The last week of my time in the UK (May 15-21), I lived in Bristol. I picked this part of the country because I had not been there yet and I heard from several people that it’s a lovely town. And it is! Such beautiful buildings, and so colorful.
I spent a full week there though it flew by. Got there Monday evening after a 10-hour travel day from York. Tuesday I walked around Bristol and saw all that it had to offer. I just love walking around cities and discovering new parts of them. I saw so many cool houses that were painted colorfully on the waterfront. That’s what makes it so quaint. Also, there’s lots of boats around because it’s on a river. They have made a really cool area out of the river with the boat docks and everything. Lots of cozy and fun, outdoor seating and places to have a drink or a meal.
I started off by taking a bus ride from my Airbnb down to Saint Nicholas market. But because it was morning, there was nothing happening and no one was there yet. I planned to go back because they had lots of really cool street food types of places to eat. But I never went back. I’m sure that area is really cool when it’s the prime time. But I did not see it as such.
I then walked from there to the Old Vic. They have one of these in London, where I saw the performance of the musical Mandela. I didn’t realize they had them in several cities. But this is also a theater space where you can also get alcoholic beverages, coffee, pastries, see a show, or sit and work – a very flexible space. I sat there for a while and worked on a lot of school work I needed to do.
Then I walked down to see the seaside are really the Riverside. There’s lots of cool artwork on the buildings everywhere. Made my way down to Queens Park and then down to the boat dock area. It’s such lovely weather here which is a change from pretty much most of my time in the UK. It’s been sunny and decently warm the whole week.
I found this really cool shipping container and place that has lots of different food options, and it had some Greek souvlaki there. I love great food! After that, I wondered and found a really cool bookstore that has lots of very progressive books. I browsed for quite a while and finally ended up buying a couple of books. After that, I walked around a bit more because I wanted to find some of the Banksy artwork that I had heard about. I know there’s several around the town. Who is Banksy, you ask? From Wikipedia:
“Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation.[2] Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive epigrams combine dark humour with graffiti executed in a distinctive stenciling technique. His works of political and social commentary have appeared on streets, walls and bridges throughout the world.[3] Banksy's work grew out of the Bristol underground scene, which involved collaborations between artists and musicians.[4] Banksy says that he was inspired by 3D, a graffiti artist and founding member of the musical group Massive Attack.[5]”
I found this one. “The newest of Banky's Bristol works, this first appeared on the side of a building in Albion Docks in Hanover Place, in Bristol's Harbourside in October 2014… It depicts a take on Vermeer’s famous Girl with a Pearl Earring, replacing the girl’s earring with an outdoor security alarm.” (http://visitbristol.co.uk) Then I continued to wander upon a stunning view of the houses and the boat dock.
Wednesday, I decided I would go into Bath. It’s only a short one-hour bus and train ride away. Bath itself is a small town but so full of history and so beautiful. I went to the museum to see the actual ancient Roman Bath and learn more about it and the structure in which it was encased. It’s so much more than just the one Roman bath that you see. It was basically an entire gathering place for the town and all of society, wayback when. So it was very cool to see lots of different rooms and learn about the different activities that went on there. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site. This is from their website:
“The city of Bath in South West England was founded in the 1st century AD by the Romans who used the natural hot springs as a thermal spa. It became an important centre for the wool industry in the Middle Ages but in the 18th century under the reigns of George l, ll and III it developed into an elegant spa city, famed in literature and art.” (https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/428/)
Once I finished with that tour, I walked around town to take in the rest of the sights. But quite frankly, I’m kind of done with seeing old beautiful buildings and cathedrals. So I went shopping at TK Maxx (Yes like TJ Maxx, but TK Maxx) to pick up a couple of things. Then I wandered down to the Pulteney Bridge, which is apparently a major sight to see in Bath. It is huge and quite breathtaking. I stopped in for a cup of coffee, just to sit outside and take in some final beautiful city views. Then I walked to the train stop and made my way back to my Airbnb.
Wednesday was the day that my host family invited me to have dinner with them. It was lovely. They made grilled chicken, Greek salad, and fries for dinner, and we sat around the table and laughed and chatted. It was lovely to get to know them. They are such wonderful people. The husband, Andre, is a Dutch guy from South Africa and his wife, Valentina, is Italian. And they have two kiddos. They are just a lovely family; very welcoming to me and made sure I had everything I needed.
Also, they told me on Thursday I could use their laundry and go in their house for a meeting I had to conduct which made me happy because the Internet connection was much better in their house than in my Airbnb. My Airbnb is a lovely converted garage that my hosts have made into an apartment. A perfect place for one or maybe two people. It’s very comfortable.
A side note about my Health
I am feeling better this week, because I am almost finished with my antibiotics which is nice. But I also am still very tired, so I came home to take a nap. The more I feel like this, the more I’m convinced I had COVID a couple of weeks ago. Ugh. Also, my ear is still not fully back to full hearing.
Thursday, I didn’t really do anything because it felt more like a workday. So I got up and did laundry and had a lovely cup of coffee from Andre and Valentina’s Nespresso machine. They were so kind to offer to let me use that as well in their home. So I had my coffee and played ukulele (they also own that and told me I could play it) while I waited for my clothes to wash. I must say it was a lovely way to spend the morning. I also prepared myself for the meeting I was going to have an evening. It was our big final discussion that we were going to have about the Rwanda study abroad. I haven’t mentioned that much on this trip on this blog because but there are have been a lot of has been a lot of work behind the scenes going into me and my colleague, Lisa leading a study abroad to Rwanda in June. So there will be more on that later. However, we had a meeting and it was really great conversation with the students who are going. Not only did we talk about logistics but we actually had discussion about content related to the Rwandan genocide and post-genocide society, as it is now. Having that meeting made me really excited to leave to go to Rwanda in a few weeks!
After that, I chilled in my room and watched TV and enjoyed being in this space, enjoying that also that it was my last few days in the UK. I stayed in for the rest of the evening and just relaxed.
Friday, my friend Tara from in London was coming for a visit! One great thing about her visit was that she brought my passport to me. Short story about that: my passport has been at the Ghanaian Embassy in London for the past three weeks because I have been working on getting a Ghanaian visa to go back there after I leave Rwanda. Everything was approved (yay!), and it was a big help that Tara was able to pick up my passport and bring it to me in Bristol. Of course, while she was there, we had a lovely visit. This would be the last time I would see her on this trip. But we determined that I will very likely be back. So we spent the day together. She left around four because she was also meeting a different friend this weekend who lives in Bristol.
The rest of the evening I had to myself which was nice. I’m learning that I really enjoy time to myself. So I chilled out and watched some TV and did a little bit of work. Eventually, I wandered down to the high street in Hanham, close where I am staying, and had dinner at a nice Italian restaurant. I also had leftovers!
Saturday was my last full day to be a tourist in the UK. I wandered down to Bristol in the late morning and found a coffee shop to work in because not only did I need to do some work but it’s also a really great way to be in a city. It was nice to do a bit of work, have a cup of coffee and a snack, then walk around and see some sights, then find a different place to sit.
In the afternoon I had booked a ticket to see Pride and Prejudice at the Old Vic in Bristol. This was not your everyday Pride and Prejudice! It was a more raunchy take on Jane Austen‘s famous novel. And it was so funny! A cast of only five females played all of the different characters in the novel, but it had a definite feminist spin on it, as well as just brilliant music, and subtle yet hilarious one-liners throughout. Such a great show! I’m so glad I randomly chose to go to that. Once it was over I wandered around Bristol a bit more. I found this amazing hill called Trooper's Hill that has a beautiful view of the city. Took a few pics there then I went home. Had my leftovers for dinner and packed my stuff because tomorrow was going to be yet another travel day.
Sunday morning, I woke up and packed my final things and headed out around 10 AM to take the bus down to the train station. I left Bristol Temple Mead train station at 11 AM to go to an airport hotel by Gatwick Airport. The journey took about four hours, and I was there by around 2:30. I chose to stay near the airport tonight because my flight leaves Monday morning at 6:15 from Gatwick. The rest of the afternoon I found a shopping center where I could buy a few final things that I would need on the rest of my trip. Tomorrow I’ll leave to go to Alicante, Spain for a week to see my good friend Viktor. Then after that it’s off to Rwanda for three weeks, then Ghana for two weeks before I head back to the US!
I can’t believe my time in the UK is over, but it has been an incredibly amazing six months. I have met such amazing people and had so many wonderful experiences.
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