Another Day in Bath

We decided to spend another day in Bath rather than touring the countryside as I had originally planned. We've been on the move every day so far and were ready for a bit of a break.

After breakfast we headed down the hill to the central part of town. It was about a 15-minute walk, a gentle downhill slope. Much of it was a walking path that had an underpass to get to the other side of a busy road. We came out at the central bus station and made a note of its location.

From there we walked in toward the center of the city. I was planning to go to the Thermae Bath Spa, a modern structure that takes advantage of the famous springs of Bath mineral water. The entrance fee includes two hours of pool time, a robe, flip-flops and a towel. I was given a rubber wristband that was encoded with my arrival time. When I got to the changing room, I held it up to a wall panel and it told me which locker to use. I was glad to see I got a tall one so there was room for my walking sticks. After changing into my suit and stowing everything in my locker, I headed down to the lowest level and the Minerva pool. The picture below is copied from their website (https://www.thermaebathspa.com), as no phones or cameras were allowed. This pool is very large and has a steady gentle current. The circle shown below is like a lazy river, just relax and you will move through it. The pool wasn't very crowded and I enjoyed lounging in the water for quite some time.

Next I thought I should try the rooftop pool, which has views over the city. I didn't enjoy it as much, though, as the air was cold and the view was mostly rooftops and chimney pots (charming but not very scenic). It was also more crowded. So after a while I headed back down to Minerva.

I made a stop in the so-called Wellness Suite, which had sauna and steam rooms. I went in the one that had cool fog for a little while but everything else was too hot for me!

I took a break to have a pot of tea and a sandwich in the cafe. No payment, just have them scan your wristband. And any time spent in the cafe does not count toward your two hours. After a relaxing time drinking tea, I went back to the Minerva pool for another round. Altogether I think I was in the water about an hour and a half. The water temperature was perfect -- just below body temperature at about 93° F (33.5°C). If it is much hotter than that, I get overheated.

When I was finished I showered and headed back to the changing cubicles to get my clothes from the locker. Once again, I held my wristband to the panel and my locker popped open. I turned in my robe and towel (and flip-flops, even though a sign said we could keep them) and went to the check-out counter. They knew how much I had spent in the cafe and I paid up and headed outside. 

While I was enjoying myself in the spa, Dan took the hop-on, hop-off bus around the city, seeing many of the sights we saw on the tour yesterday plus some more. I met him outside the Abbey, which I'd hoped to tour. However, there was a church council meeting going on and it was closed. We walked back to the bus station and took the No. 4 bus back to Bear Flat, the stop near our B&B. We had plenty of time to relax in our room and catch up on internet things.

Tomorrow we head into Wales.