So much to blog about.

After Winchester we traveled over to Bath. Oh, Bath is so cool!

We unloaded at the Assembly Hall which contains a museum and restaurant. Emma and I decided to do a quick run-through of the Fashion Museum ... Funny story: Apparently you are supposed to pay to go into this museum. When Emma and I decided to go in we didn't realize this. We looked around to see if we needed tickets but no one was there and the door was wide open so we assumed it was free. We enjoyed a quick tour of it (there really isn't that much to see) and then came out and told this other group of girls about the fun dress-up section. When they went to go in, they immediately got stopped (they were in a big ol' group) and told they had to pay. Aw, the blessings of liking to travel with only one (maybe two) other people. Emma and I thought it was a fantastic adventure!

Next we went as a group to the Roman baths. That place is so awesome! It just feels mystical. The hot spring that provides the water to the bath bubbles as hot gas is released under the surface of the water. You can just picture these Romans staring at that in wonder. Obviously it was the workings of a powerful goddess.

The bath is dedicated to the goddess Minerva (or Athena in Greek). People would come to be healed/cleansed. A funny thing they also did was ask for curses against their enemies. They would come to the pool, write their sinister request upon a small sheet of lead, and then toss it into the pool so that Minerva could read it and grant their desire. Ok...lead...into the pool...water that is circulated throughout the ENTIRE complex...no wonder lead-poisoning was a problem. Really.

It was interesting because you could see the original foundations of the temple that used to be there (it was destroyed but they found the ruins). The entire complex would have been absolutely massive in its day. It was an incredible site!

At the end of the tour, you simply have to try some of the bath water (ok...drinking anyone's bath water is disgusting...but add to that the fact that the water in the pool is green...). It is simply a must because you need to have the experience. It really didn't taste that bad. Really warm, maybe a bit "irony" but not too bad. But then again, I would never request that water at a restaurant.

After this I wandered into the abbey and enjoyed yet another church. It is interesting because while all the churches vary and are often structurally different, they have very distinct set of characteristics that is common among all of them (including the use of prayer candles and prayer boards, tombs of important people, elaborate decorations, etc.).

Ironically, I went in with a group but got so distracted by the art I was completely separated from them. My thought? "Oh well." I enjoyed walking around Bath on my own for a bit. I wandered into a random shop and happened to run into Stephanie Huntsman who had also been separated from her previous group. She was looking into buying earrings. She gets earrings as a souvenir any where she goes, which I thought was a great idea! She makes sure they are unique and somehow remind her of the area. She was so convincing I ended up buying a pair myself. A set of pearl (fake pearl but who cares) earrings that totally say "England" to me. I love them!

We ended up getting dinner together (traditional English pasties (and an added fresh fruit scone for me)...so good!) and then walked down to the Royal Crescent. If you have seen the movie Persuasion there is a scene where the main character is desperately running towards her true love. The area she is running in? The Royal Crescent. So...we obviously had to get photos of ourselves racing desperately to our imaginary lovers at the end of the lane. Hahaahahahaaa! It was so fun!

Then we met up with another group, got some really good Italian ice cream and headed off to the youth hostel. A hostel, which I had never heard of until this trip, is a large motel like place with bunk rooms instead of individual ones. It is perfect for large groups of travelers...a bit sketchy if you are on your own because you have no idea who you will be sharing a room with.

I took some time that evening to go explore more of Bath and found some of the cutest areas. I really enjoy just exploring new areas like that. Bath is simply beautiful!