Sue and One-eyed Steve bridge the gap in the UK! COMPLETED 7/1 - Page 14 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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We visited the gift shop, purchasing a magnet, a book, a sheep (don't ask) and a "Make-your-own-Stonehenge" kit for DS.
We drove away from Stonehenge, and were headed into Bath. We ended up on a detour, as the main road was closed, but all things happen for a reason. We happened upon a pub called "The George Inn" (George ia a pretty popular guy in these parts!) and decided to give it a try for lunch.
The building was built a few years back, to say the least! The history was fascinating, as we later learned from the innkeeper. It was everything you would expect a traditional British pub to be.
The view from the back terrace:
I don't know who these people are:
The outside:
All the important things:
And then, inside:
Steve stayed outside to film:
Then it came time to order lunch. The menu was on the chalkboard above the fireplace, and we sat in the room with the bar:
Chez and I look at brochures while we decide on lunch:
Steve gets a pint:
Almost an Awwwwwwwww....
Steve's lunch:
Mark's lunch:
Cheryl's lunch:
My lunch:
This was called a "ploughman's platter" and it contained an assortment of cold meats, cheese, bread and greens. It is so named because it was the type of lunch that a ploughman would take with him when he was working the fields. I asked Mark and Chez what a traditional British lunch would be, and this was what they suggested! It was and I was so glad I ordered it!
We ordered a half-pint of cider, I can't recall the name but we all drank a little and a little only! It had quite a kick!
Steve decided on another British tradition, and ordered tea:
We were soon chatting with the innkeeper:
who told us about the place, It was a Grade 1 (Chez is that correct?) on the list of historical places, which is the highest rating you can get. It also means that any type of work you would like to do on your place has to be cleared before many committees so that the historic nature is preserved. He took us through the back dining area:
Then he took us through the courtyard:
And into the area downstairs. This is the area that they rent out for functions, such as weddings. And, it used to be the area where the government officials spent their time drinking while those condemned to die in the morning languished in the rooms below! I'm willing to bet there's a ghost or two hanging out around these parts!
This is also a bed and breakfast...I think this might be a wonderful place to stay on future trips....
Reluctantly, we bid our host farewell, and continued on our journey.
Next...some more architecture, "What are they looking at?" and It's HOT!
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A quick note....it's never a good thing to let your 4 month old kitten anywhere near your computer when you are trying to finish a trip report, especially if it's something you would like to actually SAVE!!
Anyway....
We left The George Inn and headed toward Bath. On the way, we stopped in a few places to appreciate some more beautiful architecture:
We arrived in Bath and parked. I liked this shot:
Mark stopped into the UK version of a newspaper store, and he bought a copy of the paper (The Daily Sun) for both himself and Steve:
What are they looking at? Hmmm... ...must be the sports scores! Yea, that's it! It couldn't have anything to do with the scantily clad "Page 3 girl", could it?
We walked up to the Baths, past the abbey. These thermal springs date back to ancient times, where the Romans built the structures and the temple around them. It is difficult to find the history on the Internet (I wanted to link it here) but I will tell you what I recall. The baths were re-discovered in the early 1900's, I believe, when people living in the houses above them started to complain about hot water flowing into their basements. The city council, or somesuch entity, did some investigating, and discovered this treasure buried beneath the modern buildings! Alot of the structures were discovered intact, and some were recreated. The water in the baths appears green in the pictures, and it is, due to algae growth. Before you go "Ewwwwwwww", keep in mind that in the ancient days there was a roof over the springs, so no sunlight got in, and no algae growth, and the water was crystal clear.
The abbey:
Check out the angels climbing the ladder:
Then, it was into the baths:
Steve took these with the wide angle lens ! I love the curved way they look!
A mosaic tile floor segment:
Minerva, the goddess of hot tubs:
The springs:
Inside: much of this is intact and original:
We headed over to The Pump Room, where you could sample a free taste of springs water. There seemed to be quite a few used glasses sitting there. Mmmmm....nice fresh cold water...uh...not so much. It's HOT! Yuck! Now I understood why so many half empty glasses were stashed there.
We left the baths and walked down to the Pulteney Bridge area, which is literally a bridge with shops in it! I took some pictures, and as much as I would have liked to seen the inside, Steve was beginning to feel the effects of both his illness and his medicine. So after some pictures, we headed back to the car.
On our way back, we passed a hospital, where we found this sign:
It's a good thing they let the ambulances stop, getting patients out of a moving ambulance when they are on a wheeled stretcher takes far more talent than most paramedics have!
We got back in the car and headed for our final destination...Heathrow Airport.
Next.....A great dinner, a sad goodbye and the journey home...
Hey, now you know why I wasn't about to sample the water - been there, done that many years ago and I still remember what it was like!
As for the Sun, I think saying "scantily clad" is being kind - just to explain to our readers, the Sun is the most popular daily newspaper in Britain and the page three girls are not scantily clad on the top half - they're wearing nothing on the top half at all. For some reason, this British tradition always seems to amaze our American visitors....
On our way back, we passed a hospital, where we found this sign:
It's a good thing they let the ambulances stop, getting patients out of a moving ambulance when they are on a wheeled stretcher takes far more talent than most paramedics have!
Very nice photos!
Like me, you are always on the look-out for a paramedic joke!
We got in our car and drove back toward the airport. It was a bittersweet journey indeed...bitter, because we didn't want to leave, and sweet, because it had been such a wonderful vacation. We soon arrived at the Heathrow Marriott:
I checked in while Steve filmed. Mark parked the car, as Chez and Mark were staying for dinner.The hotel was beautiful. According to the website that I chose it from, it had been recently remodeled, and it showed!
We headed up to our room to drop off our luggage. The room was really nice, and this greeted us on the TV:
Apparently this is quite common in the UK, but we had never seen it before, and we felt like royalty!
A few more room shots:
The ever popular, but not used, mini-bar!
We headed back down to the lobby. We had a choice of two restaurants, and we chose Allie's American Grill, which seemed a bit more to the type of relaxed atmosphere we were looking for.
Dinner was fabulous. I had onion soup and a pasta dish, Steve had steak, and talked the waiter into a side of pasta at no extra charge, and I can't recall at all what Mark and Chez had! :
My dinner:
Steve's dinner, complete with pasta:
Dinner came to an end too soon. It was time for Mark and Cheryl to leave. There was lots of hugs and tears in the lobby, I held it in pretty well but lost it when I got upstairs.
Steve went right to bed:
but I headed down to the business center to print off our boarding passes. I had missed my 24 hour window, but our seats were an aisle and a window so I wsa thrilled! I collected this final piece of our journey, and headed up to sleep.
Day 10....we bid the UK farewell...
We were up relatively early the next day. I packed our few items, and made coffee and tea:
I actually used the electric kettle without setting the hotel on fire!
We headed back down to Allie's, where they had a buffet breakfast, which was very good. After eating, we collected our luggage, and headed over to the concierge desk. We had booked a taxi the night before, and he was ready for us. The driver helped us with our luggage, and we were off.
We got to our terminal in no time, but we were dropped off sort of in the middle of nowhere. This was not the driver's fault; there is alot of construction going on and where he left us was the entrance to the terminal. But there were no carts or skycaps, so we ended up hauling all our bags plus our carry-ons over the river and through the woods to check in! We cleared customs and security (again, a breeze) and were soom ready to go. We did a little duty free shopping and grabbed some magazines and a water. Total cost for 2 magazines and one bottle of water after the exchange rate: $16.95!!! It should have been in a gold bottle for that price!
As we got to our gate, I ducked into the ladies room, aka water closet, and when I came out, I found Steve talking to a Heathrow airport EMT named Paul. He was explaining how the airport EMS worked, and he was on a bicycle! He was one month away from his paramedic test. I hope he did great!
Soon we were boarded, and airborne. I kept my nose glued to the window as we left this beautiful country behind. 8 hours later, we were home.
This was an awesome, wonderful vacation. Steve and I consider ourselves relatively seasoned travellers, but we had never ventured outside the US except for cruise ports of call. Being able to start with not only a country that spoke our language, but where we had such wonderful friends and tour guides made it alot easier.
If it is at all possible, I would highly recommend a visit to the UK. We have wonderful historic places here in the US, but nothing that compares to the ancient history that is England. It's breathtaking to look at a building or a bath or a castle, and think that it looked pretty much as it did 1000 years ago!
Mark and Cheryl were the quintessential hosts. Not only did their knowledge of their country keep us informed and delighted, but their hospitality went way above and beyond. We you guys!!!
All in all, it was an amazing trip, one that we will treasure the memories, pictures and videos of for a long, long time!
We you too guys - and how appropriate that as I read this, we've just received your delivery of DVDs from your visit. Once Wimbledon is over, we'll be eagerly watching those.
I was so sad reading through the final part of your trip - I found myself filling up and I don't mind telling you that I was really holding it together as well when we had to say goodbye - such a horrible thing to do.
Thanks for an awesome report and for so much fun together - we look forward to seeing you back here one day.
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and I was so glad I ordered it! 
I'm willing to bet there's a ghost or two hanging out around these parts!
It's HOT!
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PassPorter Guide Author
...must be the sports scores! Yea, that's it! It couldn't have anything to do with the scantily clad "Page 3 girl", could it? 
Mmmmm....nice fresh cold water...uh...not so much. 
:
It was time for Mark and Cheryl to leave. There was lots of hugs and tears in the lobby, I held it in pretty well but lost it when I got upstairs. 
We cleared customs and security (again, a breeze) and were soom ready to go. We did a little duty free shopping and grabbed some magazines and a water. Total cost for 2 magazines and one bottle of water after the exchange rate: $16.95!!! 
It should have been in a gold bottle for that price!
Cathy
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