Travel Goals

1. Climb to Everest Base Camp.
2. Climb Mt Kilimanjaro.
3. Learn to Scuba Dive.
4. Visit every continent.
5. See the Galapagos Islands.
6. Sail down the Amazon River.
7. Climb Ayer's Rock.
8. Ride the Trans-Siberian.
9. Go into space.
10. Go wild at La Tomintina.
11. See the sunrise from Mt. Fuji.
12. Gaze at Borobudor.
13. Visit the Pyramids
14. Safari in East Africa.
15. Go to the World Cup!
16. See Machu Picchu.
17. Join the Century Club.
18. Visit Antarctica.
19. Do development work.
20. See Petra Jordan.
21. Backpack the Eastern Block.
22. See the Northern Lights.
23. Vegas Baby! Vegas!
24. Greek Island hop.
25. Cycle Tuscany.
26. Visit India.
27. Lounge in the Seychelles.
28. See Morocco.
29. Oktoberfest!
30. Caravan across the Sahara.
31. Visit Tibet.
32. Fly first class.
33. Go to Israel.
34. Carnival!!!!
35. Mardi Gras!
36. Cannes Film Festival.
37. Sundance Film Festival.
38. Eat a sushi meal at NOBU
39. Pacific Island hop.
40. Spend a night in the Ice Hotel.
41. See Glacier National Park.

Learn a Foreign Language

Are you planning to travel around Europe? Why not learn Italian or French before you go to maximize your experience.

Book Your Travel Here!!

Bath

July 31, 2008

Bath Built centuries ago by the Romans, Bath is one of the most beautiful, historic, and visited cities in England. The Romans came here when the invaded Britain because of the hot springs that bubbles up from the Earth. The local people thought this place had spiritual significance and, when the Romans came, they too felt the same and dedicated this site to the Minerva; the goddess of wisdom. Despite being on the edge of the frontier, the city grew to become of major religious and cultural center. People came from all around to pray to Minerva and use the baths, which they believed had special healing powers.

After the Roman empire crumbled, so too did the baths of Bath. Over the centuries, the Roman structures collapsed and the city was built over them. Medieval leaders constructed their own baths and pilgrims came to the hot springs in order to be healed of various alignments. But time and construction hide the original roman structure and all was forgotten. A new bath spa was constructed nearby and life in Bath went on.

However, in the early 19th century, the owners of the house on top of the original baths had hired a crew to find the source of water leaks when stumbled upon the ancient structure. Subsequent digging revealed the whole complex and soon excavations were underway to unearth this historic treasure. Today, most of structure has been unearthed, though archaeologists suspect there are a few more buildings in the area.

The ancient Roman Baths are inspiring. Since the city is built on top of them, you enter from street level, where a terrace, built to look like it would in ancient times, sits at street level. There you look down into the baths, which are over 6 feet below the ground. The preservation techniques are excellent and the site is one of the best preserved I’ve ever seen. There is an amazing level of detail throughout the site.

The audio tour, which is narrated by famed travel writer Bill Bryson, gives an amazing level of detail and information. The displays do a wonderful job of telling the history of bath, the roman occupation, the significance behind all the artifacts, and the excavation process. I always hate walking away from historic sites with questions but Bath’s displays and audio tour are so complete I had none. I’m always amazed by Roman engineering, especially their sewer and aqueduct system. It’s amazing a people primitive in so many ways, could build piping, heating, and sewer systems that were so complex. The history geek in me finds it all fascinating.

The city’s only allure isn’t just the Roman Baths but also the historic abbey, where famed philosopher Thomas Malthus is interned, and the rest of this wonderful town. The town is beautiful and most of the buildings are as they appeared a few centuries ago. I don’t know what architectural style they are built in but if I had to guess, I’d say “pretty.” One of the real highlights for me was the river in town. There parks line the Avon river and people lounge out with picnics as the famous Pulteney Bridge overlooks this little cascade in the Avon river. The bridge is covered with shops and reminded me of many of the covered bridges in Florence.

Salisbury is still the most beautiful city I’ve seen in England but Bath is a close runner up. All over England everyone kept telling me “Ohh, You’ll like Bath. It’s really nice.” They were right. The only thing I didn’t like was my camera battery dying half way through my trip, leaving me far short of all the pictures I would have taken. Bath is a real gem and a worth all the long lines.

Liked what you read? Use the icons below to share with others on the web:

Posted by NomadicMatt | Filed Under Europe

Comments

14 Responses to “Bath”

Geoff on July 31st, 2008 5:04 pm

Bath is indeed beautiful - and the architectural style that dominates is Georgian (i.e. built during the reigns of Kings George I-IV, from 1740 to 1820) - and yes, it is some of the finest British architecture
Theresa on July 31st, 2008 6:43 pm

Love the picture on the homepage! But enough with England already and how great it is. You’re making me want to go, and it’s not on my current list of places I need to go/get back to!
Quickroute on July 31st, 2008 8:19 pm

I spent a weekend in that area and loved it and the bonus was it didn’t rain!
Lola on July 31st, 2008 11:00 pm

Beautiful photos as well!
Mark H on July 31st, 2008 11:16 pm

Aahh…my favourite British city and a great description of its superb baths. I think the architecture is called Georgian (18th century) but most impressive is that hasn’t really been compromised to create such a “pretty” architecture.
Alina Popescu on August 1st, 2008 7:47 am

These are actually the first photos of Bath I see. I read about it in fictions books and in tourism books, but I actually never got to see what it looked like. It’s nice to read a genuine atmosphere description for a change
Stevo on August 1st, 2008 8:19 am

Great piece. The history geek in me wants to see it. You’re giving me great ideas for my 2009 UK Trip.
lakshmi on August 1st, 2008 8:51 am

wow..I feel like the old English novels are coming alive..I can imagine all the characters I have grown up reading..my reason to visit UK among other things is to do a literary tour ..
travelphilippines on August 1st, 2008 6:42 pm

romans are really fascinating they build great structures that we admire today…
Debo Hobo on August 1st, 2008 7:28 pm

You have been to so many wonderful places! Great photos:)
Robin on August 2nd, 2008 2:20 am

I always enjoy stopping by here. Either I learn about a place I haven’t yet visited or I get to take a trip through my own memories.

I once spent a day in Bath visiting a friend who lives there. I wish I’d been able to stay longer and explore more.

I didn’t realize Bill Bryson narrated the audio tour. Perhaps they’ve changed it since we were there, or else we were trying to do the audio tour so quickly that we didn’t notice who was narrating.

Wonderful description and great photos.
NomadicMatt on August 2nd, 2008 10:39 am

@geoff: thanks for the info!!

@theresa: thanks! You should go to the UK

@quickroute: awesome!

@lola: thanks!

@mark: it is very nice!

@alison: glad you enjoyed

@steve: I’m a history geek too

@lakshimi: glad i can help!

@tp: they sure did! I am fascinated by them wherever I go.

@debo: thank you for the kind compliment!

@robin: thanks for the kind words. The audio tour gives you a reason to go back!
Chris Cook on October 1st, 2008 2:47 pm

Hey if you’re headed to Florence or Berlin (plus more to come) you might want to check out the audio tours at noambit.com. Mp3 tours are a great way to save money and avoid the limitations a guided tour can bring.
The Saturday City: Bristol | Nomadic Matt's Travel Site on October 4th, 2008 12:48 pm

[...] few go or want to explore. That works out for the rest of us. For while everyone else heads off to Bath, we can enjoy the city of Bristol to ourselves. I suspect one day the word will get out and I am [...]