May 20, 2003

May 20, 2003

We start the day back at the Roman ruins of Bath, UK. 2000 years ago the Romans conquered England and built many towns. One was located here because of the presence of a hot spring. That meant the Romans could build one of their favorite luxuries, a hot bath, to make living in this cold damp northern climate tolerable. The ruins are in the middle of town, and the main feature is an overlook of a swimming pool about 20 feet below street level. It is steaming and slightly sulfurous smelling. This is just the biggest pool in a huge bath complex atop which the modern English city was built. We enter the reception hall, pick up the self-guided audio tour and descend stairs down to the excavations. These Roman Baths were only re-discovered in the late 1800’s.

We first see the sacred spring, the 150-gal/min 115oF flow that is the source of all the water. During cleanings, archeologists found thousands of artifacts that had been thrown in the spring as offerings to their gods. From the spring, the Romans ran the water in lead pipes to a variety of pools including the lead-lined Great Bath we saw on the way in. There is an east and west wing to the complex. Each side has some uniquely Roman saunas, heated by hot furnace exhaust that flowed below the floor and around the walls of the rooms. The Romans also liked cold plunge baths too. Invigorating for some, I suppose.

The museum has an exhibit on ordinary people and their concerns and issues at the time, assembled from the many artifacts found during excavation.  Surprisingly many of the same petty things we worry about today. I guess some things don’t change. The Roman legions deserted England in the 5th century when barbarians invaded Rome. The entirely indoor bath complex eventually collapsed, was built over, and forgotten.

We interrupt our Roman Bath visit by going topside to take one of the free, guided walking tours of the city. Aimee really enjoyed this museum break. Bath is a beautiful town with wonderful Georgian architecture and beautiful parks. The tour ends at the iconic Royal Crescent apartments. Apparently Bath has always been a playground for the rich and famous. We join the upper crust and have “cream tea” at Sally Lunn’s, a Bath landmark. It claims to be the oldest house in Bath. Cream Tea turns out to be tea with a scone, jam, and butter (cream).

During our visit to the Bath Abbey Cathedral next-door we notice they are having a concert tonight. We decide to go. After eating Italian at Trattoria de Salvo we walk to the church. The performance is mostly just chanting. Not really our cup of tea (no pun intended), but it is an interesting experience.