Thursday, 20 October 2016

On the Road: Downtown Abbey & Roman Baths Compose A Dream

September 21-22, 2016,Bath, England 

The first encounter Bath the name was reading Children’s Daily in circa 1990’s, learning about Roman Empire established the city in South West England around A.D. 60. When I was in high school, a miniature calendar of Bath given as souvenir from my mate in class, therefore, my better known of the city view has formed. While mastered at British Literature in Taipei, Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, the Wife of Bath storyline introduces quite an early stage of feminism of the Middle Ages. During the preparing phase of qualification examination at National Kaohsiung Normal University, watching BBC production of Jane Austen’s Persuasion, the major characters at the Royal Crescent in Bath, makes me no excuse to miss this beautiful valley city of the River Avon in 2016 England tour.

Bath became a World Heritage Site in 1987, 156 kilometers west of London. Booking from Great Western Railway service, an early bird ticket cost 35.35 GBP for the outbound-return fare, and the physical vouchers can be collected by using the payment card from 1000’s of stations with a ticket machine in London. Departure at London Paddington to Bath Spa at 09:30, arrival time is only 10:54, I travel light with my Miu Miu Madras and See by Chloé luggage, and check Bath Abbey at city centre.

The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican Parish Church. Founded in the 7th century, the cruciform abbey is built of Bath stone, which gives the exterior its yellow colour. As an typical style of the perpendicular form of Gothic architecture, with low aisles, nave arcades and a tall clerestory, the walls and roofs of Bath Abbey are supported by buttresses and surmounted by battlements, pinnacles and pierced parapets. For the windows, Bath Abbey owns 52 in total, occupying about 80 percent of the wall space. The fan vaulting provides structural stability by distributing the weight of the off down ribs that transfer the force into the supporting columns through the flying buttresses.

The organ in the north transept, rebuilt in 1997, balance the atmosphere of the monument stones and melancholic statues surrounded by. One of the most amazing monument is William Bingham’s with two marble angels guard each side of mounted plaque. After the cruising, I sit on the wooden bench and have ears on public speech of Father of Abbey, surprisingly, whose calm voice speaking up the hidden worry of mine. He welcomes all the believers and visitors, and states that the anxiety resides in between of us, is necessary of the moment but unnecessary of life. After the weak applause, I suddenly realize that there is an unexplained strong force attracting me at this exact perfect timing in Bath, England, through a complete wise tongue, my unsatisfied mood has the answer, and my strength has regained back.
Roman Bath is the neighbor of Downtown Abbey, with the 10% discount ticket after joining the Stonehenge tour, the Roman Bath are below the modern street level. On the Terrence, standing the statues of Roman Gods, Goddess and Emperors. For main features are the Sacred Spring, the Roman Temple, the Roman Bath House and the Museum. While the Great Bath above the level of the pillars bases is a 19th century construction, visitors today can still see the caldarium, (hot bath), tepidarium (warm bath) and frigidarium (cold bath) plus woman’s bathroom. With the audio guide provided by 12 languages, it’s much easier to move around to avoid the huge crowd. We learn that the original name of the Roman Bath was dedicated to the goddess Sulis, whom the Romans identified with Minerva, after the Roman invasion, leading to Bath the name ‘Aqua Sulis’, and the most interesting is, bath as being a public service during the Roman Empire, also the social gathering spot, as well as the confession of the citizen’s emotions, about 120 curse tablets have been found at Roman Bath. Many of the cursed letter related to the thefts of the clothes whilst the victim was bathing.
Unfortunately, the Roman Bath today is not allowed to take, tests shows that an extremely dangerous disease-causing amoeba was in the water. Around the pool there are costumed Roman solider and bards hanging around, transport us back to the time of the Empire. At the end of the tour all the visitors are free to taste several paper cups of the thermal water, of course they are not radioactive as it contained of the pool. While Bath is rather an early bird city, museums, shops and services are closing at 18:00, after my ‘The Doors’ shooting project got wrapped, now it’s about time to check-in at The Griffin Inn, and search a nice Asian food restaurant to chill out.

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