Oxford Trip 2004 VI: Bath and Stonehenge

Today we departed for the town of Bath. This, for many of the students and professors, was the best visit of the entire trip. I myself quite enjoyed it. Bath was a haunting ground for both Jane Austen and Charles Dickins. And, more importantly, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales contains a character called the Wife of Bath. The Wife of Bath is considered to be one of the greatest characters in all of English Literature. She is right up there with Falstaff, Hamlet, and Leopold Bloom. If you have the chance, read the Prologue to the Wife of Bath; it's short but wonderful.



Here is the famous Bath Abbey.



Here is the door to Bath Abbey. Quite nice, eh?



And here are the insides. This is quite a wonderful sight.



And, of course, one of the Abbey's stained glass window.



Bath is also known for having ancient Roman baths, hence the names. I didn't go in because it was 15 pounds ($30). What I did do was go around the back of the building and peak of the wall to see the baths for free. Here is a picture of a young lady dressed as a statue. She would stay perfectly still and wait for a kid to look her over and then she'd stick out her tongue. Nice work if you can get it.



And here is the Royal Crescent. Bath was once a holiday place for the idle rich and royalty. The crown greated this place for the royal family to stay. Now it has become apartments.



We left Bath and next made our way to Stonehenge. You notice the fence around the stones? It cost 7 pounds ($15) to go on the other side of the fence. Of course, one can also not pay the fee and walk up to the fence. The people who do pay are only allowed to go a foot closer than those who do not pay.



I'd rather spend my pounds on other things.



And now ...

Stonehenge
Where the demons dwell
Where the banshees live
And they do live well

Stonehenge
Where a man is a man
And the children dance to
The pipes of pan

Stonehenge
'Tis a magic place
Where the moon doth rise
With a dragon's face

Stonehenge
Where the virgins lie
And the prayers of devils
Fill the midnight sky

And you my love
Won't you take my hand
We'll go back in time
To that mystic land
Where the dew drops cry
And the cats meow
I will take you there
I will show you how



The above lyrics are from the the film, This Is Spinal Tap. Truly, one of the funniest films of all time. It just so happens that I have rented the film this weekend.

Incidentally, all my Oxford Pics without the commentary can be found here.

I hope everyone has a good weekend.

God Bless.