bath: play day

March 7, 2009

My definition of a perfect day:  sunshine, walking around for hours capturing beauty, pointing my feet towards whatever my camera lens is drawn to, stopping once in a while for coffee and sweets, enjoying a nice meal with friends, laughter (always), good music (a must), writing or chilling with a good book at the end of the day.  Better yet though?  Doing it with someone who enjoys it as much as I do.  Better still?  Spending it in a foreign country where everything is new and bathing in soft light and I can take it all in because my mind is vacant for any experience, my eyes are wide open, my heart is beating like a hammer.  Today is such a day.

We play with polaroids on her living room floor in the morning then venture into the Botanical Gardens, croissant and espresso in hand.  We find Spring there, kelly green lawns carpeted with soft purple crocuses. Bees going about their business and trees with flower-tipped branches are an added bonus.  They become our subjects for hours.

Eventually, Susannah turns the camera on me.  Perhaps I’m just speaking for myself but I think most people who spend time behind the camera loathe being in front of it.  And though I’m not 100% comfortable, she puts me at ease.  I let her move me around as I would do with Wilbur and end up having a good time of it.  I carefully sit in a bed of flowers and she shoots with her vintage Polaroid and heavy Hasselblad (this camera is a beauty, I nearly weep at the sight of it).

photo by susannah conway

After the gardens, we head to Jamie Oliver’s Italian restaurant for lunch.  We sit in the room with torn vintage wallpaper and exposed plaster and order three pastas to share.  Tagliatelle Genovese (basil pesto with heritage potatoes, green beans and pecorino cheese), sausage pappardelle (Italian sausage, tomatoes, red wine and parmesan) and spicy prawn linguini (pan fried garlicky prawns with tomatoes, chili, rocket and fennel) with a basket of Italian breads (focaccia, rosemary crisps and sourdough country bread) served with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  Absolutely divine.

At the Bath Abbey, a choir practices for a performance that evening. Angelic voices echo off the high fan-vaulted ceiling.  A rugby game attracts an enthusiastic crowd near the Pulteney Bridge across the River Avon.  We walk around the city for awhile then stop at a little café for espresso in the late afternoon.  I introduce her to Wilbur.  He likes her a lot.

The past two days have been inspiring, relaxing, eye-opening, confidence-building and just the career-changing back-to-school boost I needed.  I wish I had words to describe how lovely it was to meet Susannah and what a beauty she is.  She is nothing short of stupendous.  I adore every bit of her.  Her ability to tell a story, her wicked sense of humor, her willingness to share herself, her ability to make you feel extraordinary and help you tap into your source of creativity and her skills as a writer and photographer inspire me to no end.  Thank you, beautiful, for everything.  I hope to be able to return the favor someday, dans ma belle ville de Montréal.

photo by susannah conway