Bath and Stonehenge

Next up after Brighton was Bath - a World Heritage City that's most famous for its Roman bathhouses dating back 2000 years. The town itself is incredibly charming as it sprawls over several green hills. University students are everywhere, with sweatshirts that read "University of Bath" or "Bath Spa College." As reputable as these schools might be, I wonder how "Bath Spa" reads on a resume. Regardless, it's good enough for the American Olympic team because according to our hotel owner, the Americans have been in touch with local residents about setting up at the college to prepare for the 2012 games.

We walked all over the city. Felt like going back in time - and indeed, for much of the buildings and roads, we were. Ate at a good Italian restaurant, where our waiter, who was from Naples, advised us to never go there and told us of his dreams to live in Miami. Toured the Roman Bath museum to see some of the well-preserved ancient spas; the hot springs are still bubbling up from the earth into the largest bath, appropriately named King's Bath, and by still bubbling, I mean 1.5 million liters of steaming water each day to be exact.

From Bath, we took a bus tour, called Mad Max, into the countryside to see Stonehenge. Turns out, the name Mad Max refers to the owner's dog and not the Mel Gibson movie. Whichever... Mad Max's bus driver wouldn't shut up the entire trip and practically drove me crazy.

However, the trip to Stonehenge was completely worth it. It's amazing and don't let anyone tell you that it's overrated or disappointing. Did you know Stonehenge was originally built in a forest? Now, the forest is gone and all that remains are the green fields and dozens of sheep as well as a high traffic road. The stones are big, and you can go within 30 ft of them as audio tours give you details on the history of its creation. Again, don't let anyone talk you out of going there.