Since we pulled into Bath around 9:30 last night, we really had no view of the city until this morning. Throwing open the curtains this morning revealed an incredible scene. Our hotel backs up to the river Avon, and all around are majestic, yellow limestone, mansion-like buildings--a truly beautiful European city.
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| The view from our hotel! |
After breakfast at the hotel, we walked over to Bath Abbey, just a block from the hotel. The outside of this church is breathtaking, but walking through the doors into the Abbey itself is awesome (in the truest sense of the word). Your eyes are instantly drawn upwards to the incredible architecture of the ceiling, no doubt a design that was meant to draw the eyes of the worshiper towards heaven. All this was illuminated by the morning sunlight streaming through the massive stain-glassed windows as the the pipe organ played music that reverberated through the whole building.
After leaving the Abbey, we hopped on a tour bus that took us on a tour of the city. What an incredible history this city has. Obviously, the city is well-known for the Roman Baths themselves, but better yet is the architecture of the buildings within the city. The Circus and the Royal Crescent were two of the more amazing buildings. These, along with the many gardens and parks around the city, were simply beautiful. (I feel like I am running out of adjectives to describe the places we go in England!)
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| Boarding our double-decker for the city tour. |
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| Part of "The Circus"--stunning! |
Once our tour was done, we were back at the Abbey and walked to the Roman Baths located next door. The students were treated to a glass of water from the Baths. It has a high mineral content and therefore has a distinct flavor that is not necessarily appreciated by everyone. But, you don't come all the way to Bath without taking in some of the rumored health benefits of its water.
Next on the list was high tea at the Regency Tea Room at the Jane Austen Center. The girls were thrilled to have tea with Mr. Darcy himself (a portrait hangs in the room). Tea was served with several varieties of cakes, scones (with clotted cream a jam), and finger sandwiches (ham, cucumber, crab, and salmon). I think the one who enjoyed this experience the most was Dr. Keoshian who kept marveling at how good everything tasted. The way he kept describing each bite he took, you'd think he was filming something for the Food Network.
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| Time for tea! |
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| Definitely yummy :) |
A short walk from Jane Austen's took us to two museums. The girls went to the fashion museum (Bath is now more known for its shopping than anything), and the boys headed over to the Bath at Work Museum. The girls tried on corsets and dresses similar to what those in the 18th Century would have worn when they came to Bath to socialize at the many Balls. The guys looked at the machinery often used during the 19th and early 20th Centuries in the various businesses in Bath at that time. We all met back together in the Assembly Rooms near the Fashion Museum to take a quick picture in one of the rooms where the elite of society would have gathered for Balls.
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| Playing dress-up at the Fashion Museum |
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| Ready for the Ball! |
By mid-afternoon we made our way back towards our hotel, stopping on the Pultney Bridge and taking a break in the Parade Gardens. From there we split off into smaller groups to spend the afternoon relaxing or shopping before having dinner. It is a much needed break. (I really can't believe that this trip we looked so forward to is more than half-way over!) Tomorrow we head towards London to finish off our trip with a grand finale. I am already excited for the many incredible adventures that are ahead of us. And, yes, again we heard today, "This is the best day yet!"
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| The view from Pultney Bridge |
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| Relaxing at Parade Gardens |
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| Playing Ninja at Parade Gardens |
For our devotions, we took our cue from Jane Austen, whose characters were selfish and spent their lives struggling through dysfunctional relationships as a result of this self-centeredness. Spurgeon said, "Christians live by dying. Kill self and Christ shall live in you, and so shall you, yourself, most truly live. The way upward in true life and honor is to go downward in self-humiliation. Renounce all, and you shall be rich; have nothing; be nothing, and you shall have all things. Try to be something, and you shall be nothing; be nothing, and you shall live; that is the great lesson which Jesus would teach us, but which we are slow to learn."
Continue to pray for us and our trip. Specifically pray today that...
- we would have eyes to see the needs of others and a desire to be the one to meet them,
- we would find several people today to give demonstration to what sets us apart from the selfishness of the world, and
- we would desire a deeper level of less of us and more of Christ.
--MrB
Thank you again for sharing each day with us! Everyone looks so happy!! What a wonderful experience for you all.
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