Chasing Jane, Chapter 11: Goodbye to Bath

After my delicious lunch at Sally Lunn's I decide I must do a bit of shopping before I leave Bath for home. Many of the little shops have called to me during the day, but I've given in to none (Save for the Jane Austen Centre. Who can blame me?), intent upon my quest.

My first stop is around the corner back at the Roman Baths. They have a lovely assortment of bath products (fancy that): fig and grape bubble bath, rose scented bath truffles, bars of coloured soap in various scents, lavender bath oil. Ah, my favourite things! I choose a bottle of fig and grape bubble bath (imported from Italy, of course) for myself and a bath truffle to take home to Mish who was gravely disappointed she could not join me on the adventure.

After making my purchases I head to the Pump Room to sample the waters. If it was good enough for the cream of Georgian high society, I guess I can give it a go. The waters pour out of a fancy fountain and are served in glasses by a smart looking waiter in a gold vest. The waters are every bit as nasty as one might think, though as one lady pointed out, it wouldn't be so bad cold. She's right, but the combination of high mineral content and warm water makes my stomach most displeased, so I take only the smallest of sips and let the poor bedeviled waiter return it to whence it came.

Next on my agenda is chocolate (isn't it always, with me), so I set out to find a chocolatiere. Fortunately for me, a very nice little chocolate shop called Minerva's House of Chocolate resides directly across the street from the Roman Baths. The only difficult thing is selecting the chocolates! I choose a milk chocolate strawberry cream, a milk chocolate violet cream, a dark chocolate marzipan and orange, and a milk chocolate praline shaped like the head of the aforementioned Minerva. Weird.

I tuck my precious purchases in my bag. They shall be a treat for the train ride home.

Stepping back out into the street my eyes spy another of my favourite kind of shops. A place filled with things I collect. No, not a teashop, but a Christmas shop! Filled with every kind of Christmas tree ornament in every colour of the rainbow, I can't resist purchasing a Christmas fairy to perch on my tree come Christmas and remind me of my grand adventure (the first, I daresay, of many).

I pop in and out of a few more shops, browsing my way through town before deciding it's time to return to the train station and home. I make my way slowly toward the station, steps flagging from exhaustion. I can't imagine why. I've only been walking about seven hours.

On the train I drop gratefully in my seat, glad to be out of the sun and heat, away from the crowds and chaos. Thrilled to finally be able to sit in a comfortable seat and rest a bit.

As the train pulls out of Bath, my eyes roam the hills covered in buildings of creamy stone, and I suddenly feel sad and a little... homesick. I love Bath. Despite the crowds and the heat of the day and the exhaustion of cramming an entire city into one day of sightseeing, Bath is one of the most beautiful and amazing cities I have ever seen. No wonder Jane Austen loved it.

Despite the poverty the Austen family sank toward the end of their stay in Bath, and the melancholy Jane herself felt, she must have experienced just a bit of a pang at leaving this gorgeous city she had once loved so much. You can't experience Bath and not take a bit of it away with you, and leave a bit of you with it. Oh, I'll be back. Never fear that. I will be back.

Settling in my seat, I pull out a chocolate. As the violet cream filling melts sweet and tangy over my tongue, I open to the first page of Persuasion....

The End