Maybe it was because she was in the new surroundings of Vanumbra, but Rita totally forgot about the change of seasons and the start of a new month - but it gave me one of the easiest Pinch&Punch victories for many a month. Although it was the first day of summer, the day started out cold and windy, so we didn't need much convincing to stay in bed for a bit longer, since we just had to wait for the tyre mechanic to arrive later in the morning anyway.

Thurs 1 June - P'n'P, Farmborough Tyres, Cycle to Bath, summer, Crescent, uphill

Around 1130h, as promised, Dave from Farmborough Tyre Service arrived at the campsite to attend to our flat tyre. He was extremely friendly, and proficient, as he set about diagnosing and then repairing the tyre. It was all like repairing a bicycle tyre puncture, just on a much larger scale. I learned a lot about repairing a tyre on the campervan, and Dave was very happy to answer all my dumb questions.

After he finished the job, I asked for the cost and he said "Let's just call it 30 pound", which I thought was extremely reasonable, especially since he came out on-site. When he said it should be in cash, I searched my wallet but did not have enough cash. So he just said that it would be OK if we dropped it into his worksite when we next hit the road. This I thought was extremely trusting, given that he had no way of tracing us if we didn't pay. So, soon after he left, we jumped in the van and went to the ATM he had told us about, withdrew some cash and then went to his worksite to pay. It was money well spent to get us back on the road, and to experience such trusting service.

After we got back to the campsite, we jumped on our bikes and headed off to visit nearby Bath. Along the way on the bikepath, we crossed an old railway bridge over the River Avon and saw that lots of the local schoolkids were taking the first day of summer very seriously, as they stripped down to get some sunshine on their bodies, which were highly Vitamin D deficient.

When we arrived in Bath, we went to the local Botanical Gardens and visited a cafe for a cool drink. I was more than a little surprised when Rita returned with a beer that reminded me of Bazza Mckenzie. I haven't seen a Fosters Lager for many years, and for quite a while I didn't know whether to open it and drink it, or to keep it as a souvenir. Eventually my thirst prevailed.

We then proceeded to walk to the nearby landmark of The Crescent, a semi-circular building that could be part of a university, or a public service building, but is actually a series of residential apartments, joined together and arranged in a semi-circle overlooking a large sloping lawn area. Given the weather, and the date, the lawn was covered mainly with students enjoying the sunshine. Rita decided to join them in this (in)activity. I  was surprised to learn later, in a real estate agent's window, that a 3-bedroom apartment in The Crescent was selling for about 300k GBP - not too bad for such a location.

These semi-circuler buildings are very popular in Bath, and are one of the main reasons why I so remember the city fondly. A short way from The Crescent is another smaller-scale one called The Circus.

We wandered around Bath for quite a while, past the Cathedral and the Roman Baths (which were shut for the day), before finding the bikepath back to Salford, and then up the steep hill to Bury View (thanks once again for eBikes).