Bath Abbey was a wonderful surprise. When Oliver King, Bishop of Bath and Wells 1495–1503, visited Bath in 1499 he was shocked to find this famous church in ruins.

He had a vision of angels climbing ladders between heaven and earth and had this abbey constructed as a result.

It was built between 1500-1539.

The fan vaulted ceilings are perhaps its most famous feature.

The recent installation of angels in the choir mirrors the use of angels on the exterior of the building.

This church had extraordinary examples of needlework.  The shining star in this case was Sue Symon's work called 'One Man's Journey to Heaven' or the Bath Abbey Diptychs. It is worth a trip to Bath just to see it on display.  It depicts the life of Christ in thirty-five pairs of sumptuously decorated panels - each a combination of needlework, hand-drawn lettering, illumination and calligraphy.  Remarkable.

I'm so glad this was part of the tour.

No visit to Bath is complete without a look at the arch which comprises Bennett Street Circus.

The buildings are constructed with a different type of column on each of three levels - Iambic, Doric, and Corinthian.

The Royal Crescent - wow!

A style of architecture that stands the test of time.

Bath seemed to be a Dog Loving City.

I found a very nice VR pillarbox.

The treat was watching the postman open it and empty out the day's mail!

August seems to be the Month of Rail Disruption.  Our original train back to London was cancelled due to a signal failure and freight train issue.  The second train arrived 34 minutes late and was jam-packed with people.  I ended up standing for the first 30 minutes - not a pleasant experience.  I'm trying not to let that color my Bath Adventure.