Friday 27th to Monday 30th July In Bath.
Lovely reflections on the still waters of the canal in the early morning.
M had to go home on the train Friday morning for a routine hospital appointment, returning on the Saturday. In several places in Bath, old telephone boxes had been put to an unusual, but very effective use. M would like one of these in our back garden.....!
Long awaited rain arrived in the afternoon but this marvellously colourful group out on a stag do were undeterred! M said she would have taken any one of them home to meet her Mum...
It rained all night and most of Sunday, but we had to move MM in the rain as we were on a 48 mooring. Luckily, we found another mooring a bit further down the canal (moorings in the Bath area are in high demand).
This handsome building was once the headquarters of the Kennet & Avon Canal Company.
Out came the umbrella, rarely seen this summer, and we set off for the City centre.
First stop on a wet day - Sally Lunn's, reputedly one of the oldest houses in Bath (1482) and, since 1680, home to Sally Lunn's Buns. A young Huguenot refugee named Solange Luyon came to Bath to escape persecution in France and brought with her a unique recipe for a rich brioche bun, which could be eaten sweet or savoury. The locals shortened her name to Sally Lunn and the rest is history.
The tea shop is still one of the most popular in Bath and a must to visit. Definitely worth the wait if there is a queue to get in (there always is!).
The food was, as ever, excellent. We had High Tea at 11:30am! Absolutely yummy.
We greatly admired these flowers outside the Abbey. We thought that they would be perfect for "Idol Hands" as they are in their colours.
The centre was thronged with tourists, mostly foreign, and the queue for the Roman Baths was over a 100yds long.
M loved the teapot shop opposite the Abbey.
Quite by chance, we saw a free Jane Austen walking tour and tagged along.
Our guide was lovely and eventually delivered us to the Jane Austen Centre in Gay Street, a few doors down from one of the houses that Jane and her family rented while they were in Bath.
M loved this teapot in the Centre's gift shop but resisted the temptation to buy it.
We photographed, but did not enter, this Costa because it is on the site of the "White Hart Inn", which was one's first port of call when entering Bath in Jane Austen's time.
The White Hart is where you could leave your coach and horses and find temporary lodgings. It was the social centre of the city and very popular. Jane mentions it a number of times in her books and in her letters.
Sadly it was demolished in 1869. It was owned and run by Eleazer Pickwick whose grandfather was the inspiration for Mr. Dicken's Pickwick Papers. In 1794, Eleazer Pickwick was on the board of the canal company, and was also a promoter of, and investor in, the canal. Later, he became Mayor of Bath.
On Monday, Geraldine and Rob came to visit. They are recent recruits to the narrowboating fraternity and happened to be in the area. It was lovely to see them and to have them on board MM again.
A dramatic sunset sky after more rain on Sunday.
Four Days: A very short trip to move our mooring and 9 hours for power.
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