Bristol

On this visit, Ellie and I have made it to Bristol twice. It is Ellie's favourite city in the UK. The first time was the single weekend we had off during Greenbelt, on 21-22 August. We had a great time. We spent many hours in Explore@Bristol. This is an interactive science museum. We learnt a great deal about our bodies and the science of exercise, plus loads about the demi-god of Bristol, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. We made our own little stop-motion film, which you should be able to view by clicking here. Although it was fun making the film, I don't think that there is a future in film-making for either of us! :-)


After lunch we wandered up Corn Lane, where the annual Bristol Motorbike Show was in full swing. I had never seen so much leather and chains in one place in my life. We then went over to the City Park where the annual Bristol Gay Pride Festival was happening. Yet again, more leather and chains, but this time interspersed with feathers and frocks, but only on the men.

Our next stop was Cabot Circus which is an enormous, and brilliantly designed, shopping and entertainment area. We ate loads of sushi, bought heaps of clothes for Ellie, saw two 3D movies and watched the people go by. For reasons that are not entirely clear, there seemed to be dozens of young women on their way to somewhere important, all dressed as French maids. I'm not sure if they were part of the motorbike show, or the gay pride festival, or whether Bristol people just dress that way for a Saturday night out.


The next day we went to see Brunel's masterpiece of shipbuilding, the SS Great Britain. Not many French maids, bikers or drag queens there, but lots of people dressed as soldiers and sailors from the 19th century. Clearly Bristol folk like dressing up. The ship itself is fascinating and the displays and explanations are great. It truly is a 'something for everyone' place, with a wide variety of things to read, do, see and play with.

We caught ferries around Bristol when we weren't walking and this adds to the fun of exploring. On our second visit to Bristol, on Sunday 5th September, we encountered thousands of peopel neither walking nor going by ferry, but running. It was the Bristol half-marathon and the streets were full of people huffing and puffing their way to personal glory. Ellie and I did our bit by staying out of their way and went to the Blue Reef Aquarium. This was really well-designed and interesting. Ellie and I became fans of the jellyfish, which were quite spectacular with coloured lights shining through their translucent bodies.


We had a great time in Bristol, and would recommend it to anyone visiting the UK. Even if science and engineering don't turn you on, there are loads of great places to eat plus art galleries, museums and a zoo to entertain you.

The next time we will be in Bristol will be tomorrow, 7th September, when we fly to Paris. I'll blog again from there.