Gong Hei Fard Choy!

Chinese New Year starts this weekend, more specifically the 31st February 2014:

"Year of the Horse"

The first day of the Chinese New Year is an important traditional holiday and celebrations run from the Chinese New Year's Even until the Lantern Festival, which is the 15th day of the first month. In the Georgian calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year as it is a lunisolar calendar. Unlike our own calendar, it doesn't continuously number the years. Instead, it is based on a 12-year cycle and each year is related to an animal (rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig). Those people who were born during the "Year of the Horse" are recognized as energetic, bright and intelligent. I was born in the "Year of the Rabbit" though I feel very identified with the characteristics mentioned before! ;)

Bristol is hosting celebration events in many corners of the city. I highlighted some of them here:

Eastgate Oriental City (BS5 6XX) is celebrating the arrival of the new year on the 1st February starting from 11.15am in a free event. The celeration will start with firecrackers to scare away the evil spirits for the new year, followed by Kung Fu skill demonstrations and Chinese Lion dance. There will be fresh Asia Dumplings offered for free and you will have the opportunity to buy Chinese treats and tea. More information here. 

On the other hand, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery is also hosting another event to celebrate  the Chinese New Year. Next 1st and 2nd February there will be free performances and activities throughout both days from 11am to 4pm. Performances include Kung Fu demonstrations, Fan and Handkerchief Dance, Lion Dance and traditional Chinese songs. There will also be stalls, displays and activities in all three floors of the museum. Organisers advise that the event can get busy and there might be queues to get in. Click here to download the programme.

LINKS
-------------------
Celebrations in Bristol Museum and Art Gallery:
http://www.bristol.gov.uk/page/leisure-and-culture/chinese-new-year-celebrations-2014
Celebrations in Eastgate Oriental City:
http://www.waiyeehong.com/news/1-latest/360-chinese-new-year-2014-wai-yee-hong
What does "Year of the Horse" mean?
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/chinese-new-year-2014-what-does-year-horse-mean-1434208

Circomedia sounds classic!

This is how St Paul's Church in Portland Square looks at night. Very beautiful, isn't it? 

After suffering from heavy bombing in WWII, raids in Dec 1940 and several other damage, both church and square were restored in the 1990s. The church opened in 2004 as the Circomedia, centre of excellence for circus and theatre training.

Last Sunday, 26th January, I went to the Circomedia to listen to some classical music. Yes, classical music at a circus and theatre training centre within a church. Actually, it is the first orchestra performing there.

Bristol Concert Series is a venture to gather high-quality amateur musicians and to promote a wide variety of performances, and since its creation in 2010, they have already performed five times between the Circomedia and the Bristol Music Club in Clifton. 

I have already watched them perform at two other occasions. Before the concert, I shared the repertoire with my brother, who is a professional viola player by the way, and we both agree that it was a very complete but technically complex repertoire for amateur musicians:

Dvorak "Serenade for Strings"

Beethoven "Symphony No. 3"

I was really looking forward to their interpretation of Dvorak, specially the second movement. The piece is composed by 5 movements: Moderato, Valse, Vivace, Larguetto and Finale. Dvorak composed the Serenade in just 12 days in May 1875 and it remains one of the composer's most popular orchestra works. Dvorak presents the main melody in the first movement and it goes back to it every now and then in some of the other movements. The second movement opens with a lilting and playful melody.  Then, the third movement, the Scherzo, very fast and precise, probably the most mono-thematic movement. The forth movement, slow, where melodies from other movements are recovered. And the Finale, conveys the spirit of a Bohemian village dance.

Although the interpretation of Dvorak was good, I preferred how Beethoven sounded last Sunday. Beethoven's 3rd Symphony includes wing instruments and it is widely regarded as a mature expression of the classical style. It has some features from the romantic style which blossomed later on in time. This symphony is also called Eroica and Beethoven originally conceived of dedicating the symphony to Napoleon Bonaparte. In Autumn 1805, the composer began to have second thoughts about the dedication and when Napoleon proclaimed himself Emperor of the French, he became disgusted. Therefore, the final title of the symphony is "Sinfonia Eroica, composta per festeggiare il sovvenire di un grand Uomo" ("Heroic symphony composed to celebrate the memory of a great man").

The concert lasted around two hours, slightly longer than the rest I have seen, as far as I can remember. 20-minute break in between, enough time to go for some drinks (or to queue at the toilet). Tickets are £8 and can be booked/bought in advance, although I have always got them right before the concert. They also a have special price for students (£6).

I would like to congratulate the orchestra. I was able to see the evolution along the three concerts I have been to, and they are doing very well, gradually performing technically more complex pieces and working very hard to get them at high standard. I will see you next time! :)

Other posts might also interest you:

• Mahler's "Symphony of a Thousand" at Colston Hall (Posted 24 Feb 2013)
• Mahler's "Symphony No. 5" at Colston Hall (Posted 24 Mar 2013)
• St Cecilia's day - the patroness of musicians (Posted 22 Nov 2013)

LINKS

----------------------

Bristol Concert Series: www.bristolconcertseries.co.uk

Circomedia: http://www.circomedia.com/

Happy 1st Anniversary!

I have a one year old baby: this blog. This 131st post will be a big thank you to you, reader. It's exactly you who encouraged me to keep writing every day, every week, during this last year. It doesn't matter if you've just read my blog once, or if you are a constant follower. Every visit, every pageview, every comment... has a very powerful impact on me and keeps me writing.

I can perfectly remember the day someone I didn't know left a comment on the blog, or the first time I've heard someone who wasn't one of my friends mentioning my blog, or even the first time someone retwitted one of my posts on Twitter. A huge smile appeared in my face. :)

Now, the blog is one year old, it has 131 posts published and almost 14,000 visits. And many more to go! 

Yours sincerely,

Blogger @ GLPCB

TOP 5 OF POPULAR POSTS

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1. Market-lover's guide A guide with most of markets in Bristol

2. Spotted Cola Cao in town A review of El Colmado, a Spanish food deli in Gloucester Road

3. Inner Zone, Outer Zone... Bristol First Bus fares change! An informative post about how First Bus fares changed after last November 2013

4. Banksy's Walking Trail (1) A self-designed walking trail (1st out of 3) of some of the street artworks of the Bristolian famous graffiti maker Banksy

5. Let me tell you a story, Bristol! A review of the first event of newly created storytelling club in Bristol

Shhhhhh! It's silent comedy time!

First time I have ever seen a silent movie was a couple of years ago. I was on holiday in the South of Spain and the local cultural centre was screening Charles Chaplin's famous Modern Times. It was such a surprise for me to be able to get into a movie where the words were substituted by live piano music.


During this weekend, 24-26th January, Bristol is hosting Slapstick Festival 2014 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the festival dedicated to silent and classic comedy. 

For the first time, they have the collaboration of the City of Bristol College and students from the college will create nine silent comedy films which will be shared in the social media. Seven have already been shared. I post the first one, but you can find the rest here. 

The festival will start with the Silent Comedy Gala 2014, which will take place at Colston Hall tomorrow at 7.30pm. Charles Chaplin's City Lights will be projected accompanied by The Bristol Ensemble orchestra. There are still tickets available though all the areas are nearly full. If you are interested, hurry up! Available tickets cost between £26.76 (£23 concessions) including fees (buy here).

The rest of the events are hosted by different venues. Below, I highlighted some of the events that caught my eye. The brochure is available here to check all the events.

FRIDAY - 24th January 2014

• The Extraordinary Adventures of Mister West in the Land of the Bolsheviks (Arnolfini - 2.15pm) is a 1924 film by Soviet director Lev Kuleshov. The 75-minute movie challenges American stereotypes about Soviet Russia  (£8/£6.5)
• Silent Comedy Gala (Colston Hall - 7.30pm) see information above

SATURDAY - 25th January 2014

• Timeless Chaplin (Watershed - 1pm) introduces Charles Chaplin to a new generation (£5.5-£2.5)
• Gromit: Silent Comedy Canine (Bristol Old Vic - 2.30pm ) is Bristol's very own Oscar-winning silent comedy (£8-£15)
• Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (Bristol Old Vic - 8.15pm), a rare chance to watch a 20th century comedy in big screen. With intro and after-show chat with Python star Terry Jones. (£15)

SUNDAY - 26th January 2014

• Tim Vine: Why I LOVE Benny Hill (Watershed - 11.40am). The stand-up comedian will show us different sides of Benny Hill, one of the best known British comedian (£6.5-£8)
• Withnail & I (Bristol Old Vic - 7.30pm) is a 1987 black comedy film produced by George Harrison's HandMade Films, directed and written by Bruce Robinson (£15)

INTERESTING LINKS
-----------------------

SLAPSTICK FESTIVAL
Website: http://www.slapstick.org.uk/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SlapstickFest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SlapstickFestival

GALA COLSTON HALL
Website: http://www.colstonhall.org/shows/silent-comedy-gala/

Beer-tasting at the Bristol Beer Factory

Last weekend, I had the pleasure to attend the first off-work event of the year together with some colleagues from work (and friends). We arranged a visit to the Bristol Beer Factory last Saturday at 7pm, and it seemed it was a great success! Apparently, everybody enjoyed the tour, the beer tasting and the chance to meet each other for something else rather than just work.

We met at the back of the building. The Bristol Beer logo in North Street might confuse you, but I have to mention that the entrance to the Beer Factory is at the rear, in Durnford Street.

Bristol Beer Factory is 10-year-old beer factory located in Southville, Bristol. The four-floor building where they produce the beer nowadays, was an old fermenting building for the Ashton Gate brewery, a company that started brewing around 1820s. In 1931, the Ashton Gate brewery was taken over by George's and Co. It was not until 2004 when Bristol Beer Company moved in and changed its name to Bristol Beer Factory, setting up a 10 barrel micro-brewery in the basement of the building.

Simon, our guide that evening, showed the installations and  all the equipment, talked about the history of the building and the company. He also spoke about the brewing process while we could touch the ingredients used to produce beer with our own hands. Most of us were inexperienced in this brewing thing; however, there were some in the group who already produce their own homemade brew, and they made more elaborated questions to our guide, who answered wisely, as he has been closely involved with the Bristolian brewery since its creation.

While the standing-up (and static) visit was going on, we had been able to taste two of Bristol Beers: Seven and Nova. Seven (4.5%) is an amber coloured beer containing wheat and barley malt, whilst Nova (3.9%) is light and hoppy beer. In our group, the most popular and preferred beer was Seven, by far.

Although the duration of the tour was two hours, some of us had loads of questions for Simon and we finally stayed almost until 10pm, which was very nice of him.

At the end of the tour, there was a possibility to buy bottled beers or three-bottle gift packs, which also includes a glass with the Bristol Beer Factory logo in it (thank you Simon for letting us take the glass home!)

If you are interested, you can also arrange a private tour to the brewery for your group of friends, corporate outings or clubs and societies. Call them if they are available the day you are interested (01179026317). Monday to Thursday, the tour costs £180. and £230 Friday to Sunday. Tours can be in the evening (7pm) and there is also an afternoon session during the weekends (3pm), but they say at their website that times are flexible within reason. There is a maximum number of 30 people in each tour.

There are also public tour dates available (last Tuesday of each month at 7pm) and it costs £15 per person. Advance booking is required. For further details, check their website.

WEBSITE: http://www.bristolbeerfactory.co.uk/

Walking on the riverside

Last Saturday, winter weather gave us a break and the sun shone during the whole day. My flatmate and I decided to go for a walk along the riverside, happy to wear those sunglasses that have been in the darkness for several months. 

Hoping to have a similar weather this weekend (probably not tomorrow), I post the route we made. Hope you get something new out of it!

Bristol Harbour has existed since 13th century and it was the original port of the city but it was not until the 19th century when the tidal by-pass for the River Avon was done and ships were sent to the docks in Avonmouth or Portbury, located at the mouth of River Avon. According to Wikipedia, the harbour is also called the floating harbour as the water remains constant, unaffected by the tides.

Nowadays, Bristol Harbourside is tourist attraction with museums, art galleries, exhibitions, restaurants, bars and nightclubs around. Historical warehouses have been converted into cultural venues such as the Arnolfini art gallery and the MShed museum.

We started the walk at the Cascade Steps (1), the perfect spot to keep your feet fresh in Summer. During the Harbourside Festival last year, there was a stage by the steps. 
Following the left side of the river, we walked pass by Arnolfini (2). I will make a proper post about this art gallery in the following weeks. It is one of the Europe's leading centres for contemporary arts and the entry to the galleries is free.
We crossed the river through Prince Bridge and turned right to go towards the MShed. I posted a detailed description the temporary exhibition of the MShed some time ago. You can read about it here. 

We turned left before arriving to SS Great Britain (4). From the SS Great Britain, museum which I should visit some time soon but I keep postponing, several boat trip companies start their trips along the River Avon.

• Bristol Ferry Boat Company: They are open everyday except Christmas day. The daily service runs between 10am and 6.15pm and goes from Temple Meads up until the Pump House. There are single/return tickets (the price varies between 1.50-3.5 depending on the distance) as well as round trip(4.80) , day (6) and week (12) pass. Discounts are applicable for concessions. http://www.bristolferry.com/ 
• Number Seven Boat Trips: They have animal themed boats which can also be privately hired. The public service runs between 10.50am and 4.40pm linking the city centre with the SS Great Britain and Temple Meads. In summer, they also offer a service to Beese's Tea Garden for 10 pounds return. http://www.numbersevenboattrips.co.uk/
• Bristol Packet Boat Trips: They offer 45-minute tour on the floating harbour with a commentary. The public service runs between 11am and 3.45pm daily during summer and school holidays. From Easter to mid September, they also offer an afternoon cruise to Beese's Tea Garden every Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays with one hour stop for refreshments (which are not included) for 11 pounds. In addition, they also offer cruises along the Avon Gorge or Day Trips to Bath.http://www.bristolpacket.co.uk/

If you keep going ahead, the path will finish. So, there is a boat-building area at the back of the SS Great Britain, and if the gate is open, you can shortcut from there (5). It's a very nice place there where you can see old boats and ships being rebuild or fixed, as well as new ships in the process of being built.


From Bristol Marina (6), you can get very nice pictures of the famous colourful Bristolian flats at the other side of the river, as well as the Grain Barge (red boat) and an old military boat (grey boat).

There are very nice looking flats and apartments by the riverside, very expensive though. However, the view you get from your window is priceless!

We crossed the river again at Merchants Street, by Nova Scotia Ferry Landing (7). From the bridge, looking towards Cumberland Basin, you can see the end of the floating harbour. The Pumphouse on your right, a posh and quite expensive pub/restaurant, where we headed back to the centre. 

The weather was so lush, we stopped for a coffee at the Grain Barge (8), a friendly boat-bar docked in a beautiful location. It was opened in 2007 and this time last year, the mayor of Bristol George Ferguson, put the boat for sale. Apparently, he partially owned the floating restaurant. They have several beers from the Bristol Beer Factory, a brewery located in Southville (from £3.10 pint), and they are constantly changing the guest ale. Check drinks menu here. They also serve food, daily updated menu and Sunday Roast (£9.90). 
We ordered two lattes (£1.90 each) and we took a seat at the deck. Perfect place to relax and enjoy the views!

We restarted the walk after the break towards Lloyds Amphitheatre (9) and the city centre. The Christmas Tree Forest was still there (read about it here) and many people enjoying the weather by the river. Crossed the Harbourside Market and came back to Cascade Steps.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: 
MShed: your museum, your story -
http://greatlittleplacecalledbristol.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/mshed-your-museum-your-story.html
Christmas Tree Forest:
http://greatlittleplacecalledbristol.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/christmas-tree-hungover.html
Harbourside Market (and other markets):
http://greatlittleplacecalledbristol.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/market-lovers-guide.html

OTHER LINKS

---------------

Bristol Harbour: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Harbour
Arnolfini: http://www.arnolfini.org.uk/
MShed: http://mshed.org/
SS Great Britain: http://www.ssgreatbritain.org/
Pump House: http://www.the-pumphouse.com/
Grain Barge: http://www.grainbarge.co.uk/

Meet&Greet: the ultimate guide to avoid awkward moments

Greeting is an act of communication in which human being intentionally make their presence known to each other. A greeting can consist of an exchange of formal expression a simple kiss, a hand shake or a hug. I am sure most of us have at least one awkward moment when being introduced to someone we don't know. Especially because Bristol has lately become such a popular destination for many young people from different nationalities in Europe.

Imagine. You are in a party or social event, you are introduced to a friend of your friend, you don't even know if she/he is British or not... and you end up in a situation where you don't know if you should shake hands, or give a couple of kisses. You don't want to screw up, because that person could be a girlfriend of someone staring at you from the distance, and the last thing you would like is to go home with a broken arm or a swollen eye because you have "crossed the line".

So, if you want to know what you should and shouldn't do, keep reading! 

Non-British people meeting British people

The advice for someone non-British meeting a British person is very straight forward:

• You know him/her? No. Then, shake hands. 
• You know him/her? Yes. Then, you are allowed to give a hug.
• You know him/her very well? Yes. Then, you are allowed to give a hug and a couple of kisses (or a secret hand-shake that guys love that much LOL)

It doesn't matter if it's a girl meeting a girl, a guy greeting a guy, a girl greeting a guy... As I said, quite straight forward. 

British people meeting Non-British people

This is when the situation gets more complicated, as a Non-British person could be a Spanish, French, Italian... and each nationality has its peculiarities. 

So, first step: find out where he/she is from!

French nationalities shake hands and often kiss on both cheeks, both meeting and leaving. Italians are the biggest kissers kissing on the cheeks 4 times (2 in each side). Belgian people kiss on one cheek when they meet regardless of the gender of how well they know each other. Spanish will kiss both cheeks if a girl is involved in the greeting, and a handshake if it's two guys saying hello. An Arab will shake with right hand only, longer than in the West but less firmly. There shouldn't be contact between the opposite genders in public, as it is considered obscene. Japanese people commonly greet bowing instead of hand shaking while Chinese nod their heads and smile when they meet someone for the first time. In Tibet, it is very polite to stick your tongue out at someone, it shows you have no evil thoughts. In Russia it is an old tradition to kiss three times, on alternate cheeks (left, right, left) as well as in Egypt...

What if you just arrived to the party and you didn't have time to find out? There is a standard methodology everybody should follow to avoid awkward moments:
Two kisses to girls (in the cheeks), and shake hands with guys (if you are a girl, kisses to everybody!). If every single person does it, we avoid embarrassments.

The situation gets very funny when everyone wants to keep their own traditional way of greeting. It happened to me. I was introduced to a British guy, and I  automatically moved closer to his face to give him two kisses and haven't realised that he was his hand for a shake. I'm sure he thought I was a very straight forward girl, as latin girls, or that I was interested in him. 

It would have been even funnier the other way around: when a non-British guy makes the move towards a British girl to double-kiss her whilst she is offering a hand, and rapidly retires her face to avoid the double-kiss. In Spanish, this is called "do the cobra movement". 

The joys of cultural differences!!

Christmas tree hungover

Ever since I can remember, we had an artificial Christmas tree at our place. My mom made sure we were aware of how environmentally unfriendly it was to cut a tree just to for a few days, and then to throw it to the garbage. It was just my aunt the only one I know who used to get real trees, and that happened very long long time ago, perhaps before my mom's convincing power was as strong as it is right now. Basically, everybody has a "fake" Christmas tree which is re-used year after year.

I have only learnt the inconveniences of having a real tree: it is a business of growing and killing trees massively just for fun, just for a very short period of time. The good side of having a real Christmas tree was unknown for my until this last Christmas. Apparently, the intoxicating smell of a Christmas tree is wonderful. It might be true...

I expected England, a country so concerned about the environment as it is, to be the same as it is in my country. To my surprise, weeks before Christmas, there were selling evergreen conifers in every corner. But... what happens with those trees after Christmas? Let me show you a picture:

Most of them are impossible to replant as roots had been cut. In the last couple of days, I found trees in several places of the city, lying next to the garbage bins, and I felt really disappointed. Disappointed of a city always proud of being the European Green Capital 2015. Especially because those trees could be taking part in the Christmas Tree Forest a Czech artist created in Lloyds amphitheatre. The project simulates a small forest and "the process of creating that forest is an activity that everyone can take part", as curator Marcela Strakova explained to Bristol Post. The project will remain at the amphitheatre for a month. When the exhibition finishes, as most trees will be unable to be replanted, they will be chipped and residents will be invited to take a bag of chippings for their gardens. 

Seriously??

I don't usually walk through Trenchard Street, the street where O2 Academy is, so probably this will be an old new for those who live around that area. In September 2015, there will be a new student accommodation in town!

Student accommodation on the same building as the O2 Academy? Seriously? I am speechless. There are UNITE accommodations everywhere in the city: next to the bus station, next to the universities... now, next to the biggest concert club in Bristol? I might be getting too old, but I don't see myself asking my parents for 450 pounds (that's what I used to pay when I was in a student hall some years ago) to rent a room on the same building as a noisy and busy concert hall. She would never believe I actually study at home. LOL

Twenty-fourteen storms Bristol

During the Christmas break, everybody was mostly complaining about the weather in Bristol. I was back home, so I couldn't see it with my own eyes, but there is enough evidence to support it. The Guardian posted a video on their website showing an aerial view of Bristol and Gloucestershire flooding last Friday, 3rd January. There are many images published on the web, all of them very impressive. Bristol Post published today flood warnings and alerts' update.

On the other side, Bristol Mayor's decision of converting Bristol Central Library into a public primary school for young children has also been something very much mentioned on Twitter. It has been a hot topic since June 2013. Now, 15-year experienced teacher from Bristol raises some questions on that decision (read here) and the plans to turn the basement of Bristol's biggest library into a school has been recently challenged by politicians opposed to the idea (read here). Who knows what will finally happen?

More controversies also arose around the plans to convert the Bristol Comedy Club in Cheltenham Road (where RipRoar Comedy Club was based before) into an Islamic Centre, comprising of a mosque, community facilities, a café and a flat. According to Bristol Post, the plans submitted last September were criticised by far-right political group called English Defence League. Well, finally, the Assahaba Centre has green light to start refurbishing the building.

Yesterday, BBC aired the second episode of the TV series Sherlock, which was filmed in Bristol's Goldney House. The first episode, aired 30th December 2013, showed scenes filmed in Queens Square and Portland Square last March, when Great Little Place Called Bristol blog attended to the filming session (read here).

2014 has arrived full of strength!

NOTE: Picture taken from Bristol Post. Thank you! :)