Bristol, UK

As part of my goal to see more of the UK before I graduate in the new year, I've been trying to get ahead of my to-see list! Last Sunday, my friend Allison and I took a train to Bristol!  Allison is a first-year on the MPA programme.

The train ride from Paddington took a little less than two hours.  We loaded our bags up with coffee and snacks to begin our girls mini-weekend.

When we got to Bristol, it was raining- typical England. We quickly dropped our bags at our hotel  before we set off to explore the city. We had chosen to stay over night in order to get a full day in as well as have time Monday morning.

Our hotel was located only a ten-minute walk from the old city centre and five minutes from the train station. The old city centre was where we found Bristol Cathedral and College Green- the location of the present-day City Hall!

Bristol Cathedral

On our casual walk up towards the Senate House and the University of Bristol, we came across one of the three Banksy paintings that are located in Bristol. We never found the other two given time constraints, but we did find the "Window Lovers."

Window Lovers

Stopping for another coffee refill, we soon hopped on a city bus tour to learn more about the city's history and to see many sights that we didn't have time to visit. We learned about famous residents of Bristol including the man who invented self-rising flour, Henry Cabot, and even Blackbeard!

On our city tour, we got to see the SS Brunel. The SS Brunel was the first modern steamship in the world.

SS Brunel

Next to the museum that is now at the SS Brunel is the building for Aardman Animations. Not familiar with the name Aardman Animations? Familiar with "Wallace and Gromit?" They are the creators of the iconic show and characters. Unfortunately, the studio was not open for tours, and the Gromit statues had been auctioned off for charity.

Cold from the rain (oh, England), we stopped in to a pub for some ale and a serving of Sunday Roast.

Refueled, we embraced the cold and rain to go see the famous Clifton Suspension Bridge.

Allison and me

View of Bristol from the Bridge

As we made our way back to the city centre and our hotel, the weather took a turn for the worse. A storm brewed with strong winds that forced us to camp out in our hotel room for the evening. It was a girl's weekend after all, so we turned on the X-Factor Finale, ordered some wine, and caught up.

Monday morning before our train left, we wandered over to Broadmead to view the German Christmas Market and grab some breakfast.

Before hopping on the train, we stopped quickly to view St. Mary Redcliffe Cathedral where William Penn is buried!

All in all, it was an awesome mini trip to Bristol. It's not at the top of many people's lists when visiting places outside of London, but I would say that it needs to be! Would love to go back in the Spring! 

Father-Daughter Eurotrip: Day 3

Day three of being based in London consisted of taking a fairly long day trip to the countryside. Needing a break from the city life, we boarded a bus through the Evan Evans tour company early in the morning to set out for Salisbury, Stonehenge, and Bath! We booked the tour through Viator.com which then serviced the trip to Evan Evans. Before you read what we did for the day, I highly recommend that anyone wishing to take a tour outside of London use this company. The Blue Badge Tour Guide we had for the day was outstanding, the free time in each place was more than enough to see the main sights, and it was a group of about 15 people! 

Salisbury Cathedral

Salisbury was about a two hour journey outside of London. I had done the town in 2010 with Syracuse, so I was looking forward to going back and showing my Dad the place. We ended up only having time to see the famous Cathedral, yet inside the Cathedral, there are tons of treasures.  We were able to see the famous stained glass windows, one of the oldest surviving working medieval clocks, and saw one of the remaining copies of the Magna Carta. 

The Cloisters at Salisbury Cathedral 

After a quick mid-morning coffee break, our tour group was off the short distance to see Stonehenge. Again, I did this in 2010, so I was more interested in having my Dad see the weird wonder. Although, I had thoughts of my econometrics class and the idea of valuation running through my head as we used the public highways to get there. It was windy at the top of the hill as we made our way around the weird wonder. And, no...Dad did not let me steel any of the sheep. 

Stonehenge

Dad and Me at Stonehenge

From there, we took the drive to Bath. Now, I have had Bath on my to-see list for years. In 2010, I was away for the weekend when Syracuse took an excursion to the city. We only had time to see the town centre and the Roman Baths, so I know I will be headed back to do the Jane Austen activities. 

The Roman Baths exhibit consisted of an audio tour that described what it would have been like to live in the ancient city. A lot of ruins had been discovered throughout the years, so the exhibit contained a lot of information and artifacts. After having visited Rome in 2010, the ruins at the exhibit rivaled some of the ones I saw there-especially with the explanation of what life would have been like.  

Head of Mirvena- Goddess

Eventually, we found ourselves at the bathes level. Some of them have been drained, but the large one was still supplied by the underwater hot springs. You are not allowed to go into the water, but the experience is the same. I imagined what it would have been like to live in the ancient times as well as the times of Queen Victoria when many of the royals traveled to use the cleansing water. 

The Roman Baths

About to Take a Dip!

Our day ended with a two-hour drive back into London and an early dinner! We had a lot to accomplish on our last full day in London. Again, you can see why I would highly recommend the Evan Evans tour company. It was an amazing day seeing a lot of the fascinating places- some of them World Heritage places!

Europe Hopping!

School is over for at least another term. Break time has begun! 

With the higher education system at the UK, and more specifically, the LSE, we have five weeks off now until summer term begins. My big travel plans are finally ready to get started.

Tomorrow, my Dad will arrive tomorrow. You can see where we are headed on this older post.

Stay tuned for running updates for photos and notes about what we see, eat, and laugh at.