Ruby, Ruby, Ruby.

Yes! Forty years and one week ago Ian and I were married by Archbishop’s Special licence five and a half months after we met at an IVC New Year’s Eve Party in snowy Twickenham. (IVC is Inter-Varsity Club, established many years ago to provide social, intellectual  and sporting activities after university or college, there was an interview before one could join).

We are no longer party animals, I wrote about the May Norwegian cruise, for the actual anniversary we went to Bath for a long weekend, train from London via Reading to Bath Spa Station, then taxi to Roseate Villa, https://www.roseatehotels.com/bath/theroseatevilla/stay/.  On arrival, tea and cake and news that we had a double upgrade so instead of overlooking the garden at the back we viewed the large trees bordering Henrietta Park. Amazing breakfast menu too, all bread and cakes are made overnight on the premises, there’s a breakfast chef so every was freshly cooked

Apart from pottering around, we took two bus trips, one around the city with a great live commentary from a would be comedian, yet still informative whilst providing amusement. The second bus tour involved plugging in ear pieces for prerecorded spiel that didn’t quite coordinate with the bus timings.

On Trinity Sunday as it was our actual anniversary we went to Bath Abbey for 11.15 Sung Eucharist, held in the newly reordered East End, apparently the first day using the space in a different way. It was successful, Bath Abbey is technically an ordinary parish church, but wow, not many ordinary parish church has a choir of such magnitude, the Abbey Choir of Girls and Lay-Clerks, nor do they have singing in Latin. Felt quite emotional, a mixture of the the service, reminiscences and thanks that we still delight in each other’s company, laugh together, read each other’s minds.

We were much taken by the comfortable chairs that have replaced pews, the pews were damaging the sinking floor, chairs allow for modern worship we are and can be moved easily to allow space for wheelchairs, this had happened at a previous service, something that would have been impossible with fixed pews.

Our journey back was uneventful, it did occur to me how narrow and cramped the train seats were, on Great Western Railways luggage space has been removed to make space for more seats, if I were travelling alone I wouldn’t have been able to lift my case onto the luggage rack. It was my insistence that we travelled by train rather than drive, hopefully far less stressful, I had it in my mind that one could get up and walk around or even stand so not sitting for too long. Not possible, however, we had a walk around at Reading as we changed from South Western Railways to Great Western Railways. South Western gains were very old, if a tad more seat room but with no air conditioning, the carriages are used usually on the Kingston Wimbledon loop line, not on a ninety minute journey from Waterloo.

Will add photos, if Blogger lets me I will attempt to add a caption.

Photographs from Roseate Villa showing the building, our twice upgraded room, the sweets, the view.