THE ROMANS didn’t bother with Oxford – they lived on the hills, Oxford was and is a flood plain. But they didn’t half like Bath (Aquae Svlis) when they trudged down west.
First Western Direct, or whatever they’re called now, is a pretty crap railway but by dint of perseverence we had a train sandwich between two buses to get down to Bath. The tourists shunted from Oxford train station onto a bus looked suitably bemused, but we knuckled down to the journey, no problem!
Here, first of all, is The Huntsman, where we duly gave the talk we gave – a nice pub with a beautiful front and an upstairs room where the carpet was just that bit tacky. Are you wondering what we talked about? Go no further than Shiva Shakti Mandalam – the audience was wonderful, the occasion was sundar and we were so welcomed into Aquae Sulis it lifted our soul. If I have one, that is.
Just round the corner was the Roman baths – the Centurions loved this stuff. Can’t think why.
Bath is in a bowl, innit?
The compulsory bit of video is required, naturally. See if you can spot Alex Bennett asking a local copper for directions.
