Once a month I’d like to share some of the places that I’d love to visit and I hope you’ll share some of yours with me! Jane Austen has been on my mind a lot lately (thank you Pinterest!) and so the first place I want to talk about is Bath, England!
Bath was actually the home of Jane Austen for several years. So it’s no surprise then that 2 of her novels take place for a good chunk of the book in Bath. Northanger Abbey centers around Bath and it’s social scene for quite a bit of the novel. Persuasion also takes residence there towards the end of the book. So if you’ve watched the accompanying movies, you’ve probably seen a little bit of the city too. The movies are one of the main reasons I began to be interested in Bath. I caught glimpses of the city and was intrigued.
So, what exactly do I want to see there?
*The Royal Crescent! It’s such a unique aspect of the city. It looks like a lovely place to take a stroll and enjoy the diversity in the midst of the unity.
*The Roman Baths. While there certainly are many Jane Austen things to do in town, there is much more history here than that. This bath house was built in 70 AD, which in itself is amazing! A bit staggering for us Americans who consider something from 1800 to be old and something from 1700 to be nearly ancient. I’ve seen a couple Roman bath houses in ruins around Europe, so it’d be quite fun and interesting to see one intact and functioning!
*And of course, the Pump Room – depicted so fascinatingly by Jane Austen in her novels. I’m not a fan of tea, but I think a break for tea in the pump room would be most decidedly apropos and put you in the spirit of the Regency era.
Would you like to visit Bath? What would you choose to see? If you’ve been already, I’d love to hear your experiences!
And for your viewing pleasure (and some sites of Bath) –
[Warning: SPOILER ALERT if you haven’t read or seen Persuasion!]
