SS Great Britain

Since I arrived to Bristol two years ago, I have visited many museums in the city but for no reason, I kept postponing the visit to the SS Great Britain. When I wrote "Walking on the riverside" last 17th January, I wouldn't have imagined the museum would contact the blog to offer me a couple of tickets to go visit the museum. I was very pleased and flattered because it means that my blog has more impact than I expect, and I accepted the tickets with no hesitation. 

Despite the fact that I received the tickets at no cost, they have never asked me to write a positive review in return. Not even to write a review about my visit. In this post, I reveal my very own impressions about it.

The SS Great Britain was a passenger steamship designed by the symbolic engineer of Bristol: Isambard Kingdom Brunel. She (the ship; they refer to the ship as a lady) was the longest passenger ship in the world between 1845-1854, linking Bristol with New York in just 14 days. After having navigated miles and miles through the Atlantic and carried thousands of immigrants to Australia, she was retired to the Falkland Islands where she was used as a warehouse, quarantine ship and coal hulk until she was sadly scuttled in 1937. 

In 1970, the ship was returned to where she has been built, to the dry dock in Bristol, and she has been converted into a museum that receives many visitors a year.

There are four different areas to visit in the SS Great Britain museum. Let's get you on-board!

1. OUTSIDE THE SHIP

Once you got your ticket, you are able to walk along the dock and admire the magnificent ship from the outside.

2. THE MUSEUM

The museum brings you back in the history, from her final days to the initial days. I found the way of presenting the story very original, starting from her return to Bristol following back in time until it's build.

During the journey, there were certain areas where you were supposed to stamp your "ticket" which makes you feel you are travelling. 

There are also many interactive areas and games for kids (and young patients). I came across a young couple was playing with the wheel of ship simulation and they couldn't manage to redirect the ship anyhow.

The most surprising thing was to find a Rolls Royce engine belonging to a Concorde in the museum! I agree it is an item of collection because there are few in the world... but why in the SS Great Britain museum? 

Something to highlight: I would recommend watching the emotive video of how they manage to bring the SS Great Britain back to Bristol (right as you enter to the museum. Explanations of items from the ship are also very interesting although some of them are not correctly illuminated. The museum has this dark atmosphere which makes it challenging to read some of the tags. 

3. BELOW THE SHIP

This was something unexpected! The ship seems to be floating on a port, surrounded by water, except for the fact that you can go "under" the water and see the keel and the rudder of the SS Great Britain with your own eyes. Hey, keep safe! Although it is well indicated, some areas are very slippery!

Something to highlight: If you like engineering, read about the innovative rudder of Brunel.

4. INSIDE THE SHIP

This is the most astonishing part of the museum. I would recommend spending inside the ship half of the time you want to dedicate to the museum. There are many things to see and it would be a pity not to have enough time to see it properly. 

They have completely rebuilt the entire boat to give to the visitor the real flavour of how passengers used to travel, sleep, eat, rest... (during those 14 days that the journey used to take. It is a very detailed reconstruction of First Class luxury cabins and the massive turning engine room. You are free to walk and explore the sights, sounds and smells on board. 

I must apologize for the quality of the pictures. Due to the lack of light, the pictures are not very good. I suppose you must visit the museum now! ;)

Something to highlight: Check out the animal area. There is an area where they used to keep the luggage and animals. Even the smell of the room seems real!

During my visit, the museum was not packed. There were some families with kids and young couples as well. It was perfect to be able to walk around the boat as you please. Conclusion: very recommendable museum!

The general admission is £13.75. Students have a discount (£10.95) and tickets cost £7.70 for children aged 5-17. The museum is open between 10am and 4.30pm everyday except 24 and 25 December and the second Monday in January. In summer, the closing time is 5.30pm.

The only thing I was not able to find any explanation about was... what does "SS" mean?

WEBSITE: http://www.ssgreatbritain.org/

2-day trip: Nottingham

Robin Hood's city, also known as Nottingham, is located 140 miles away from Bristol. Nottingham has obtained worldwide recognition during the industrial revolution for its lace-making, bicycle and tobacco industries. After Leicester, Nottingham is the second largest city in East Midlands with 305,700 inhabitants.

Some friends and I visited the city for the weekend. There are several ways to get there: on the one hand, National Railway offers two single tickets starting from £45.90 or a return ticket for £48.30, which take 3 hours to get to Nottingham. On the other side, National Express offers cheaper transportation (less than £30) but the timetable is quite limited: last coach on Fridays leaves at 4pm and last return coach leaves Nottingham on Sunday at 3.45pm. Besides, it takes between 5-6 hours. We were two of us leaving from Bristol so we decided to drive there, which was even cheaper.

If you drive, you must leave Bristol on the M32, take the M4 towards South Wales and then M5 to the North on J20. Follow M5 until you get to Birmingham. Then, keep left to continue on M42 and A42 until you merge onto M1 and continue towards Nottingham. It takes around 2h30min.

We spent one sunny day on Sherwood Forest and we visited Nottingham very fast on Sunday.

DAY 1: Sherwood Forest

Sherwood Forest is located around 25 miles North from Nottingham (NG27 9HN). It took us around 45 minutes to get there by car.

There is a big parking area open 7 days a week except Christmas Day, and it is free of charge between 1st January and 4th April. However, the normal charge is 3 pounds for each car and motorbike, except during Robin Hood Festival (4-10th August 2014) which is 5 pounds. There is a visitor's centre which opens between 10am and 4pm, although they do a little break for lunch from 1-1.30pm (approximately). There is also a gift shop, some toilets and coffee-shops creating a small village.

In the forest, there are three self-guided waymarked trails: blue (45 minutes), green (1h) and red (2h). The blue trail is a circular path which takes you round the Major Oak. It is a Quercus Robur, the English oak and it is thought to be 800 years old. Its hollow trunk was used to as a hideout by Robin Hood's men, who are thought to be active in the 12th or 13th century. Today, the Major Oak weighs around 23 tonnes and its branches spread to over 28 metres. In 2002, it was voted "Britain's favourite tree". The green trail skirts along the Longhorn Cattle enclosure and the red trail leads around the forest. We did the blue and green trails and the path is very flat and suitable for all ages.

However, we all were quite disappointed with the forest. We couldn't picture Robin Hood hiding in that forest, at least in Winter, because there was nowhere to hide. Maybe Robin Hood used to take holidays during Winter... who knows!

Dogs are very welcome, I can tell. We came across with loads of people walking their dogs. There were also families with little children. The weather was very nice, so everybody took advantage of it and enjoyed a little walk on the sun.

On the way back to Nottingham, we made a quick detour to the Amen Corner Karting. Some of my friends enjoyed 15 minutes behind the wheel of those fast karts. There is a 300-metre children's circuit and a 550m one for adults. My friends paid 20 pounds for 15 minutes drive (no credit/debit cards accepted). More information on their website.

DAY 2: Nottingham

Nottingham is home to a many different architectural styles. The centre of the city is usually defined as the Old Market Square, the largest city square in the UK. The square is dominated by the City Council, a is a very beautiful building in the Old Market Square, which has baroque columns and two stone lions at the front, watching over the square. 

We had a late-lunch/early-dinner at Chiquito Restaurant and Grill Bar close to the Council House. Meals are not cheap, I paid £13.45 for my Steak Chilli Con Carne and we shared a Tex-Mex sharing plate (ideal for 4 people) which cost £16.95. But I must admit, it was a tasty meal and I was not hungry at all when I finished.

10-15 minute walk from Nottingham city centre there is a castle. Nottingham Castle it is called, and more than a castle, my friends and I think it looks like a palace. It is a 17th century ducal mansion built on the site of the original Medieval Castle from the 11th century. Now, it is a museum and art gallery. It is open Monday to Sunday between 10am and 5pm (check website just in case) and an adult ticket costs 5.50 pounds (4 pounds students). We haven't been inside so I cannot tell you if it is worth the money or not, sorry! 

Close to the castle, you can find the pub which claims to be the oldest drinking establishment in England: Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem. Its painted sign states it was established in 1189AD, however, there is no documentation to verify this date. The main building, built on the foundations of an earlier construction, is about 300 years old. The cave-style pub was pretty busy and we find it challenging to get table for 8 people. Pity!

Shaken Bristol

Have you felt the earthquake shake early this afternoon? Nothing felt in Filton, at least I haven't. 

The British Geological Survey has already confirmed that an earthquake of 4.1 magnitude on the Richter Scale happened around 1.20pm today, 20th February 2014, in Bristol Channel. It was felt in Devon, south Wales and Somerset. According to Bristol Post, it was the biggest felt in the United Kingdom since 2008.

What was I doing during lunchtime?? How on earth didn't I feel it? Such an important event and I "missed" it! Shame on me. 

I borrowed the picture from here. Thanks BBC! ;)

FURTHER READING

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-26277432

http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Bristol-shaken-earthquake-hit-Bristol-channel/story-20669457-detail/story.html

The orange exhibition at Arnolfini

I don't know much about art. I feel I need to say it before you read the rest of the post. I've studied music, so I know about it. However, about sculpturing, drawing, painting, etc. the only thing I can say is "I like it" or "I don't like it", and maybe if I felt something special when I saw the artwork. That's all.

This is the exhibition I have visited at the Arnolfini:

TEMPORARY EXHIBITION @ ARNOLFINI

Until 16th March, Joëlle Tuerlinckx is showing her work titled Wor(L)(D)(K) IN PROGRESS? which leaves no one indifferent (check picture slideshow below). 
The exhibition is free, open from 11am to 6pm. We just visited the downstairs, a room with orange walls. We found rocks on the floor, a wooden staircase, some press cuttings from French and German newspapers, small drawings similar to the ones I used to do with my BIC pen when I got bored at school, a headless sculpture of a guy (or girl) sitting down, (wrongly) photocopied pages of some books, black and white dots in different sizes, sentences written down on the floor with sellotape... 

I visited the exhibition with two more friends. One of them left the room right after seeing the first piece of art, the other one checked the entire orange room with me. We both were completely confused, wondering where the hidden camera was. We didn't get any message. Moreover, we sincerely thought it was a joke.

I would really what to ask you, blog follower, if you ever see this exhibition, please share your opinion with us! And if you understand about art, could you also explain me the hidden message? Looking forward to having an answer!

ARNOLFINI WEBSITE: http://www.arnolfini.org.uk/

Flashmod for women's rights

I found out about this event on Facebook, at 3pm, and I didn't have enough time to arrive to the first Flashmob at Clifton Down shopping centre and I headed directly to the City Hall.

The fanfare was walking down Park Street by the time I arrived to the City Hall. Wearing pink fancy clothes, I could hear and see them from far. I speeded up and got ready at the main entrance of the City Hall to take a picture of them as they arrived.

Despite the weather, everybody was wearing black & red and was ready to dance. At 4pm, they danced to the beat of Katy Perry's "Roar" and One Billion Rising's anthem "Break the chain". The major of Bristol, George Ferguson, was also there and he didn't hesitate to praise the work RISE's has been doing for women's rights.

The group then marched across the city centre up to Clare Street, where they performed the flashmob once again (video below). 

I had to leave the event at that point. However, the group must have followed to perform the forth dance in Cascade Steps at 4.45pm before marching down the Waterfront into Millenium Square. There would be an open mic session in Millenium Square around 5pm in order to finish a final candlelit flashmob at 5.15pm.

Events like this make me love Bristol, combining a serious topic such as women's rights in a very colourful manner. I hope RISE, the Bristolian women group raised good money yesterday.

Tonight from 7pm, RISE has prepared a music night at Exchange for all of us. Land of Giants, The Tongues, The Funkinsteins, Babyhead and others will be performing to raise money for One25 (more info). Tickets 7 pounds in advance (available here) although there will be more on the door.

LINKS
---------------------
RISE on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BristolRise
Exchange: www.exchangebristol.com/whats-on
One25: http://www.one25.org.uk/

Speaking of Love...

I have never celebrated St Valentine's day. Never ever. Neither did I celebrate when I had a boyfriend nor when I didn't have; neither did I celebrate it when I was in love nor when I wasn't. St Valentine's day means nothing else than an ordinary day for me.

I walked around Broadmead today and Mr. Valentine followed me everywhere I went. Big red hearts and discounts all over, on basically anything: jewellery, clothes, lingerie, complements, perfumes, electronics, stationary...

Shops were basically suggesting I should indulge myself buying chocolates and sweets I never buy, that I should get a sexiest lingerie and undress for my lover, and that I should have dinner in a fancy restaurant to prove my love for somebody.

It makes me sick to realize there are people whose world revolves around a person, whose personality vanished the moment they began the relationship, and decide to make the St Valentine's day a very special day. Why just on St Valentine's day? Why not on any other day?  Why not on every other day?

We are surrounded by people we love, who had always be by our-side and we keep forgetting about them. I personally can't remember the last time I said "I love you" to my mom, dad or the rest of the family; or even to our closest friends who have been there, come hell or high water. Even more important than saying it is prove it, though. And a couple of flowers and chocolates don't achieve that.

Keep in mind: you don't find love, you build it.

Wind of change

Last Friday 7th February, Bristol Post published storms heading for Bristol with 80mph winds and torrential rain. This morning, Clifton Suspension bridge closed at 12.20pm until further notice due to 60mph winds. Roads blocked with fallen trees, disruptions at the airport and railway, houses flooded... I can't stop thinking about my colleague, whose house has been damaged by the flood this weekend.  

"Climate change!", some people say;"God is angry!", others. I say it's just winter. It rains in winter, the wind blows hard in winter... it even snows! We should feel lucky, we haven't had any snow yet whilst last year this time, we got the first snow of the year! 

1-day trip to Wells and Chew Valley Lake

A bunch of friends and I spent last Sunday in Wells as it was forecast good weather for that day. It is around 23 miles south from Bristol, stopping in Chew Valley Lake on our way there.

We took the car and drove 30 minutes to get to the lake. First, you must follow Bridgwater Road (A38). After Barrow Gurney tanks, turn left and follow Barrow Lane. From there, the road should be well indicated to Chew Valley Lake.

The lake was built to provide water for Bristol. Not only supplies drinking water for the city but also offers many leisure and recreational facilities such as fishing, sailing, walks, bird watching.... However, swimming, canoeing and kayaking are not allowed.

There are some walking trails around the lake Bristol Water suggests (website), but we followed our own route which was around almost 4.5km and took us 1h in a very slow pace.

We arrived to the lake at the northeastern side. There is a car entrance at Denny Woods and a parking area right next to the lake. There were plenty of spaces available that day, as there weren't many cars that day. I guess it gets busier in the summer. Whole day parking fee is £1.5 although as the paying machine was covered, we assumed there was no need to pay the fee in winter.

The weather was perfectly sunny (pretty cold, though) to go for an early morning walk. Having parked the car, we started walking around the lake.

We came across a building which is a visitors centre and a coffee-shop, Chew Lake Tea Shop. It is open 10.30am - 5.30pm March-October and closes one hour earlier in Winter. Something not expected at all was that they have quite average prices: £1.90 for a mug of latte, orange juice for £0.90. They also serve some hot food such as soups (£3.75) and cod fillets with chips and peas (£6.75). See menu here. 

We continued, and we arrived to the dam, where the path reaches the traffic road. The path stopped there. We had to jump a wooden gate to continue the path as it was chained. The view was beautiful: sailors training, sunny day and blue lake. Amazing!

We continued the lake shore and arrived to the sailing area called CVLSC where the path stops with a "private area" sign. We then turned back and retraced our steps towards the car. It was already lunch time and our stomachs made noises so we decided to go on with our journey and head to Wells, which took around 30 minutes too. 

Wells is a cathedral city in Somerset. It has a city status because of the presence of a cathedral despite there are just around 10,500 inhabitants living in Wells. We were wondering were the name of the city came from and we discussed that it could be because there were many wells in the city some time ago. Actually, the name comes from the three wells dedicated to St Andrews: one is in the market place and the other two are within the grounds of the cathedral.

We easily found free off-road parking slots although there are also proper parking areas closer to the centre. As soon as we arrived, we saw the Church of St Cuthbert. This church is often mistaken for the Cathedral, and so did we. 

The Church of St Cuthbert is an Anglican parish church from the 13th century. There is another church with the same name in Edinburgh but the appearance is completely different. The tower, which is 43 metres high, is the third highest in Somerset. It has 3 stages and the top stage occupies half of the total height.

We followed towards the centre, which is full of shops, cafes and restaurants. It was funny to come across two bars/cafes called Crofters and Full Moon, as in Bristol. They have nothing to do with the Bristol bars called the same, though. 

The Town Hall, located close to the Bishop's Palace and the Cathedral, was built in 1778. However, the porch, arcade, balcony and round windows were added later in time. 

The Bishop's Palace, chapel and gardens were closed to visitors that day, reopen is due 14th February. It is normally open from 10am to 6pm in Summer and 10am-4pm in Winter. The admission for the Bishop's palace is 7 pounds (5 concessions) and it gives access to the medieval Palace and Undercroft, ruined Great Hall, gardens and Bishop's chapel. 
However, it is free to walk around Palace.

And finally, we arrived to Wells Cathedral. So huge cathedral for such a small town! "Perhaps the most beautiful of the great English cathedrals", says the official website. And I completelly agree. 

Wells Cathedral is dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. The present building dates from 1175 to 1490, but there was an earlier church built on the same site in year 705. 

It has a large central tower at the west front, a dominant feature visible from miles away. When you look from the east front, the Gothic many details are amazing. Originally four hundred of statues, 3 hundred survived until mid-20th century. However, this cathedral differs from most of other English medieval cathedrals with earlier Romanesque style. When we stood up looking to the cathedral at the west front I thought that the two towers should have been larger, higher. Apparently, the finished product has also been criticized for its lack of pinnacles, and it is probable that the towers were intended to carry spires which were never built. 

The late Sunday Roast needs a mention in the post. It's been very long since I haven't had such a good meal as in City Arms. They are located at the bottom of Wells High Street and a two-course Sunday lunch is just 10.95 pounds. Service and food were excellent. I completely forgot to take a picture of the plate but as you can see, I even wiped the sauce from the plate. Very recommendable place.

LINKS

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

Chew Lake Tea Shop
http://www.bristolwater.co.uk/leisure/chew-valley-lake/chew-valley-tea-shop/

Walking trails in Chew Valley Lake
http://www.bristolwater.co.uk/leisure/chew-valley-lake/nature-trails/

Wells Cathedral
http://www.wellscathedral.org.uk/
Bishop's Palace
http://www.bishopspalace.org.uk/
City Arms
http://www.thecityarmsatwells.com/

What lies beneath River Avon

Just several months after a alien-like creature was spotted floating on river Avon (read here), a crocodile was sighted for the second time.The first one happened on Monday, when a bus driver claimed to have seen a large croc under the bridge in Bedminster (read more). Yesterday, a second sighting captured all attention of news: a woman spotted the mysterious animal while she was close to the river (read more). 

Picture taken from Bristol Post. Thanks! ;)

This is not the first time a crocodile has been seen swimming peacefully in the UK: in 2000, some people in Newcastle reported having spotted a large reptile around a park  and in 2008, another one was seen near Swansea (read here). It is nevertheless a very surprising story.

Bristol Aquarium said they will take care of the crocodile after the rumour of a reptile escape started to reinforce.  Now, the crocodile has a name (Chris), two Twitter accounts (@BristolCroc and @theBristolCroc), a song (listen it) and a dedicated graffity titled "Naughty Chris". The crocodile was immortalized by Bristol street artist Rowdy, who posted a picture of his work in his Facebook page. In the graffiti, we can see a crocodile "devouring" someone wearing red trousers, probably George Ferguson, major of Bristol. He actually took it with humour: "Good for Rowdy, I'm a great fan of his work and his wicked sense of humour!", he said to Bristol Post.

Whether the spotted creature was actually a crocodile or a piece of wood... it's a mystery. Now, this is what I would suggest to anyone willing to set up a new business in Bristol: you should go for a mystery creature sightseeing cruise business!

Dub at Valentines Night

I missed having a new graffiti in the Blue Mountain Club. Since September, it remained the same... until now! Love of Dub festival changed the appearance of the famous wall, bringing the colour back to Stokes Croft!

Friday next week is 14th February, aka St Valentine's Day, The Black Swan is hosting Love of Dub. All three rooms in The Black Swan will be transformed "unlike you've ever seen before", organisers say. The main room will host Roots & Future and Bass & Samba rythms, there will be HipHop music at the corridor while Rub-A-Dub and MashUp, and Dubwise Ragga Jungle music will take place upstairs. Stunning decoration, fire performances, free samosas... There are still tickets available (on sale here just for 10 more days) and cost 13.45 pounds, fees included.

Enjoy! :)

LINKS
----------------
Love of Dub: http://www.skiddle.com/whats-on/Bristol/The-Black-Swan/Love-of-Dub--14th-Feb--Bristol/12058974/

Arnolfini (1/2)

The other day, I saw Bilbao in Bristol. Concretely, I came across my home city within Arnolfini.

Arnolfini is located at the Harbourside, 16 Narrow Quay, and it's an international arts centre and gallery founded in 1961 by Jeremy Rees, although originally it was located in Clifton, above a bookshop in the Triangle. The name comes from a 15th century painting called The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck (picture on the right). 

After a couple of relocations (Queens Square, E Shed, Watershed), Arnolfini was moved to the current location in 1975. The building called Bush House, designed by Richard Shackleton Pope, was a warehouse for a local iron foundry before 2003, when a two year development begun to convert the building into the contemporary art gallery it is now.

Arnolfini hosts a wide variety of events, contemporary art exhibitions, artist's performances, music and dance events, poetry and book readings, talks, lectures and many other activities. Many artists showed there artworks in the gallery, for instance, Bridget Riley, Rachel Whiteread, Richard Long and many more.

The gallery has a coffee-shop (right as you enter) which is busy most of the times, and a very nice bookshop (left) with books related to arts and design (see picture below).

That's where I found Bilbao within Bristol: while browsing, I say a book called "Cities" and it had the picture of the Guggenheim Museum in the cover. I am very proud of the worldwide known museum we have Bilbao, so I took a picture of it. :)

There is an Information Desk (Box Office) if you need to ask any question about the museum, membership or if you just want to get the programme. For students, there is a new which doesn't cost you anything and gives you a fantastic range of benefits.

The galleries in the museum are open between 11am and 6pm Tue-Sun. The museum closes on Monday, although the coffee-shop reminds open as usual (Mon 10am-6pm; Tue-Sat 10am-9pm; Sun 10am-7pm)

ARNOLFINI WEBSITE: http://www.arnolfini.org.uk/