Guy Fawkes Night! We've been travelling to the sound of fireworks for the last week or so. Tonight should be the climax, but a lot of towns are having their bonfires on the 7th (Saturday).
Bath Day 2. A rather gloomy day, but we decided to go walking. again, the bus from the Park and ride into the city centre. Then we walked around to Pulteney Bridge. This bridge is fascinating. Designed by Robert Adam, and erected in 1769-74, it is one of only four bridges in the workd that still have shops on them (The others are the Rialto Bridge in Venice, the Ponte Vecchio in Florence and the Krämerbrücke in Erfuhrt — and we've now walked across three of them!). The Pulteney Bridge is a bit different — from the road that crosses it, you could be forgiven if you weren't aware of the bridge at all. The architecture of northern (upstream) side has been ruined by later development, but the southern side is still Robert Adam! There is a large and spectacular weir below the bridge, of recent origin, for flood control. In the 2012 film of Les Misérables, it was at this weir that Inspector Javert met his end.
Bath Day 2. A rather gloomy day, but we decided to go walking. again, the bus from the Park and ride into the city centre. Then we walked around to Pulteney Bridge. This bridge is fascinating. Designed by Robert Adam, and erected in 1769-74, it is one of only four bridges in the workd that still have shops on them (The others are the Rialto Bridge in Venice, the Ponte Vecchio in Florence and the Krämerbrücke in Erfuhrt — and we've now walked across three of them!). The Pulteney Bridge is a bit different — from the road that crosses it, you could be forgiven if you weren't aware of the bridge at all. The architecture of northern (upstream) side has been ruined by later development, but the southern side is still Robert Adam! There is a large and spectacular weir below the bridge, of recent origin, for flood control. In the 2012 film of Les Misérables, it was at this weir that Inspector Javert met his end.
Then we went just across the road into the Guildhall Market. This building has been there since 1778. Inside, there is a Market Pillar, or 'Nail', where business was transacted and payments were made — this, incidentally, is the origin of the phrase 'Pay on the nail.' This is a really old market in every way — the stores themselves belong to a bygone age. We had a cup of coffee here, in a place where 'connoisseur coffee' is totally alien! But you can get good basic nosh — and quite a few of the older generation were doing just that!
Then we took a walk up the hill to the Circus and to Royal Crescent. These are two magnificent architectural landmarks that are rightly Grade I Listed Buildings. The Circus, at the top of Gay Street, designed by John Wood Snr and Jnr and constructed between 1754 and 1768, is a stately circle of Georgian homes, segmented into three arcs by three roads passing out of the circle set at equal intervals. John Wood senior had a habit of incorporating Masonic symbols into his buildings — if you view a plan of the Circus, with Gay Street and the attached square of Queens Square, you have a perfectly-formed key, one of the Masonic symbols!
If you leave the Circus vis Brock Street, within a very short walk you are in Royal Crescent, another of Bath's architectural treasures. This one was designed by John Wood Jnr, and went up between 1767 and 1774. The sweeping curve of the buildings is breathtaking, and the parkland over which it looks must make it one of the prime pieces of real estate in the UK!
We then made our way back through the Circus and down Gay Street to Number 40 — the Jane Austen Centre. This centre celebrates everything Jane Austen, and the staff are all in Regency costume. They are particularly proud of the fact that the new £10 note to come out next year will bear Jane's portrait. This portrait is based on one made by Janes sister Cassandra, but never completed. An etching was prepared from this portrait many years later, and this is the basis of the one on the banknote.
In the centre you are taken on a guided trip through Jane Austen's life and works, and then you are free to browse to your heart's content. As well, there are letters from and photos of the cast members of the many BBC productions of Jane's works, including a very touching one from Emma Thompson.
Janes's earliest published novel, Sense and Sensibility is the story of a young country girl who makes her way to Bath, and conveys all the excitement of that move. Her last novel, Persuasion, also set in Bath, has a much more world-worn view of the City. And Bath features one way or another in all of her works — it's no wonder Bath regards her as its favourite daughter!
We were thinking of doing a little more exploration, but the daylight was fading and the rain was becoming annoying, so we went in for a late lunch in a lovely old pub, dating back to 1302 — the Grapes — we had beef and ale pie, washed down with the local drop (London Pride, or, in the case of Suzie, a latte) — and then we made our way back home to Gertie for another quiet night!
Love the girl with the green umbrella!
Distance driven — today, nil; to date, 30,594 miles ( 49,242 km )
Sodo I. Thanks for the tour, Love ya both, cathy
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