From Liz – Our house in Cranmore was just a little south of Bath, England and we knew we wanted to explore this area. I told the kids we would be going to bath and this elicited quite a few giggles. I am convinced Charlie pictured the city as a giant tub that we would crawl inside. I needed to make sure I explained Bath to them before we left so that they would not be disappointed!

Due to our gigantic van we chose to utilized a park and ride area rather than drive into the city. Even with that it was an adventure driving the tiny roads to the park and ride. I’m not going to lie I was a little nervous sitting on the left and starting at the stone walls I hoped we didn’t hit! Erik did an amazing job and we made it to the lot in one piece!

We took the bus into the city which helped us arrive at the perfect spot for seeing the city. First stop – Krispy Kreme (fed children are better for taking to Roman ruins!). After a delicious breakfast we headed to the Bath House.

Charlie was thrilled to learn there was an audio guide and immediately we starting “diving” into the history (see what I did there?). We learned all about the Roman baths and the history of the city. The museum had a wonderful treasure trail as well as a craft room for the kids. This was great as it allowed Erik and I to read all the signs. It was pretty busy so we moved through quickly. The final “treat” was a taste of the water – 5/6 Lillas gave it a thumbs down – Erik said it wasn’t too bad.

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We finished up our tour and headed out into the city. We watched some street performers and then found some sandwiches for lunch and held a picnic in the park. The kids played some Mario Party style game they invented (using the paths in the park). We then walked to the Royal Crescent on the other side of Bath. There are several tourist attractions in Bath and this was 2nd on the list. However, when we got there we all realized we were not interested in another museum! We took an obligatory picture and left!

Before we had left for England I had printed a treasure trail for Bath. After our success with Alyssa and Duncan in London we decided to embark on the Bath trail. It gave Erik and I a chance to learn about the city and the kids had a mission to finish the trail. As we walked to our starting place we found a few shops to explore including the cutest little bookstore! The kids found so many interesting books we were sad we didn’t have more room in our bags!

We started our trail and quickly solved the clues. Along the way we found a great park and while Sam and Charlie climbed a giant tree, the other girls found some football friends. We all enjoyed the park until the football friends needed to leave and we needed to finish our trail!

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Success! We found the end of the trail right outside Sally Lunn’s Buns Shop (the kids had a good giggle on this one!). This is the oldest house in bath and famous for their buns. Unfortunately the line was quite long so we did not sample any buns this time!

However we were hungry! Katie had noticed a wood-fired pizza place earlier in the day. Pizza is always a winner so we headed over. And guess what? There was an ice cream shop right next door. Wonderful!

Lots of history, food, and fun in Bath but it was time to head home! I’m happy to report Erik successfully navigated the tiny streets back to Cranmore!