Stonehenge and Bath

Yesterday I went on another OSAP trip.

We drove for a while and saw rocks,

and then drove a little more and saw a really big bath.

Stonehenge

The "henge" in Stonehenge means hanging. Basically, this site was discovered by archaeologists and has been dug out. These stones weigh up to 5 tons and the site has been dated back 5,000 years (3,000 B.C.). The type of stone from Stonehenge cannot be found in the area, and is believed to be brought over from Wales. There are many myths about how Stonehenge came to be. The best of these is giants, aliens, Merlin (the magician from King Arther's time), and the devil.

Bath

The city of Bath is known for its Roman baths and is

a place where people came for relaxation and recovery.

This was once also a place of worship for one of the roman goddesses.

The water is naturally heated underground and pumped up. In the picture with Rebecca and me, you can actually see the steam coming off the water. (The water is a little green because it is unfiltered...gross!)

Outside the Roman Bath's with Rebecca, Mona, Ashley, Andrea, and Vanessa

So...perhaps the best part of Bath for me personally was that Jane Austen lived in Bath for 5 years, and many of her stories take place in Bath. Even though she absolutely hated Bath, it is still hosts the annual Jane Austen Festival as well as the Jane Austen Center which is on the same street that some of her characters lived.

Sadly, I did not go on the tour in the Jane Austen Center, but I did go into the gift shop where it felt like the mother ship was calling me home!

I found a first edition copy of Emma. 1816 FIRST EDITION!

I found Mr. Darcy once again.
Different face from the statue in Chatsworth, but still just as dreamy!


Got a quick snap with Jane....

After the Jane Austen Center, we went to the Royal crescent and circus, a place frequently mentioned in books as the place where the wealthy lived when residing in Bath. It is just up the hill from where Jane lived for some of her time in Bath and I got a picture leaning again the very same tree in the center park area that Jane Austen herself walked near and rested on. Okay, so I don't know if that is true but,

IT COULD HAVE HAPPENED!

Bath was alot of fun. There were tons of small shops and sidewalk vender's. I plan on returning to Bath in a few weeks for an enormous Christmas Market there that has over a hundred vendors! Bath was already decorated with Christmas decorations - many cities are already decorated because in England, they don't have to wait until after Thanksgiving to begin celebrating Christmas. They start celebrating much earlier than we do - I love it!