MENDIP meanderings

Whatever would Jane Austen have made of modern-day Bath? Hordes of tourists, booming street music, fast food, and a man dressed in top hat and tails (and purporting to be Mr Darcy) at the entrance to a museum dedicated to her life and work.

Fortunately, it’s easy to escape some of the excesses of 21st-century life that cluster around the core of the city’s Abbey, Roman Baths and Pump Room, and get a real flavour of what the UNESCO World Heritage Site was like when the author chronicled life here two centuries ago.

We dodged the crowds on a warm and sunny (pre-lockdown) September day by following the City Trail, a walk of about 90 minutes meandering through the elegant streets. The trail (available to download at ) starts at Bath Abbey. This building dates from the 15th century and was one of the last Gothic churches built before the Reformation. It’s an impressive sight, despite the crowds.