Arrival in Bath

　　It took an hour and a half from Paddington to Bath. Our supper was Sushi which I had bought at "Wasabi Sushi & Bento" at Paddington station. We ate them at our daughter's room in Bath. I didn't expect much about English Sushi, but they were not so bad. It was the first time to stay in an ordinary room in the U.K., though I'd stayed at hotel rooms several times. Houses built in stone look a little inhospitable to me, but the inside was not so different from Japan's houses. But, I was surprised to know the rent, and I understood the prices are apparently soaring in the U.K.
　　I went out for walking in the morning of June 10th. A few minutes' meandering steps took me to the place in the first picture. This building was one of the main tourist attractions of Bath, Royal Crescent. A room at your right hand was used as its museum and other rooms were for rent. I envied people who lived in such a historic building, but on the other hand, I imagined several hardships or inconvenience which inhabitants couldn't avoid. Lots of cars were parked just in front of the building very tightly. The Royal Crescent was built in the times before cars so no garages. All cars parked along the road were not clean. I found two Tesla cars. They weren't plugged in. Its security system was off. It would be for saving the battery. If an EV couldn't be charged in the house, the merit of the EV would be decreased by half. I felt bad for the owners as an owner of a Tesla car.
　　There was a restaurant near the Royal Crescent whose name was "Sepoy Club". I felt a strong pride of Indians from its naming. Sepoys were mercenaries established by the British East India Company, but later they fought the U.K. for their independence, though their independence didn't come true from their defiance. Don't you feel their sarcasm?

(Vocabulary)
hospitable 〈人が〉もてなしのよい, 歓待する
[反意] inhospitable
2 〈場所・環境などが〉 快適な, 居心地のよい
[反意] inhospitable
3 〈ビジネス環境・市場などが〉 適した, 好条件の
[反意] inhospitable
inhospitable 〈場所・気候が〉住むのに適さない, 荒涼とした;もてなしの悪い, 無愛想な
meander 〈川・道などが〉 曲がりくねっている, 蛇行している
meander through/along something ＜…＞の中を［に沿って］曲がりくねって流れる
meander around/through something ＜場所＞をぶらぶら歩き回る［歩いて通る］
mercenary troops 傭兵部隊
the East India Company 東インド会社
sarcasm 皮肉, いやみ
heavy sarcasm 痛烈な皮肉



　パディントン駅から約１時間３０分でバースに到着。夕食はパディントン駅の”わさび”で買った鮨ですませ、娘の部屋に泊まった。イギリスの普通の住宅に宿泊するのは初めて。石造りの住宅は、日本の家屋に比べてどことなく殺風景に見えるが、内部はそう変わらない。家賃が高いのに驚いたが、今イギリスの物価はどんどん上がっているらしい。
　朝の散歩で娘の部屋から徒歩１分で１枚目の写真の場所に出る。この街の観光地のひとつ。Royar Crescentだ。向かって一番右の部屋がミュージアムになっているがそれ以外は賃貸の住居。歴史ある建物に住めるのは素晴らしいと思う反面、不便なのではないだろうかとも思う。それは、各部屋の前に並ぶ車を見たから。テスラ車が２台、どちらもモデルY。で当然ながら自宅充電設備はない。また電気の消耗を防ぐためだろう，セキュリティが切ってあった。
　ロイヤルクレセントのそばに２枚目の写真のレストランがあった。セポイ？そういえば世界史で『セポイの乱』というのがあったが、セポイって？後に調べるとイギリス東インド会社が編成したインド人傭兵のことだった。要するにイギリス独立戦争で戦ったインド人達という意味。とすればこのレストランのネーミング、インド人の心意気を感じないか？