ducked away.
I laughed and it felt good to be with them joshing each other and, for the first time in weeks, I felt myself relax slightly. Maybe it would be all right in Bath after all.
My spirits rose as we made our way further up into the town. There were some of the usual shops you see in every city – Next, BHS, Gap, Office shoes, The Body Shop –but as we went
higher up the road and through a narrow lane, there were little boutiques, jewellery shops, all with windows full of knick-knacks, linens, soaps, bath gels. The area was heaving with people looking
at the displays, and it was obviously a great place for shopping. I glimpsed a girl with blonde hair ahead of us. She looked exactly like Allegra from the back. I knew it couldn’t be her and
felt a pang of missing her.
I wish she was here
, I thought.
We could have explored together
.
We walked into the square to the right of the Abbey, which was lined with benches, most occupied by people watching a couple with guitars in the middle. Some people were eating ice creams,
others just sitting watching. To our right, I noticed a line of Italian-looking statues high above a wall.
‘What’s in there?’ I asked.
‘The Roman Baths,’ replied Clover. ‘Lots of bits of ancient stones and stuff and a huge pool full of water. It’s quite interesting but a bit hot and smelly. Bath water
has sulphur in it and smells of bad eggs.’
Tasmin laughed. ‘Sell it to her, why don’t you?’ she said. ‘Actually it’s interesting in there if you like learning about history.’
We crossed the square, took a left down a narrow street and the area opened up again. Opposite were the green hills I’d seen from the bus and it looked like there were some lovely old
houses there, all built in the soft honey-stone that I was beginning to see was typical of the area.
We crossed the road and watched tourists get on a red open-topped, double-decker tourist bus to our right. We leant against a wall and looked below where there was a sunken park and beyond that
was a river with a weir. On the opposite bank, a couple of double-decked boats were filling up with more tourists.
‘This is a real holiday place, isn’t it?’ I commented. ‘I don’t think I ever realised when we visited you before.’
‘Understatement,’ said Clover. ‘The tourists are here all year round.’
‘To your left is Pulteney Bridge,’ said Tasmin putting on a loud tour-guide type voice, which caused some people to turn and look at her. ‘Famous because it has shops on it.
Apparently there are only two others like it in the world.’
‘One is in Florence,’ I said.
‘Ooh, get you, clever clogs,’ said Tasmin. ‘Jane Austen lived here once so the tourists come to see all her hang-out places too, not just the Roman parts. There’s even a
day when people dress up in clothes from that period and parade around like a bunch of tossers.’
‘Seriously?’ I asked.
Tasmin nodded. ‘It’s called the Regency parade. It happens every June. We should make sure we’re around this year so we can have a laugh watching everyone.’
‘Some of them look mad in the bonnets and the feathers, but those high breeches and long coats look pretty hot on some boys,’ said Clover. ‘Have you been to Italy,
Paige?’
I nodded but didn’t elaborate in case she thought I was showing off. I’d been to Venice last year, Tuscany to stay in an old farmhouse the year before, Florence, Sicily, Sardinia,
the Amalfi coast and Ravello in years before that. Mum and Dad loved Italy.
‘I’m going to go one day,’ said Tasmin. ‘I want to travel the world.’
I thought it best not to say I’d also been to India, Peru and the Seychelles. We’d had two holidays a year for as long as I could remember.
No more of those either
, I
thought as Tasmin and Clover moved off again.
We walked up and down lanes, through an indoor market, then stopped for a cappuccino at a café at the top of the town where there
I laughed and it felt good to be with them joshing each other and, for the first time in weeks, I felt myself relax slightly. Maybe it would be all right in Bath after all.
My spirits rose as we made our way further up into the town. There were some of the usual shops you see in every city – Next, BHS, Gap, Office shoes, The Body Shop –but as we went
higher up the road and through a narrow lane, there were little boutiques, jewellery shops, all with windows full of knick-knacks, linens, soaps, bath gels. The area was heaving with people looking
at the displays, and it was obviously a great place for shopping. I glimpsed a girl with blonde hair ahead of us. She looked exactly like Allegra from the back. I knew it couldn’t be her and
felt a pang of missing her.
I wish she was here
, I thought.
We could have explored together
.
We walked into the square to the right of the Abbey, which was lined with benches, most occupied by people watching a couple with guitars in the middle. Some people were eating ice creams,
others just sitting watching. To our right, I noticed a line of Italian-looking statues high above a wall.
‘What’s in there?’ I asked.
‘The Roman Baths,’ replied Clover. ‘Lots of bits of ancient stones and stuff and a huge pool full of water. It’s quite interesting but a bit hot and smelly. Bath water
has sulphur in it and smells of bad eggs.’
Tasmin laughed. ‘Sell it to her, why don’t you?’ she said. ‘Actually it’s interesting in there if you like learning about history.’
We crossed the square, took a left down a narrow street and the area opened up again. Opposite were the green hills I’d seen from the bus and it looked like there were some lovely old
houses there, all built in the soft honey-stone that I was beginning to see was typical of the area.
We crossed the road and watched tourists get on a red open-topped, double-decker tourist bus to our right. We leant against a wall and looked below where there was a sunken park and beyond that
was a river with a weir. On the opposite bank, a couple of double-decked boats were filling up with more tourists.
‘This is a real holiday place, isn’t it?’ I commented. ‘I don’t think I ever realised when we visited you before.’
‘Understatement,’ said Clover. ‘The tourists are here all year round.’
‘To your left is Pulteney Bridge,’ said Tasmin putting on a loud tour-guide type voice, which caused some people to turn and look at her. ‘Famous because it has shops on it.
Apparently there are only two others like it in the world.’
‘One is in Florence,’ I said.
‘Ooh, get you, clever clogs,’ said Tasmin. ‘Jane Austen lived here once so the tourists come to see all her hang-out places too, not just the Roman parts. There’s even a
day when people dress up in clothes from that period and parade around like a bunch of tossers.’
‘Seriously?’ I asked.
Tasmin nodded. ‘It’s called the Regency parade. It happens every June. We should make sure we’re around this year so we can have a laugh watching everyone.’
‘Some of them look mad in the bonnets and the feathers, but those high breeches and long coats look pretty hot on some boys,’ said Clover. ‘Have you been to Italy,
Paige?’
I nodded but didn’t elaborate in case she thought I was showing off. I’d been to Venice last year, Tuscany to stay in an old farmhouse the year before, Florence, Sicily, Sardinia,
the Amalfi coast and Ravello in years before that. Mum and Dad loved Italy.
‘I’m going to go one day,’ said Tasmin. ‘I want to travel the world.’
I thought it best not to say I’d also been to India, Peru and the Seychelles. We’d had two holidays a year for as long as I could remember.
No more of those either
, I
thought as Tasmin and Clover moved off again.
We walked up and down lanes, through an indoor market, then stopped for a cappuccino at a café at the top of the town where there
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