A recent two-week trip to England rewarded me with fine weather —in the 70s practically every day, with one day of drizzle—great countryside walking, and the denouement, a chance to see Benedict Cumberbatch’s Hamlet, live, at the Barbican.
My companion and I started off with five day in the captivating Georgian city of Bath, whose stately pale golden limestone buildings are set into graceful and incredibly green hills. A true feast for California eyes. So much green! We stayed at the wonderful Three Abbey Green B&B, located around the corner from the old Roman baths, and replete with amenities such as custom-cooked English breakfasts, comfortable beds, tons of towels and hot water. Many old myths about travel in Britain were quickly put to rest.
We had tons of hot water for showers—here in Bath, as well as at our flat in London. Another surprise: British pubs offer well-designed menus of actual dinners. Beautiful salads of local organic greens (I’m not kidding), and excellent meats and fish, in addition to all the things you want from a pub. Beer, fish and chips.
In Bath, we took several small sight-seeing excursions. They were easily worth the modest cost. One was with the very skilled and friendly Mad Max Tours to Stonehenge, Avebury, and some of the most drop-dead charming villages in Wiltshire. (More on that in a separate post). The other was a spur-of-the-moment boat ride up the Avon. On a sunny day, not much can match being on the dark green river, enjoying the trees, and vistas slide by.
We got off just at the far point of the boat tour, and asked to be dropped off at a small dock. From there we took a trail connecting with the old Avon-Kennett canal tow path. We enjoyed the communities of barge dwellers and travelers along the canal as we took the walk back into town.
