2 June - On to Bath

Sadly, it was time to bid farewell to Salisbury. We had one last breakfast at Qudos, then went back to the flat to pack. I let Molly out into the garden where she "does her business" as our hostess puts it. Usually it's a quick in and out (or out & in, as the case may be) but today Molly decided to stay out a bit longer. It was okay and we had hours before we had to catch our train. About an hour before we were to leave, she meowed at the door again so I let her out again. This time she decided that it would be a good time to mess with us. As our hour to leave approached, there was no sign of her. I called and called. She jumped up onto the stone wall behind the garden, but wouldn't come any closer. I told her that she could have 10 more minutes, but that she had to come in. Ten minutes later, she had disappeared into thin air. (What made me think she would actually listen?) I didn't want to leave without her being inside, but I had no idea when or if she would come back. I messaged her owner & hoped for the best. The time of our train reservation came and went & still no Molly. An hour later I looked down at my phone and Jean, Molly's owner, said she'd be fine and we should feel free to go. I felt bad that I didn't get a chance to see her again before we left, but it was time to move on. We got a cab to the rail station and boarded our train to Bath.

It's a pretty quick trip, about an hour. We arrived and followed the directions to our AirBnB. It was not quite what I was expecting, at least from the outside.

Two old drunks were camped out on the sidewalk and I felt more than a little uncomfortable thinking of what it would be like coming home late at night. And if this was the outside, what would the flat be like? I needn't have worried. Once you get past the door and the threadbare carpet on the stairs, the little flat was quite comfy.

I unpacked a bit then set out to explore a city I had visited 35 years ago.

The city of Bath was founded in the first century AD by the Romans, though there had been Celtic tribes living there long before they arrived. It's the site of massive hot springs; Sulis was the name of the Celtic goddess of the hot springs, and the Roman settlers who arrived in Bath in the 1st century AD identified her with their own goddess, Minerva. Ultimately the thermal spa became known as Sulis Minerva. It became an important center for the wool industry in the Middle Ages. In the 18th century, under George III, it developed into an elegant town with neoclassical Palladian buildings, which blend harmoniously with the Roman baths.

The city is much as I remember it.

The Parade Gardens:

The Pulteney Weir:

Terrace houses above the city:

The Kennet & Avon Canal:

Bruce was off on a pub crawl and later in the afternoon we met at a restaurant I had found called Browns. We sat on the terrace, enjoying the rare sunny day. It turned out to be a

terrific place for dinner. I ordered the ultimate oxymoron cocktail: a Virgin Porn Star Martini. It wouldn't pass for the alcoholic one, but it was enjoyable. It made me laugh, though, that it came with a shot of lemonade on the side. Bruce had an Elderflower and Apple Martini.

We shared an appetizer of pan seared scallops with rhubarb and pancetta. The scallops were cooked to perfection and the rhubarb was a surprisingly delicious addition.

Bruce ordered prawn and Devon crab linguine which he assured me tasted better than it looked. (Looked to me like canned tuna.)

I had a gorgeous dish of whole lemon sole with brown butter, capers, lemon, samphire and La Ratte potatoes. It was perfectly cooked and after I figured out how to slide the meat off the bones, it was delicious. Samphire is a salty marine vegetable that grows in the UK and Ireland and I have developed a real taste for it. It looks a bit like miniature asparagus.

We splashed out and had desert; I a rhubarb and apple crumble with stem ginger ice cream, Bruce the chocolate coated caramel profiteroles and a caramel old fashioned to go with it.

Our waiter, Tom, was terrific and really added to the enjoyment of the meal.

Across from Browns is a lovely park, the Alkmaar Gardens.

After that massive dinner we needed a bit of a walk, so crossed the bridge to Widcombe where our flat is located and hiked over to the Kennet-Avon canal.

We weren't the only ones out for a walk that night.

It was a nice day in a lovely city we'll explore more tomorrow.