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Bristol, England

We had to jump out of the EU because we only have three days left of the 90 days allowed per the visa requirement, so we decided to move to Bristol because the weather is better this time of year and it gives us great access to Wales where we want to visit.

Bristol is a quirky British city with beautiful hilly vistas, situated on the River Avon, the area has been settled since the Stone Age and there is evidence of Roman occupation. We live in the Clifton Area of Bristol with Georgian terraces and the University of Bristol. Even though it is a big city the Clifton area has the feel of a college town with great transportation options, very walkable with  unique restaurants and entertainment options, so we chose well and are very comfortable having our homebase here.

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Our apartment is in the historic  Berkeley Square, in the Clifton area of Bristol. Our building is designated as a historic building in  the Georgian Style.  We hear the soothing chime of the hours from the Cathedral across the way. Berkeley Square is close to Park Street in the Clifton area of Bristol. It was laid out around 1790 in Georgian style with a central grass area behind railings, designed by Thomas and William Paty. There are plaques on some of the doorways announcing that famous British schooars onced lived in the same building.

When we arrived at the corner to turn up into Berkeley Square we had a welcoming omen. The restaurant on the corner was Pizza Bianchi. The good omen is because Mary Kay's mother's maiden name was Bianchi. 

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Our first meal for our first night in our new home, we made a reservation at Pizza Bianchi. We had a great pizza with a white sauce, mushrooms, garlic, sage & truffle ricotta and Naughty Shakes. Mine was made with Limoncello Tosolini, JJ Whitley Vodka, lemon juice  and MK's was made with Havana Club 3yr Old Rum, pineapple, coconut.... YUMMMM!

Castle Park

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Bristol Castle was a Norman castle built for the defense of Bristol. Very little of Bristol Castle remains above ground. The most tangible survival is a vaulted chamber of the King's Hall.

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St Peter's Church is a ruined church in Castle Park, Bristol, England. It was bombed during World War II and is now preserved as a memorial. 

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Clifton Observatory

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The Observatory houses one of the only camera obscuras still open to the public in the UK. Originally built as a windmill for corn in 1766, the mill was later  converted  into an art studio and the camera obscura was installed, which is still working today. The camera offers a panoramic view of the surrounding area including the Clifton Suspension Bridge, Avon Gorge & Clifton Downs.

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The Clifton Observatory and Caves sits above the Avon Gorge offering superb views of the Clifton Suspension Bridge and the city of Bristol.

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Below the observatory is an underground passage to the Giant's Cave which was originally only accessible via the cliff face. After a short descent into the cave we enjoyed the spectacular views along the Avon Gorge and Clifton Suspension Bridge.

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Up top we got a great view of the Clifton Suspension Bridge which is one of Bristol’s most recognisable structures. It spans the gorge over the Avon River. 

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Aerial View of River

We could see the colorful painted houses  along Clifton Cliffs overlooking the floating  harbor. Blackbeard was born in one of the colorful houses.

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The park is an oasis in the city right adjacent to the main shopping district with a high street and shopping malls so it is a nice break to take a walk in the park away from the hustle and bustle. The park runs along side the Avon River, so we continued our walk to the harbor along the riverwalk.

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IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD

We could not have picked a better neighborhood to live in in Bristol. Berkeley Square is centrally located in the City.  It has many aspects of a college town, with the University of Bristol campus across the street. So we have many unique and quirky pubs and restaurants to choose from. The Bristol Art Museum across the street was a nice treat for a rainy day. 

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The Bristol Art Museum is on the Campus of The University of Bristol.  The Bell Tower in the photo above also contains classrooms for the University.  The University campus is spread around us with the Graduate Studies building on Berkeley Square where we reside.

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Zero Degrees Brewery is one of our favorite watering holes. It has a great Mango Beer and it sits atop a hill that gives you a great view of the city.

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Sitting on the patio of  Zero Degrees we watch the people below us travel up and down one of the most picturesque streets in the city. Christmas steps which is a historic street dating from the 17th century. It is Bristol's oldest market. 

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Right Next to the top of the steps is John Fosters Alms House that looks like it popped straight out of a Harry Potter film.

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We were walking down the Christmas Steps one day in route to the City Center and noticed The Scrandit door open, so we peeked in to find a cozy and unique pub and restaurant with garden seating. The Scrandit has an unusual menu system. It has guest chef's who prepare a unique menu which is usually a gourmet set of main dishes, sides and bites. Our palates were greeted with amazing international flavors spices and fusion dishes. 

The Scrandit

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On the first occasion, the food had a South American and Argentinian menu. We engaged the person who brought us our menu and helped us with our meal choice. In discussing the unique concept we found that Josh was one of the Co-Owners of the Restaurant.  Later the Chef stopped by to talk about the food, (which was absolutely amazing).  We finished our meal and moved to the front bar area and spent time  talking with Josh and the Chef.   We did our shopping and came back up The Christmas Steps and stopped in for a Pint and spent the next couple of hours socializing with Josh, the barkeep and the guests. 

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We made a habit of visiting The Scrandit and it is one of our favorite spots in Bristol.

Brandon Hill & Cabot Tower

Right behind our Apartment is Brandon Hill which is a steep hilled park. It is Bristols oldest park in the city. It was gifted to the people as a means of getting fresh air and into nature. There are lots of families and joggers that enjoy the park if you can stomach the steep hills and stairs. We have walked from the bottom to the top a number of times to get from the harbor to our Apartment. I have a love hate relationship with the hill, because it is the closest place to take a walk near our Apartment.

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On  top of the hill sits Cabot Tower. The tower was built to commemorate John Cabot, a Bristol Sailor and explorer who sailed to North America

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Rugby Balls

Bristol Bears Rugby Game

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One nice Saturday afternoon we decided to take in a local Rugby Match. So we hopped on the bus and went to Ashton Gate Stadium  where the Bristol Bears were playing the London Irish.

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We had seats in the Stadium that overlooked the center of the field that gave us a great view of the game. 

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The scrum pictured is the formation used in the restarting play after a knock-on or forward pass. It  looks like a big huddle where the eight forwards from each side link up in three rows and push against the eight forwards from the other team. The half back rolls the ball in at the front where the two teams meet and his team tries to kick the ball back to the rear of the scrum where they can then pick it up and use it. 

Mary Kay got a lesson on all the plays of the game from our seat mate John who is a season ticket holder and used to play rugby in College. So she learned about Box-kicks, Knock-ons, Trys, Conversions and Scrums.

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Our home team the Bristol Bears won the match and although it is still early in the season they lead the league with no losses. Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 1888

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We are William and Mary Kay. This is our blog about the next journey in our lives. We have always shared a love of travel and have visited many parts of the world, but there is so much more to see and experience. After separating ourselves from the obligations of work and possessions we are free to walk this beautiful planet and immerse ourselves in the rich cultures and meet the wonderful people with whom we share this planet. We are both interested in art, history, archaeology and culture and hope to volunteer to keep and maintain historical and environmental sites.  We live active lives and enjoy, snorkeling, swimming, kayaking, canoeing, sailing, hiking, snowshoe hiking, biking, zip lining and are up for almost any activity. This blog is to let our current and future friends know where we are and what we are doing. We are simply lost in the right direction.

 

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