Actual baths in Bath

Not quite the right kind of tired to fall asleep on the train, I thought I'd do a little writing.

My visits to Bath have become more frequent of late and it's been really lovely to familiarise myself more and more with the city.

This weekend I was visiting for what turned out to be an incredibly civilised and very lovely Hen party. Upon my arrival on Friday evening I was very proud to find my way to our accommodation with very little assistance from Google Maps... or at least the way to the street where our accommodation was. Busy trying to break into totally the wrong apartment building, I was suddenly 'halloo'-ed from across the street by two ladies armed with luggage like myself. Realising they were Mother and Aunty of the bride, we joined forces and together with a bridesmaid who we also found along the way, managed to let ourselves in to the right building where we eagerly awaited the arrival of two more bridesmaids and the bride herself.

Saturday began at a leisurely pace with a breakfast of pastries, jam on toast, and orange juice. Fuelled for the day, we ventured out to the Roman Baths. Despite my more frequent visits to Bath, I have still somehow managed to avoid the city's most famous attraction, so was glad for a chance to go.

I do feel as though Bath is a place where in certain places particularly you can almost filter out modern life and vividly imagine figures of the past wandering about or clattering through the streets in something horse-drawn.

A spot of culture was followed by Nepalese food, the admiration of architecture at the Royal Crescent, and a pub stop before we headed back to the apartment to add a bit of sparkle for the evening.

We ate at the Roman Bath Kitchens, and filled with smoked duck and blue cheese gnocchi we then made for the Canary Gin Bar which was well-located just round the corner from where we were staying. Here we enjoyed a plethora of gin cocktails and I drank a twist on the more classic G&T.

Today I have been revelling in the friendliness of seemingly every shop assistant and waiter or waitress. With a couple of hours to spare between the bride's departure and a catch up with a good friend, I managed to tick off a fair few items on Santa's shopping list!

A stop at the Georgian Tearooms was a welcome break. Enjoyed a brie and cranberry baguette and 'tea for the brave' while festive jazz played in the background.

Although I'm running on very little sleep, I return feeling full of festive spirit and ready for countdowns to begin!