Views of Bath
Here lived Jane Austen 1801-1805. The only plaque that commemorates the novelist's stay in Bath and, to make matters worse, the dates are wrong: she lived in Sydney Place No. 4 for three years, from 1801 to 1804. The house has been divided into four “elegant georgian apartments” , for the writer's fans to stay. About two hundred pounds a night. Another option is the Bed & Breakfast where the BBC filmed Persuasion, Sir Walter Elliot's House , at No. 95. The Regency-style parties they organize are famous. In a nearby street he continues to serve pints Pulteney Arms . It has been in the same place since 1759, but there is no documentary evidence that the writer dropped by the pub.
She then she moved to Green Park Building East, and from there to 25 Gay Street, a little above the jane Austen Center . The author's father had just died — his grave is in St. Swithin's Church — and left his wife and two orphaned daughters from the pension he received as the parish priest of Steventon. Helpless, they became dependent on the only remaining men in the family, Jane and Cassandra's brothers, and the £460 a year they passed on.
sydney place
“Love is desirable. Money is absolutely essential.”
They could only afford one maid when they moved to Trim Street nº7 . At No. 14 there are other typically Georgian apartments to stay in, although the novelist didn't like this street at all... she didn't like it either The Paragon , but because her rich aunt lived in No. 1 and she had a dislike for him. She visited there on occasion - another Holiday Home - as well as in 13 Queen's Square.
The Paragon Townhouse
"Her favorite house of hers was sydney place without a doubt," he says. Moira Rudolf . tour guide to mrs bennet : cap, parasol and spencer. "From the window she saw Sydney Gardens." The oldest park in the city. "You had to pay to get in, but Jane was a subscriber, she went every day. It was a nice place to walk, with splendid waterfalls, caves for lovers to hide in, and romantic castle ruins." All false. " These fairytale decorations have disappeared . The temple of Minerva remains, and the Chinese bridges over the canal. But not the maze, which was the main attraction". It was about half a mile… "There was a plan to rebuild it…". It cost three pence to get lost inside. entanglement. "At ten in the morning a public breakfast was served, at noon there was dancing and at five the evening began". Five thousand gas lamps, concert and gala pyrotechnic dinner. "York ham, chicken, lamb and Cow tongue; wine, beer, cider and perry. The party ended with fireworks at ten. . Today you can eat in the cafe Holburne Museum , which, before exhibiting paintings and teaspoons, was a hotel. "Their rooms were used to walk when it rained outside, because in bad weather, the ladies did not go out." This is a problem in a country with a high probability of showers like Great Britain.
Green Park
"-Oh Lord! I think it's going to rain.
"What I thought...
"In that case, I'm not going out for a walk today, although it may come to nothing, or it may end before twelve."
'Perhaps, but then it will be very muddy, my dear.
-That does not matter to me. I don't mind the mud.
"I know... I know you don't care about mud..."
"It's falling harder and harder!"
—Yes, if it continues to rain the streets will be very wet.
—I already see four open umbrellas. How I hate to see an umbrella!
Cheryl Corcoran she carries it hanging from her arm, just in case. "Many English people like to go for a walk, whatever the weather, especially the older ones…". At the moment it's clear... "But maybe not so much for young people!". Jane Austen enjoyed taking long walks… "There were certain rules for walking: men had to go on the side of the road, so that women wouldn't fall off the sidewalk and get wet from the leaks." Get on Beechen Cliff and contemplate the city from the current Alexandra Park ; away from the centre, to Charlcombe, to Lyncombe, to…
“We went to Weston last week, and I really liked it. I liked it very much? West? No, walk to Weston.”
weston
"He also loved Royal Crescent ". About thirty terraced houses in the upper part of the city. Neat, sober, elegant. They wear the beige uniform of the Norland Nannies. They are all the same. " It is the most outstanding work of Georgian architecture . It was designed by John Wood, and they say that for its form it was inspired by the Druid temples dedicated to the Moon ". He is the same architect who built the circus, another urbanization, this one drawn in a circle. "He would represent the Sun. He was a Mason…". At nº13 he resided David Livingstone ; in 27, the arctic explorer William Edward Perry , and in nº7, Nicolas Cage . The plate of the latter is yet to be placed. " They say that Johnny Depp bought a house around here too . I've never seen it, and look what I'm looking at!" It would cost him about four million pounds at least; 400,000 if he has settled for a flat. "It has always been a very expensive area…". 5,000 pounds it cost the Duke of York when in 1796 he bought the 16th block of Royal Crescent . It is now part of a hotel; from £300 per night.
You have to sneak into a neighbor's house-museum, at number 1 . It is decorated as when the Sandford family lived there in the 18th century. An enthusiastic old lady strives to reveal the most embarrassing secrets of the former owners in each room. "This is a scratching post: the lady of the house used it to relieve the itching of lice. She received visitors in her bedroom while she got ready in the morning. She put on white lead powder to make her look paler; the bad thing is that they were poisonous, they caused alopecia and rotted teeth. Some even died!" Another beauty trick of the time was rat hair for the eyebrows, which were worn thick and black. " Georgian gentlemen did not leave the dining room to relieve themselves , that's why behind the screen there is a toilet... And in the living room is where the ladies retired to have tea after dinner...".
Royal Crescent
Her explanations smell like milk tea. "I take one just to get up, another with breakfast and two in the afternoon. Not before bed, otherwise I wouldn't sleep a wink; but my father did." A nation of teinomaniacs. "In Georgian times, tea cups were not drunk, but tea saucers, because the cups did not have handles, following the Chinese fashion." The Austens spent the Twinings brand , and Jane was in charge of preparing and guarding it. "It was kept under lock and key, because it was a very expensive product. That's why the servants bought used tea leaves."
"...I don't want to drink anything other than tea..."
The afternoon tea The Austen's was about half past six in the evening, and consisted of a plate of tea served with English muffins . It's not Sturbucks muffins, it's buttered toasted muffins. Another typical brioche for snacking is the bath bun . Or some controversial stuffed scones: There is a serious debate between Devon and Cornwall about the correct way to eat this scone: in Devon they spread the bread first with cream and then with strawberry jam, and in Cornwall, vice versa, first the jam and then the cream. The Devonshire-style is the most practical, and the Pump Room Restaurant , a good place to check it out. Lunch with trio and piano. They've been winding that huge Tompion clock since the early 18th century. When the hall was inaugurated, the Roman baths below it had not yet been discovered.
The best tea, a la Austen
The city was a benchmark in medical tourism since Emperor Claudius installed the first caldarium. More than a million liters flow from the hot springs daily , at a temperature of forty-six degrees. They are the only natural ones that flow in Great Britain. A prodigy that cured from rheumatism to a cramp, lumbago, infertility, overweight and depression.
"How is Mary?" And…what is it that brings the Crofts to Bath?
"They're coming for the admiral." They think she has gout.
"Gout and decrepitude!" Poor old man!
Her brother also had gout. Jane Austen when she came to Bath to treat and. The cure consisted of immersing oneself in the spa pools and drinking many glasses of hot water in the Pump Room . Such was the reputation of this water, that it was distributed throughout England as a bottled cure-all. There is a fountain in the dining room to test it. It may have more than forty minerals, but good taste is not among any of its properties. If you have to drink water, let it be from the ** Thermae Bath Spa ,** a modern wellness center where you can relax with hydromassages.
"In the old days, patients came to the bathrooms in sedan chairs." Angela Nutbrown tries to explain what this closed sedan chair looked like, with a door and windows. "If you put it in Google you will get an idea." Two porters held the load. "They were the taxi drivers of the time." to the cry of “Chair, chair!”, they called them. "They had a reputation for being rude…" They thought they were the masters of the sidewalk. "They were always drunk…". Regulars to the taverns, they drank to kill the wait between races. "At night, they would light up with a link-boy." A lighthouse-boy who ran with a torch in front of him. There are still candlesticks in some portals. "Since they were narrow vehicles, they could enter houses and pick up disabled passengers directly from their beds. They were also used by ladies when the floor was muddy, so as not to dirty their undersides. It is the vehicle used by Catherine Morland or Lady Russell to go to the ball in the Assembly Rooms ".
Thermae Bath Spa
“Mrs. Allen took so long to get dressed that they didn't get to the classrooms until very late. It was high season, so those were packed and the two ladies had to get in as best they could. As for Mr. Allen, she headed straight for the card room…”
The Assembly Rooms they were multi-entertainment halls where at least one party a week was held. "Up to a thousand people gathered in high season..." Only the crowded hats of the ladies could be distinguished. "The social classes were mixed…". A headdress of apricots, grapes, strawberries. "The master of ceremonies made the introductions…". Another with ostrich, heron, stork feathers. "The dance opened at six, with a minuet." Foreigners believed that the expression of an Englishman was the same in a quadrille as in a funeral. "In addition to dancing, people went to read the newspaper, have tea, talk and flirt. They also played bingo and cards." To the whist, to the brag, to the vingt-un. Speculation was Jane's favorite game. It was good luck to gamble with your jacket inside out. "It was a place to see and be seen." Television adaptations of her novels have been shot for the BBC. "It is still used for celebrations, fairs, conferences, concerts…". That the windows are high is done expressly, so that passers-by do not chafarde. "The building was practically destroyed in World War II." It's barely noticeable..." In the basement is the Fashion Museum".
Milsom Street
“I have seen the prettiest hat you can imagine in a Milsom Street shop window, much like yours but with the poppy red ribbon instead of green. I've been wanting to buy it…”
Milsom Street It is the main shopping street. is where you are Jolly's , the oldest shopping center in Bath. The avenue lengthens and follows Union and Stall. It was in a hat shop nearby that Jane's rich aunt—the one she couldn't stand—was accused of stealing a piece of white lace. They even put her in jail. And she might have been sentenced to death if the stolen item in question had been worth more than a shilling; although she was more fashionable about being sent to Australia as a convict. She may have been the victim of extortion, but her own defense attorney called her a kleptomaniac . In fact, she is suspected of repeat offending: they say that she tried to steal a plant from a greenhouse, although it may just be gossip...
George Bayntun
Bath's most "funky, sexy and interesting" store is Off the Wall Antiques . That's what the seller says, at least. "We have Roman pieces, stuffed crocodiles, skulls…" her favorite: "Always, the last thing I've sold." A bottle of arsenic. "But empty." He has another on the sideboard, along with a pot from Ethiopia and a three-hundred-year-old pendant. Beau Nash is another neighboring antique shop: two vintage floors full of furniture, posters, suitcases, lamps... But where the largest concentration of dealers gathers is in Bartlett Street Center and at the Old Bank Antiques Centre. This last antique dealer is located on Walcon Street, the bohemian neighborhood of artisans. A flea market takes place every Saturday. In addition to curio shops and fashion and design boutiques, there are cafes like Made by Ben, to have a sandwich or a cake (they have won several Good Food Awards ) . Corkage It is perfect for wines and tapas.
"I think I drank too much wine last night..."
To reinforce the hangover, in the Canary Gin Bar They offer a whole menu of cocktails based on the world of Jane Austen, such as the Lizzy B or the Darcy. and in the ArtBar (the bar at the Abbey Hotel) prepare a cocktail inspired by Northganger Abbey: Northangover Abbey.
“In the end, I am convinced that there is no greater fun than reading. How soon one gets tired of anything except books!
For Jane Austen, the bookstore George Bayntun It would have been a paradise. "We have a lot of his novels, because we focus on first editions of the classics of English literature." Mansfield Park, Lady Susan, Emma... £2,650 for the complete novels. On the second floor are the offers. And tucked away behind a door is one of the few remaining Victorian bookbinding shops in England. Don is their head of restoration. "We're going for the third generation." Everything is done by hand. " The most valuable work we have worked on has been a _Second Foli_o of Shakespeare ". Vermilion and green vellum cover… "And hopefully we can work on a First Folio soon!" Marbled paper inside… "Will cost about three million pounds to repair and bind." Pure gold leaf and engraving… "Plus rather than making it pretty, it protects the book." Andrew is in charge of the gilding. Nola, at her table, removes an old cover. She cleans the worn pages. She restores them. Tissue paper to reinforce them. Tidies. Sews with linen. "We are the doctors of the books" . Spike just finished a spine of Alice's adventures in Wonderland. "It's for a client from Hong Kong." In 1975 there were twenty people in the workshop; today only six. But they continue to operate with as much meticulousness as when they started, in 1894.
"An artist cannot do anything scruffy."
"My favorite novel is pride and prejudice ". This is the third time that Victoria has attended the Jane Austen Festival, which will be held from 8 to 17 September . It is as if King Georges were ruling Bath again, with thousands of austenophiles dressed in period . She looks like a daughter of the Bertrams. "I think I would not have liked to live in those years…". Muslin dress. "Women had it complicated if they couldn't find a husband…". Over her shoulders, a Kashmir shawl. "They had to be pretty..." Pearl neckline. "Possessing money and land…". Suede gloves. "Belonging to a good family..." Hat tied with ribbons. "And then these clothes! You have no freedom of movement. You need help even to button up your suit. It's impossible to run with this umbrella. More than a week, I couldn't stand it!"
"Oh, who could ever tire of Bath?"
Find out more about Bath at Visit Britain.
Canary Gin Bar