Day Fourteen,

our last day in Bourton,

and what better way to start the day than after some cereals, a good fry up, the cost was £120.00 per night including breakfast and what a pleasant stay it was, many thanks indeed to David and Dawn for looking after us so well,

I had read a long time ago about a couple of mystical places,

in the Forest of Dean,

the area was about 40 miles from Bourton on the Water,

a bit in the wrong direction for us, but as we were this near I wanted to have a look,

we passed through many small villages,

and here it was, closed, just our luck, I wish they had put that fact on their website when we checked it this morning for the sat nav postal code,

we were here half an hour after it should have opened,

on to plan B Dave,

and what a welcome!

as goats rushed to and fro,

the Shetland ponies,

and donkeys totally unfazed by our presence,

we were at Puzzlewood, just a short drive away, and the good news was that it was open, £7.00 for Diana, £6.00 for myself, check on seasonal opening times before leaving home,

so check the camera,

and let's go,

but before you do remember this,

the area is about 14 acres,

there are no signs telling you how to get out,

so if you get lost,

'Oh dear, How sad, Never mind', (It Ain't Half Hot Mum),

all a part of the charm of the place,

for us it was so nice, there are designated walkways,

and in places handrails,

but as it is permanently damp it can be a trifle slippery underfoot, so take care,

almost every surface, is covered in moss or ferns, 

a real paradise for photographers, 

we did not wander in too far as we did not want to get lost and arrive in Bath too late,

so on the way out we passed the donkeys,

and some huge thistles in one of the lower beds,

and said goodbye to the ducks,

I wish we could have stayed longer and really explored the woods, but there it is,

for a better look than our photographs here is a video of the woods, look out for the fairies!

I did it again!, I trusted the satnav to get us from Puzzlewood to Bath, only 40 miles or so, but again through roads like these,

luckily only a mile or so of it,

and we were back to normal roads,

and over the River Severn,

and into England,

not far now,

and here we were in Bath,

our room was not ready as we were early, but we could leave the car at the hotel,

so a walk around town it was then, past the weir,

to the main gardens,

it was a tad chilly.

crossing the road,

we decided on a cake and coffee in one of the many small cafes,

next a walk to Bath Abbey,

which was quite popular,

so a quick pose,

from both of us,

like the abbey there seemed to be building work going on,

this archway looked interesting,

with a Greek/Roman God looking down on us,

we approached the side entrance to the baths,

this was the way out,

but first a look in one of the shops,

we made our way around the corner

past Primark,

to the grand entrance to the square,

there were lots of queues, but these were for tour groups, we just walked straight in,

the good news that there were only a couple in front of us,

the ornate ceiling,

had a large chandelier hanging from it,

our first view of the bath,

and the gallery at the far end of it,

I have to say it did not look that inviting,

although evidently it is cleaned out 4 times a year,

we made our way around the upper gallery, the abbey in the background,

time for a pose,

 from both of us,

and just me!

around this level there are a number of statues,

all looking like there have been here since the get go,

but they are new, well relatively new,

carved by George Anderson Lawson, (1832-1904),

looking down at the other end of the bath,

we have now desended one level,

inside there is a display,

of the temple pediment,

not only is the bath here,

it was also a temple and a place of worship and sacrifice,

we were now able to see the water vapor in the end of one of the tunnels,

as we continued out tour, there were information panels,

giving descriptions of what we were seeing,

illuminated by spotlights,

a quick pose,

and we continued,

as a tour group caught us up,

there were also display of many artifacts found on the site,

some in bone well preserved like these combs,

and who has not thrown a coin into a well and made a wish?

well the Romans did it as well, as can be seen from the numbers of coins found in the baths,

next the overflow,

pose!

and here it is,

it was at this point we went into the shop, 

one present later, and we were back on the ground level,

across from where we first entered,

and here is where the spring enters the bath,

and as Diana found out,

yes it is hot!

looking along the length of the bath,

I mentioned throwing coins into a well to make a wish,

well here your wish might come true!

we looked at what was once the floor supports of one of the baths areas,

then time,

for a few poses,

and I had to get into the act as well!

back inside,

a projected show was being played,

the tour continued past more of the lower floors excavation,

some of which you could walk over and look down into,

now a bit of fun,

you can actually drink the water, it was not that pleasant to be fair, I much prefer a beer,

our tour over,

and here is a video that Diana made of our trip to the bath,

as we left the aroma of the sausage stand was almost to much to bear,

but we resisted as we continued our walk,

along the streets of Bath,

which in this area were remarkably quiet,

we continued,

taking photographs as we went,

we then came to the Pulteney horseshoe weir,

next to the bridge,

river cruises on the Avon get quite close to it,

Diana, the bridge and weir,

we made our way back towards the abbey,

for some liquid resfresmnt,

'Cheers!',

refreshed we went back to check in,

to Number 17, 

a huge house that has been converted into a hotel, £117.00 per night,

the view from our window,

overlooking playing fields,

inside everything you need,

for your stay,

 by now it was time for our evening meal, so off to the All Bar One pub and restaurant, we decided against starters,

 Diana chose macaroni cheese with chicken

for myself a steak, 

 'Cheers!',

 and one more,

we took our time, it was well after dark when we left,

 the abbey illuminated, 

 as was one of the other hotels in the road where we were staying,

 and here we are,

home for the night, we watched some television and then for us we were off to bed.