Sunday, August 2, 2015

From London to Bath

Pages from Jan's Travel Journal: April 26, 2015

The Hotel Apollo in London was a small, narrow row house that had been converted into a charming bed and breakfast. Its location on Argyle Street made it very convenient to both King's Cross Station and St. Pancras Station. I had read mixed reviews about the place and decided to take a chance as the price was quite reasonable. The bedrooms are tiny, but very neat and decorated in a cozy style. There was even a kettle in the room, and packets of coffee and tea. The bathrooms were clean and modern. It's a family business and the owners were very nice. We would be willing to stay there again.

Our small, cozy room at the Apollo.

We had the full English breakfast before starting our short journey to Bath. The breakfast room was in the basement, which had a large walk-out with stairs leading to street level. The windows allowed plenty of morning light to brighten the room. That meal was quite an experience! Our plates were heaped with bacon, sausage, grilled tomatoes, baked beans, mushrooms, hash browns, and a fried egg. A toast rack was brought to the table, along with plenty of coffee or tea. I was able to finish about half of my meal. I'm simply not accustomed to a heavy breakfast. It was certainly a meal we will never forget.

A full English breakfast at the Apollo, London.

Our next stop was Paddington Station, where we would catch the train heading west for Bath and Bristol. Desmond easily navigated our way through the London Tube (mind the gap!) to Paddington, where we boarded our train. We enjoyed every minute of the ride through London and into the countryside. The gorgeous rural scenery of lush green fields, peaceful streams, farms, and pastures dotted with fluffy sheep kept us mesmerized. We saw several little narrowboats floating serenely on placid streams and canals. As we neared Bath, Des spotted the chalk horse high upon a hillside. There are several of those in the area, and I'm sorry I was unable to get a good photo of one.

I had originally booked rooms for us at a hotel in Bath center, but due to a schedule change, we found ourselves at the Holiday Inn, about a twenty minute walk from the train station. The hotel is located beside a very old cemetery, which Craig and I had a view of from our room. It wasn't creepy at all. The ancient, ornate headstones were surrounded by flowers, bushes. and  tall trees. It looked like an interesting place to explore. We stowed our bags in the room and then the three of us set out to explore Bath. 




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