Back 'Home' to London

THE BATHS IN BATH

On Monday morning, July 30, I said goodbye to Pat and Bert after they drove me to the famous Roman city of Bath, which is about half an hour from their home. (What a great section of England they live in!) I finally got to take a self-guided tour of the remains of the marvelous baths, which is another excursion that my sister Ceci took in 1988 and I had never done. The audio tour is one of the best I've listened to anywhere, and there is now even a new alternative audio tour -- author Bill Bryson gives his ''take'' on this astounding place. (http://www.romanbaths.co.uk/)

BACK IN LIVELY LONDON

I took the train at 4 p.m. from the Bath Spa station right to Waterloo in less than three hours. Hard to believe I was back for our final week! As usual, things are really hoppin' in the big city. This replica of the Taj Mahal has been erected in Trafalgar Square as part of an India Festival. (http://www.visitlondon.com/london/india/)

Nearby is the much-talked-about statue of pregnant, disabled artist Alison Lapper. According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the statue ''is meant to be a tribute to motherhood and people with disabilities. The 13-tonne statue was inspired by artist Alison Lapper who was born with no arms and shortened legs due to a congenital disorder. Lapper posed naked for sculptor Marc Quinn when she was eight months' pregnant.'' London will hold its 2007 Disability Rights Festival in the square on Sept. 1
(http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/equalities/liberty/index.jsp)