Bath - By a surprise guest author (Steve)
Sarah did not feel well after waking up—upset stomach, tired, headache. We decided that she would rest and I would go to breakfast and do the tourist things by myself today. At breakfast, I was given the meal that Sarah had ordered since her choices were in column 1 and our hosts apparently assumed that the man was always #1. Fortunately her choices were nearly identical to mine so I did not complain. I chatted with a Cambridge CS professor during breakfast. He was in Bath for some type of conference.
After tucking Sarah in, I began walking toward town. There were quite a few people headed the same direction. A big hill (downhill), a pedestrian tunnel, and 35 minutes later I was perusing a grocery store for a lunch snack and a drink. I purchased some Coke for my caffeine habit and a couple of granola bars. I left and found some public restrooms. The sink was rather inefficient—it was a hole in the wall with three buttons above the opening for water, soap, and hot air. Yes, you had to wash your hands and dry them using a single apparatus. I shuddered as I imagined the long lines that would form for these over the lunch hour and the numerous unwashed hands of the impatient.
I proceeded on to the abbey and Pump Room which is where the free walking tours started. A gentleman in his late 60s guided a group of about twenty of us all around Bath. He had been a Bather all his life and even learned to swim in one of the hot springs (Cross Spring, which was later covered over and closed after being blamed for some kid’s case of meningitis). We walked across busy roads and quiet alleyways, seeing such sites as the Circus, the Royal Crescent, and the River Avon (literally, River “River”). The tour guide filled us in on all kinds of Roman and obscure Georgian Bath history. It was a fantastic hour-and-a-half tour worth every pence.
Fortunately, I was able to find a free spot on a park bench on the south side of the abbey where I ate my meager lunch. Then, I was off to the Roman Baths which were fabulous. This was my first taste of how Britain is just filled with amazing ancient history. Notable preserved Roman items from ~100 AD that were on display: “curse” prayers which were written on rolled paper and cast into the spring (e.g. “Goddess Minerva, curse the fool who stole my towel from the locker room.”), jewelry and gem stones that had fallen into the drains, and amazingly preserved sculptures.
I hit up the same grocery store and a pharmacy on the way back to the B&B. I bought some biscuits, cheese, juice, Coke (for Sarah’s habit), and cold medicine. Lugging all this stuff up the hill was not fun. I also passed a fresh produce store and bought some raspberries. I figured that if Sarah did not feel well enough to get out of the B&B to eat, we would have a fine picnic in our room. Thankfully she felt well enough for us to walk the half mile to the Bear Pub. This was our first pub meal and was actually quite lousy compared to future ones. I ordered a grilled chicken breast that must have been from the runt chicken of the flock. It was puny! We also got our first taste of local long-handled lukewarm ales.
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Tuesday, November 02, 2004
Day2 part 2 – Tuesday September 14 - European Vacation
So, back in the car to find our b&b to get some rest. We got turned around a couple more times. Besides the confusing road layout, driving on the wrong side of the road and the signposts, we ran into a construction detour. After a couple of lucky turns we were headed what seemed like the right direction, but after a few more twists and unmarked intersections we weren’t so sure.
About this time I was tired and started to get really cranky with Steve. I didn’t think he was giving me very good directions and he kept telling me to slow down. The road we were on was narrow, plus there were cars parked on each curb. There was really only one lane for traffic and you had to pull over in a driveway space to let cars pass. It was tough. Right in the middle of trying to navigate this tiny street and being very frustrated with Steve and letting him know it, and trying to drive from the right hand side of the car, I hit a parked car. Yes, I hit the wing mirror of a parked car. Steve told me to pull over, which I tried to do. I was totally flustered and in the process of trying to pull over I hit the bumper of a delivery van. Yes I hit two parked vehicles.
We finally got safely pulled over and started to inspect the damage. We saw that we had a big scratch on the passenger side rear door. Before we even looked at anything else two cars driving down the road hit each other. Yes, 45 seconds after I hit a parked car there was another accident on the same block. They picked up the piece of plastic from my wing mirror and took it with them before Steve or I could think to go find it. Oh well.
see the pictures
We left a note for the owner of the first car I think I hit. An old Ford station wagon. It very well could have been hit some other day, who knows. We didn’t bother leaving a note on the van as it was impossible to determine if we had caused one of the 20 scratches on its bumper.
We got back in the car, to find the hotel and try to get some phone calls made. It ended up we had been only 2 blocks from the b&b (to add insult to injuryJ). Steve made the phone calls to Avis and the credit card (who we were insured under). The proprietor of the b&b was very kind and helped up make the collect phone calls, as well as giving advice on how to handle the situation.
He told us that no one ever leaves a note about a wing mirror in Bath, that it hardly is even considered a car accident. You can get new glass in a mirror for 12 pounds and anyone who is smart turns their mirror in while they are parked on the curb. We decided it was only honest to leave the note. (they never did get in contact with us)
I finally just had to go to bed, I was so tired, and Steve finished up with the calls. It was 2 before he got to bed. That was 26 hours up for him. We were so glad the day was over.
We forced ourselves to get up around 7 to go get dinner. We walked to a nearby pub, The Bear. There was no way I was getting back in the car so soonJ For dinner and had our first fish and chips. The food was nothing special, but it sure was good to have a beer and eat some real food. Back to bed to put an end to day 2. What a way to start a trip!
- Sarah
About this time I was tired and started to get really cranky with Steve. I didn’t think he was giving me very good directions and he kept telling me to slow down. The road we were on was narrow, plus there were cars parked on each curb. There was really only one lane for traffic and you had to pull over in a driveway space to let cars pass. It was tough. Right in the middle of trying to navigate this tiny street and being very frustrated with Steve and letting him know it, and trying to drive from the right hand side of the car, I hit a parked car. Yes, I hit the wing mirror of a parked car. Steve told me to pull over, which I tried to do. I was totally flustered and in the process of trying to pull over I hit the bumper of a delivery van. Yes I hit two parked vehicles.
We finally got safely pulled over and started to inspect the damage. We saw that we had a big scratch on the passenger side rear door. Before we even looked at anything else two cars driving down the road hit each other. Yes, 45 seconds after I hit a parked car there was another accident on the same block. They picked up the piece of plastic from my wing mirror and took it with them before Steve or I could think to go find it. Oh well.
see the pictures
We left a note for the owner of the first car I think I hit. An old Ford station wagon. It very well could have been hit some other day, who knows. We didn’t bother leaving a note on the van as it was impossible to determine if we had caused one of the 20 scratches on its bumper.
We got back in the car, to find the hotel and try to get some phone calls made. It ended up we had been only 2 blocks from the b&b (to add insult to injuryJ). Steve made the phone calls to Avis and the credit card (who we were insured under). The proprietor of the b&b was very kind and helped up make the collect phone calls, as well as giving advice on how to handle the situation.
He told us that no one ever leaves a note about a wing mirror in Bath, that it hardly is even considered a car accident. You can get new glass in a mirror for 12 pounds and anyone who is smart turns their mirror in while they are parked on the curb. We decided it was only honest to leave the note. (they never did get in contact with us)
I finally just had to go to bed, I was so tired, and Steve finished up with the calls. It was 2 before he got to bed. That was 26 hours up for him. We were so glad the day was over.
We forced ourselves to get up around 7 to go get dinner. We walked to a nearby pub, The Bear. There was no way I was getting back in the car so soonJ For dinner and had our first fish and chips. The food was nothing special, but it sure was good to have a beer and eat some real food. Back to bed to put an end to day 2. What a way to start a trip!
- Sarah
Sunday, October 10, 2004
Day2 part 1 – Tuesday September 14 - First Impressions
Day 2 of the trip was all about getting the rental car, getting to Bath and getting some sleep. Simple plan. Well, it turned out to be a little too exciting.
We got the car at Heathrow Avis. It was a cute little Peugeot 307. It actually was a lot like the Honda Civic hatchback that my mom had while I was first learning to drive, although this one had 4 doors and I was sitting up quite a bit higher than I remember sitting in the Honda.
I had been thinking about driving on the wrong side of the road a lot in the days leading up to the trip and on the plane. Every time I started to think about it I made myself visualize driving around, making turns and shifting. I thought I was pretty clever to use the fear induced thoughts as learning experiences. Anyway, when I got in the car it was just as hard as I imagined. I kept scraping the left hand curbing. I got onto the interstate (dual carriageway) without major incident. And getting on the highway meant less thinking. Quite necessary considering I had already been up 20 hours at this point.
It was raining. We were expecting rain and would get quite used to it on the trip. It was also quite windy, something that I was not expecting. Seattle is not windy at all and Illinois is quite windy at times. England was much more like Illinois in this one respect of its weather. England is hilly. Not flat like Illinois or mountainous like western Washington. I have been in some very nice hilly parts of Wisconsin which is probably the best US comparison I could make to the landscape. Everything was incredibly green and lush. Great Britain has had an unusually wet summer which I am sure made everything even more lush and green than usual.
On the motorway (3 lanes) Steve and I both noted that drivers in the UK are much better at driving in the slow lane and passing in the passing lane. In the US on a 2 lane road most people will drive in the right and pass on the left, but there are lots of slowpokes parked in the passing lane (especially in Seattle). When there are 3 or more lanes it is total anarchy, people camp in the right, middle and left lanes and people passing on all sides. In the UK the slowest traffic is in the left (slow) lane and people use the middle lane to pass. People only use the rightmost lane to pass people who are already passing. This system seemed to hold up a vast majority of the time throughout our trip. I would love to bring this behavior home to everyone in the states.
Navigating was harder than either Steve or I was counting on. We had a map plus written directions out of the airport, still it seemed we were always guessing what turn to make or seeing the next signpost at the last possible second. Probably par for the course of all the worlds airports.
It was about a 2.5 hour drive to Bath, I think, although I had to pay so much attention to driving and my internal clock was messed up so I was never really aware of the time. We got off the motorway and took a 2 lane highway to Bath. The roads were windy and narrow, much narrower than a US country highway. I really was not fancying the driving thing. We got sort of lost getting into Bath, but happened upon the town center after turning around a couple of times. We learned quick that navigating is hard outside of the airport as well. We parked and walked a couple of blocks to the town center where we went to the TI to pick up a better map and some brochures.
It was still raining so we ducked into a small shop for breakfast/lunch/dinner (my clock was really bad at this time). We shared a baked potato which the Brits refer to as jacket potatoes. This one was filled with curried chicken, but you could buy them filled with all sorts of interesting and tasty stuff. We went back to the car to head to our hotel.
This installment is already way too long. I’ll finish for today. Tomorrow the excitement, and pictures – I promise!
- Sarah
We got the car at Heathrow Avis. It was a cute little Peugeot 307. It actually was a lot like the Honda Civic hatchback that my mom had while I was first learning to drive, although this one had 4 doors and I was sitting up quite a bit higher than I remember sitting in the Honda.
I had been thinking about driving on the wrong side of the road a lot in the days leading up to the trip and on the plane. Every time I started to think about it I made myself visualize driving around, making turns and shifting. I thought I was pretty clever to use the fear induced thoughts as learning experiences. Anyway, when I got in the car it was just as hard as I imagined. I kept scraping the left hand curbing. I got onto the interstate (dual carriageway) without major incident. And getting on the highway meant less thinking. Quite necessary considering I had already been up 20 hours at this point.
It was raining. We were expecting rain and would get quite used to it on the trip. It was also quite windy, something that I was not expecting. Seattle is not windy at all and Illinois is quite windy at times. England was much more like Illinois in this one respect of its weather. England is hilly. Not flat like Illinois or mountainous like western Washington. I have been in some very nice hilly parts of Wisconsin which is probably the best US comparison I could make to the landscape. Everything was incredibly green and lush. Great Britain has had an unusually wet summer which I am sure made everything even more lush and green than usual.
On the motorway (3 lanes) Steve and I both noted that drivers in the UK are much better at driving in the slow lane and passing in the passing lane. In the US on a 2 lane road most people will drive in the right and pass on the left, but there are lots of slowpokes parked in the passing lane (especially in Seattle). When there are 3 or more lanes it is total anarchy, people camp in the right, middle and left lanes and people passing on all sides. In the UK the slowest traffic is in the left (slow) lane and people use the middle lane to pass. People only use the rightmost lane to pass people who are already passing. This system seemed to hold up a vast majority of the time throughout our trip. I would love to bring this behavior home to everyone in the states.
Navigating was harder than either Steve or I was counting on. We had a map plus written directions out of the airport, still it seemed we were always guessing what turn to make or seeing the next signpost at the last possible second. Probably par for the course of all the worlds airports.
It was about a 2.5 hour drive to Bath, I think, although I had to pay so much attention to driving and my internal clock was messed up so I was never really aware of the time. We got off the motorway and took a 2 lane highway to Bath. The roads were windy and narrow, much narrower than a US country highway. I really was not fancying the driving thing. We got sort of lost getting into Bath, but happened upon the town center after turning around a couple of times. We learned quick that navigating is hard outside of the airport as well. We parked and walked a couple of blocks to the town center where we went to the TI to pick up a better map and some brochures.
It was still raining so we ducked into a small shop for breakfast/lunch/dinner (my clock was really bad at this time). We shared a baked potato which the Brits refer to as jacket potatoes. This one was filled with curried chicken, but you could buy them filled with all sorts of interesting and tasty stuff. We went back to the car to head to our hotel.
This installment is already way too long. I’ll finish for today. Tomorrow the excitement, and pictures – I promise!
- Sarah
Sunday, October 03, 2004
Day 1 – Monday September 13th - Travel to London
4am (Seattle time) – got up early. I didn’t sleep well…I never do before an early flight. I woke up at 2, 2:30, 3, well you get the picture. I’m always afraid that I’ve overslept. I had a terrible dream that after 2 hours of driving in the UK that I got pulled over because I didn’t have a “new driver” sticker. They gave me a 400 pound ticket. (I was impressed with myself that I did the math to 800 US Dollars in my sleep) I was so angry in my dream – after the Sunday sermon the day before being on Matthew 5 and controlling ones anger.
(This dream turned out to be particularly prophetic in light of the events that happened on day 2 of the trip…)
4:15 – gave Steve haircut. Yes, I gave Steve a haircut at 4:15 in the morning. It needed to be done before we left, and since I was very late in getting things packed, this is when it had to be done.
5:15 – out the door. Our good friend Kevin Temp graciously offered to take us to the airport AND pick us up. We took him up on it and he was right on time (actually early since he went by Starbucks on the way to our place and it wasn’t open yet.)
6am - Airport security – The airport was busy. There was a family in front of us with an unhappy 2 year old kid. Unhappy kids are not unusual sights at airports at 6am but this kid was probably unhappy because he was wearing one of those silly kid leash things attached to a vest. Or, it could have been because he and his mom were not only wearing matching outfits but they were quite possibly the ugliest rainbow striped overalls I have ever seen in my life paired with neon green tee shirts that I have not seen since the 80s. This woman was obviously paranoid about getting separated from this kid and not being able to be identified as her mother. Trust me. Even if he did wrangle his way out of that leash contraption there is not another person in 750 miles of anywhere wearing a getup like that.
8am – flight leaves 15 minutes late. It was a relatively uneventful flight to Chicago. 4 hours. I spent about an hour trying to sleep. I don’t sleep on planes very well. Got to Chicago on time (they always seem to make it up in the air.)
5:10pm (Chicago time) – flight for London leaves. It was another uneventful flight. Steve took some Benadryl as we were boarding and he could barely stay awake through dinner. He probably slept between 5 and 6 hours on the 8 hour flight. I didn’t sleep a wink despite trying after getting relatively sleepy after 3 straight hours of reading. Watched Stepford Wives. Did more reading. I’m doing 2 weeks of homework for an Old Testament study of the tabernacle while I’m on the trip. 10 hours worth total.
7am (London time) – Arrived Heathrow. Got off the plane, walked for what seemed like miles and then waited 30 minutes at customs. Overall Heathrow was an unimpressive airport. I’m glad we packed light, no waiting for bags in customs. We each carried a backpack and that was it – all carry-on. We took the AVIS bus to pick up the rental car.
There are no pictures from today. Sorry.
Stay tuned for day 2 – which I’ll post tomorrow. It is the most exciting day of our trip and you won’t want to miss it.
- Sarah
(This dream turned out to be particularly prophetic in light of the events that happened on day 2 of the trip…)
4:15 – gave Steve haircut. Yes, I gave Steve a haircut at 4:15 in the morning. It needed to be done before we left, and since I was very late in getting things packed, this is when it had to be done.
5:15 – out the door. Our good friend Kevin Temp graciously offered to take us to the airport AND pick us up. We took him up on it and he was right on time (actually early since he went by Starbucks on the way to our place and it wasn’t open yet.)
6am - Airport security – The airport was busy. There was a family in front of us with an unhappy 2 year old kid. Unhappy kids are not unusual sights at airports at 6am but this kid was probably unhappy because he was wearing one of those silly kid leash things attached to a vest. Or, it could have been because he and his mom were not only wearing matching outfits but they were quite possibly the ugliest rainbow striped overalls I have ever seen in my life paired with neon green tee shirts that I have not seen since the 80s. This woman was obviously paranoid about getting separated from this kid and not being able to be identified as her mother. Trust me. Even if he did wrangle his way out of that leash contraption there is not another person in 750 miles of anywhere wearing a getup like that.
8am – flight leaves 15 minutes late. It was a relatively uneventful flight to Chicago. 4 hours. I spent about an hour trying to sleep. I don’t sleep on planes very well. Got to Chicago on time (they always seem to make it up in the air.)
5:10pm (Chicago time) – flight for London leaves. It was another uneventful flight. Steve took some Benadryl as we were boarding and he could barely stay awake through dinner. He probably slept between 5 and 6 hours on the 8 hour flight. I didn’t sleep a wink despite trying after getting relatively sleepy after 3 straight hours of reading. Watched Stepford Wives. Did more reading. I’m doing 2 weeks of homework for an Old Testament study of the tabernacle while I’m on the trip. 10 hours worth total.
7am (London time) – Arrived Heathrow. Got off the plane, walked for what seemed like miles and then waited 30 minutes at customs. Overall Heathrow was an unimpressive airport. I’m glad we packed light, no waiting for bags in customs. We each carried a backpack and that was it – all carry-on. We took the AVIS bus to pick up the rental car.
There are no pictures from today. Sorry.
Stay tuned for day 2 – which I’ll post tomorrow. It is the most exciting day of our trip and you won’t want to miss it.
- Sarah
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)