Bath

Thought I should finally update about my trip to Bath. The city itself is so amazingly beautiful and my pictures really don't do it justice (although that may be more to do with my lack of photography skills!) We stayed at Holiday Inn Bath which was not as bad as the reputation that Holiday Inns tend to carry. The room was cheap and cheerful and did the job perfectly for us - very happy and would recommend it. Accommodation in the UK is a lot more expensive, especially in the more popular cities, than Australia so I was happy to find a relatively bargainesque hotel.

We crammed a lot into the 3 day stay, and tried to do as much as possible. Like typical tourists we bought a ticket for one of those big red buses that take you all around the city with a guide. Tacky, yes, but so worthwhile as you get to see the whole city in a few hours and really get a handle on the place you are staying. After seeing all the main sites we I indulged in a little retail therapy which was fabbbbulous. Bath is full of cute little boutique shops as well as your mainstream high street brands so there really is something for all shopping lovers.

Random fun fact about Bath: the building above was designed to feature all three traditional England class systems. The top of the building on the far left represents the lower class, the middle obviously represents the middle class (obviously) and the far right shows architecture similar to a castle, so represents upper class. I found this so cute and interesting, and never would have spotted it if it hadn't been pointed out by the tour guide.

If shopping isn't your thing then this is more than OK, as Bath has so much history that you could spend weeks here if you really wanted to explore everything. Most famously, of course, are the Roman Baths for which the city is named. During September these are open for special night viewings, and this was so worthwhile. Although I'm sure they are beautiful during daytime, at sunset and nightfall there is so much energy around the baths that provides for really great atmosphere. You also get a set of headphones in the admission price which you can listen to while walking around, but to be honest after I've been looking for about an hour I got weighed down and just read the plaques instead of listening to the audio commentry. I don't want to bore everyone to tears with history so I won't go into it, but it is really fascinating so look into it if you are interested!

The Baths at, well, Bath

View from the Roman Baths of the Cathedral

I very kindly released B from his boyfriendly duties while I visited the Jane Austen museum. For those who are interested in literature, Jane lived in Bath for a short time in her life and it features in a few of her books as well. The museum is so sweet and I really enjoyed it, maybe because I knew it wouldn't feature any of Jane's belongings as there is next to nothing left. There is a lot to be learnt there, perhaps more about Jane's time period than any huge revelations about her, but still worth a looksie if you have time.

 Finally, we had afternoon tea near Bath's oldest house (what is a British trip away without tea and scones?!). The house, which dates back to 1482, has been converted into a tea room and is very quaint. Amazing to think how old some of the buildings are, especially when you think that Australia hadn't even been 'found' yet.

I want more of these right now

Birthday Dinner at Jamie Oliver's

Well, not his house or anything like that, but one of his many restaurants. B and I spent my birthday in Bath, just for a city break to get away from work for a few days, and went out to Jamie's Italian for my birthday dinner. The restaurant has a rooftop terrace and I highly recommend you ask if you can sit up there if you go. The views are so beautiful overlooking Bath, and we were so lucky that the weather was just gorgeous, especially with the afternoon light when we ate dinner.

The beautiful view of Bath from the rooftop terrace

It was so hard to decide what to eat as everything sounded delish. I was so excited just to be there and didn't want to make the wrong choice! In the end I was completely boring and got an Italian burger (have I mentioned how much I love burgers on this blog yet?! I do.)   



 Secretly though, I was looking forward to dessert. I just LOVE food and my mouth is watering looking at these pictures again. I went for Jamie's Eat And Mess and B chose a chocolate and raspberry fudge brownie.

Mmmmm...brownie

Jamie's take on the traditional Eaton Mess

The night was so much fun and well worth a visit. Compared to many other restaurants, the price was really resonable and excellent value. The atmosphere was family oriented and very homely - I would recommend a visit to Jamie's Italian if you get a chance to go to Bath.

Jamie's Italian is located at 10 Milsom Place, Bath.

I'm just so dirty

And I don't mean that in a sexual way. I am naturally such a messy person and really struggle to keep things clean. When I get home, I dump my bag on the couch and leave my clothes on the bed. B has been joking (or maybe not joking) that I have so much stuff next to our bed that we nearly have a king size thanks to the piles of paper, bills, hair accessories, the list goes on really.

I wish on so many levels that I was a tidy person, that it just came naturally. Even I try to keep things clean I mess it up again within a few days. Don't even get me started on household chores - do you guys enjoy doing the dishes or cleaning the shower? Do you always do it, or do your partner and you share responsibilities? B works such long hours compared to me that it really should be my job to clean the house but I actually hate it. I would rather eat pebbles than do the dishes. Why is it that dishes need to be done every single fricking day?

How do you cope with household chores? Any tips for keeping your house clean and tidy, for those who missed out on the cleanliness gene?

London Riots

The last few days have been so shocking in regards to the riots in London. I came back from my long weekend away in Bath (will update with some pictures later on!) and have been watching the news since following the violence and destruction. When I first saw the footage I actually had no idea that it was London - I assumed it was a riot in northern Ireland. It has been going on for three days now and doesn't really show any sign of stopping at the moment. Not sure if you have seen the footage, but buildings have been set alight, shops looted, cars smashed - basically anything that can destroyed is. Currently the cells in London apparently are full, with 400 people being arrested. Some MPs are now calling for a London-wide curfew to reduce the incidence of continuing violence which obviously mainly takes place during the night. Riots have now spread to other cities, including Birmingham and Liverpool.

I believe the viots started after a man was shot dead by police on Saturday, who was part of a protest group. Not sure of any more information than that really, as most of the media attention is focused on the violent crimes committed over the last few nights. Watching the footage is shocking, so hard to believe that this is happening just an hour away from where I am. My heart goes out to the families who have had their homes, businesses or possessions destroyed, how scary it must be to live close to where some of the attacks were and hear the unrest.

Hopefully by tonight the violence will have ceased and people can begin to feel safe in their homes again.