BATH

My visit to Bath was on August 6th 2006. A very Hot Sunny day too.
Again it was part of my Holiday with my friend Dana, who was In the UK for two weeks. Bath is a very Interesting City , with it's Roman Baths, that have just been renovated at great expense. The Buildings In Bath are Limestone, like all Cotswold buildings are. Very attractive buildings Indeed. A variety of shops there and the pleasure gardens are well worth visiting.
Pulteney Bridge is a popular landmark In Bath, designed by Robert Adam and commissioned by landowner William Pulteney, and next to it is Pulteney weir, which is Impressive Indeed, built to prevent floods which had affected the lower part of the City in the past. "Sally Lunn's" house (Photo above) is thought by some, to be the oldest house In Bath. In 1680 Sally Lunn , a refugee, came to work at that bakery, bringing with her the French recipe for Brioche. The buns became very popular and the house a popular meeting place too. The house became known as "Sally Lunns".
Bath Abbey was completed In 1617 and very Impressive Inside & out.
It was Initially a Monastry in 676, then In 1090 the abbey was replaced by a Norman Cathedral priory. Eventually being replaced in 1539 by a new abbey.....not completed till 1617.
The Royal Crescent is another Impressive sight In Bath, completed in 1774, after taking 7 years to complete. A terrace of 30 grand houses , attracted very wealthy people who would rent a house for a season. If you take the Sightseeing bus trip, you see this Crescent and from the top deck, should get a decent photo too.
The gardens next to the Pulteney Bridge are Ideal to relax in and there are deck chairs near a bandstand and a cafe or two as well.

WARWICK CASTLE

I visited Warwick Castle during August 2006, while Britain was enjoying a nice Warm & Sunny spell of weather. In the morning I'd been to Stratford with my friend Dana, then we carried on to Warwick at lunchtime. Unfortunately parking was not easy at that time of day and we had to park In the town of Warwick Instead. So to get Into Warwick Castle Car park, it's wise to go there during the Morning. The visit Itself was very Interesting as there was the Jousting going on , with the Horses & riders taking part in that event. Quite a colourful sight with the Horses in costume as well as the riders. Also there was a Bird of Prey exhibition, watching hawks and Eagles swooping low over spectators heads! We also visited parts of the Castle, Including the Dungeons , which are very damp & dismal to say the least. A Gibbet cage hangs from the ceiling. Hard to believe we used to torture people In that way years ago.
So the Castle has seen many a gruesome death In it's day. There is an Exhibition of swords and body armour, plus Oliver Cromwell's death mask (Photo above) together with many other Items connected with battle & armoury. The Ghost tower is a popular attraction there, with actors playing out the scene of the murder that occured there.
The areas around the Castle have many events and the Bowman is one of them.
Also a Rat Catcher...showing how they dealt with Rats in that time.
The Interior of the Castle has many Figures that are very lifelike Indeed. Such as Henry VIII and his Six Wives, plus many other Royals made into Wax work figures.
The "Kingmaker" exhibition is also worth seeing and also the Great Hall with its suits of Armour and Impressive displays there. Prices for admission to the castle are not cheap, but then there is enough to entertain the family all day there. So worth it overall I guess.
The town of Warwick is also worth walking around too.