Yesterday I went to Bath.
No, I did not take a bath, we did not bathe as Reagan mentioned, and I did not get wet. It did rain, but we barely missed it, so maybe that’s a serendipitous metaphor. I digress.
The city of Bath is truly a marvel to me; it’s a large-small city that feels unlike any in the US. I would liken it to a small London almost, only it has the trappings of a small pastoral town along with the bustle of a cityscape. It was incredibly beautiful, and the architecture reminded me of Haussmann’s in Paris. It really got me thinking while I was on the bus about how the Roman Baths here informed all of the building around it. The progression of the city was from the architecture of Rome, which informed the architecture of Paris, and subsequently Bath. I told everyone once we got off of the bus that we had basically visited Paris by the way the streets and buildings were constructed, and I really did love them.
After seeing the baths, Alec, Anna, Kira, Lauren, Sydney, and I went to the Jane Austen Centre and took a guided tour of Austen’s Bath that included much about her life, but little about her inspirations for her stories. I would have loved to learn even more about her and her inspirations in the city of Bath, but the tour was regrettably short. What we did get, however, was a transcendent, phenomenal photo of the six of us and one wax figure in period dress.
I must say, we have never looked better. That photo is the highlight of a fantastic day in Bath.
The State of my Union is thoroughly satisfied that I get to laugh with these people.
Shakespeare in Oxford! 