Roman Baths (9 November 2024)

The Avon - Bath

We were on the road again this time to Bath where there are some Roman Baths. 

 

Our host G offered to take us to the rental car company.  It was very kind of him and in doing so we got a tour of Cardiff.  Going past the Principality Stadium where rugby matches are played including internationals like Wales against the All Blacks.  It is a massive but attractively designed building that apparently holds up to 75,000 people, which like Wellington’s stadium is in the middle of the city.  It has a retractable roof and G told has that when covering the field the noise in the stadium is deafening. 

 

We went past Cardiff Castle while G regaled us with some of his experiences in business.  It was interesting to hear his perspective of things like the health system which he says is failing.  He had a doctor son working in it but prior to coming back he had worked in Palmerston North and Wellington hospital and had really enjoyed Wellington. 

Entrance to Cardiff Castle

 

The car we were given was a Vauxhall Mokka.  Of the four cars that we have had it has to be one that I dislike the most.  The seat for me was uncomfortable.  The GPS next to useless and meaning had to use Apple Car Play to navigate as it did not have the place we were staying in the system. 

 

The cold overcast weather continued and the temperatures seemed to be dropping a bit.  Our accommodation was with a New Zealander and his English wife.  The house we stayed was a relative new build in a new estate. 

 

Parking in Bath was next to impossible so we went to our accommodation and got a bus back to the city where we spent a couple of hours exploring the Roman Baths.  It is amazing to realise that the baths have been around for 2000 years.  They did fall into ruin and disrepair but they were resurrected in the 19th century and then excavations discovered the extent of the site.  The city had been built on part of and it seems that archaeologist have burrowed under the existing buildings to show a part of the Roman site.  I wondered whether some of the foundations were actually from that period. 

 

We had dinner in town and then tried to find a bus to take us back but it was running late, it was cold and Bev wanted to just get back into the warmth so we took a taxi.  When we got to our accommodation Bev pulled out her card and was told by the driver  he didn’t have a card reader and he needed cash.  Fortunately Bev mentioned she had Euro so that was exchanged for the ride as the driver said he could use it being from Hungary.






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