My skin has never been better than when hanging out in Bath, starting each day soaking in the mineral waters.
Photos here of the historic Roman baths, which were uncovered after centuries, and a peek at the baths in our hotel, after they were closed for the night (no photos allowed while open).
I miss dewy skin, easy, affordable, frequent trains and Ottolenghi ice cream in the Waitrose.
One of the things that was great in Europe, but also frustrating, is that cities—Paris and London—that are historically have been thought to be expensive, were less expensive than Nashville. Our theater tickets were less (for better seats). Hotel rooms were less. We paid less for a great dinner for three in London than a mid brunch for three in East Nashville cost in April. It’s not that I think London or Paris are great bargains; just that Nashville has got to figure it out if it doesn’t want to be a one-note town.
It was surprisingly hard to find strawberries with which I could take a photo in my finally-finished strawberry dress. @sherimalman and I went to not one, but two, strawberry festivals to show off the @cashmerette Upton dress I made with five different strawberry patterned textiles. Most of the fabric was second-hand, but there were some new purchases from both ends of the spectrum, Marden’s Surplus and Salvage in Maine and Liberty London.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee called the state legislature back into a special session taking place this week, with the goal of redrawing the state congressional maps. The idea is to break up the 9th Congressional District; that’s the one that includes Memphis and is Tennessee’s last Democratic-leaning district. The state does, in fact, have Democratic and Independent voters. But when they redrew maps in 2022, they divided Nashville into three districts instead of one. Now, there are three congressmen representing parts of Nashville…not one of them lives in Nashville. (The word you are looking for here is gerrymandering.) The plan is to do the same thing with Memphis, possible now given the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Louisiana v. Callais.
Anyway, not sure why this art we saw in London made me think of all that.
We were lucky to be near London when a new, timely Banksy sculpture was installed. We headed over to experience it and the collective effervescence of the international crowd.
The ZSL London Zoo turns 200 years old today. It’s the oldest scientific zoo (i.e., not to house a private menagerie, but to learn about animals). Charles Darwin wrote here. Winnie the Pooh’s eponym was here. Use of the word “aquarium” began here.
We got a behind-the-scenes look thanks to Amanda, including seeing okapi, the only relative of giraffes, who look like a AI combined a zebra and a giraffe. We saw the 1934 Penguin Pool, no longer used for penguins but is featured in the Harry Styles “As It Was” video, and many animals just walking around relatively freely because Brits are rule-followers and don’t harm the sloths hanging 10 inches above their heads when they walk on through. And we met Kiburi, the male gorilla who is described as weighing the same as 420 cans of baked beans.
Amanda and team are on the BBC all day today talking about plans their new wildlife veterinary center.
“Do you think... that men have always massacred each other, as they do today? Have they always been liars, cheats, traitors, brigands, weak, flighty, cowardly, envious, gluttonous, drunken, grasping, and vicious, bloody, backbiting, debauched, fanatical, hypocritical, and silly?”
