Thursday, November 24, 2016

England 2016: The Bristol Walk


So, back to the part of England (in September) when we weren't in Cornwall but in the Bath area with our friends Lisl and Michael!  (You didn't think I was finished with England, did you?!)

The day after we arrived at the Bristol airport (and were picked up by Chris who took us to Lisl's home), we took the train back to Bristol from Bath and spent the day on our Bristol Walk #2.  In 2014 we had taken Walk #1 with Lisl and Chris (both from our Shutterchance photo blog).  There are several Bristol walks and by the time we're done, I'm guessing we'll hit them all.

This time there were 6 of us, all Shutterchancers, meeting up at the Bristol train station.
Chris, Lisl, Alan, Bill, Astrid and moi.  I bet you recognize them by now.
First order of business was a koffie break near the train station before heading out by bus.

Thanks to Chris for the overview.  A good way to start the day.

In 2014 we had gotten as far as the Clifton Suspension Bridge, where we started this walk,
with the River Avon spread out before us.

It was a totally different perspective, viewing it this time from atop the cliffs.

Lo and behold, as we walked along the fence, someone spied her:  The Matthew.
We had seen her in the Bristol harbor in 2014.  This time she was giving a local tour 
in that very moment!  If we had been there too early or too late...we would have missed her.
Coming, coming, gone.

It was our packed-lunch time...the ladies on one bench and the gents on another.
(Don't ask me how that happened...except that Lisl had packed the lunches for the gals.)

Then off we went, away from the river, to continue our walk.
What a motley crew (and, yes, I speak for myself).
It doesn't take much to make us happy, does it!

Look at these family estates in the Sneyd Park suburb on the fringe of Clifton Down.

At this point we crossed the street and continued down the Pitch and Pay Lane.
It's an interesting story about when Bristol was infested with the plague in the 17th century
and how the villagers/farmers quarantined themselves from being infected.

Did you see the church spire in that last collage?
It's the St. Mary Magdalen parish church of Stoke Bishop, from 1860, with spire added in 1872.

Sadly, it wasn't open, but we all had a good time outside, taking it all in.

Not far away was this adorable "hobbit-like" cottage.
How can you resist it?

Then it was along the Roman Way by the River Trym.
What kind of boat is that?  The Orange Submarine?

Did I mention that we walked and walked and walked?
Lots of chances to catch up on each other, in groups or two-by-two.

Over the river and through the woods!

And finally at the point when we'd see the Grand Finale of the day!

The Blaise Hamlet!

It's composed of 9 small cottages around a green...

with a sundial.
"It was built around 1811 for retired employees of Quaker Banker and Philanthropist
John Scandrett Harford who owned Blaise Castle House."

OMG!  What a way to end our long (almost 5 miles) walk.

Did I mention we picked up "conkers" along the way?
And then left them at the bus stop for the kids before heading back by bus to the train station.

Bristol Walk #2 is now under the belt!
Totally worth it, too.  THANK YOU, Lisl, for being our guide along the way.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Lest I forget,
HAPPY THANKSGIVING
to all my American family and friends!


16 comments:

  1. i love love that little hobbit house and wish i could live in one!! and i also love your kirkyard shots.. one time, way back in the day when i shot film a huge thick fog came in in the morning, and i was still awake, of course lol... so i took a drive to take pics, and i found a stone church with old graves in the yard, i took soooo many pictures and they all turned out great, but i lost them in a move of course...

    and you guys and your ice creme lol how come none of y'all are FAT lol ???

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    1. I love that little hobbit house, too, which is why I HAD to include it. :) You know by now that we LOVE visiting these churches, even if they aren't open. There is always so much to see. Too bad you lost all your pics. That's no fun.

      And, of course, we don't eat ice cream every day! But it does help to eat it when you're walking 5 miles, when it doesn't matter, right?!

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  2. Lovely to relive such an enjoyable day Ginnie.

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    1. For me, too, Bill! Thanks. BTW, Chris sent me a couple of pics which I added to the koffie time before the walk and then to the lunchtime on the benches.

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  3. Bill is saying the right things. Your posts are indeed 'reliving' all the great things we see and do. The Bristol walk was quite the walk but so fun to meet up again with dear friends and have time to catch up and make fun as a group. It is amazing to think this all started with buying a camera and posting pictures on Shutterchance...... Fabulous pictures and it is almost unbelievable that we were in the big city of Bristol. Thank you as always for putting in all the time to make these posts. IHVJ.

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    1. You know this is "my job," Astrid, so I'm delighted to keep a record of what we do. We are so very lucky to have all these memories, let alone GOOD FRIENDS! Thank you for your continued support, day in and day out.

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  4. What a fabulous post and I know who is going to one day put together my itinerary for England! How can one's eyes take in so much green?? xo

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    1. You will love England whenever/wherever you go, Robin. It's the Bath and Cornwall areas that we now know the best. One day we plan to go other places, of course! As I often say, it would be a sin to not go there every year for how close it is to us. Thank you. And Happy Thanksgiving weekend.

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  5. Bristol looks wonderful. All those beautiful homes and green spaces. Great to walk like that and see it up close!

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    1. Every time we go to Bristol, Ruth, we're glad we're there because there really is so much to see. I think there are 5- 6 different "official" walks that take in approx. 18 miles. I assume we'll take all of them eventually. :)

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  6. So much to take in with this post, Ginnie. It'/s great to see the Matthew again! I love the images from the graveyard and the hobbit house is gorgeous! Great post.

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    1. Thank you, Marie. We feel so lucky every time we are a part of such rambles!

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  7. I hope that hobbit cottage is a rental. I'd love to stay there even for just a night.

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    1. Wouldn't that be delightful, Maria!!! (But I doubt it.)

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  8. OK, I’ve now taken your Bristol walk. We never got to Bristol either time we were in England - one of those choices. However, we live not far from Bristol, CT. Wanna know why there’s a Bristol, CT? Maybe you’ll just have to visit.

    Amazing luck to catch that wonderful, old ship! Submarine??? Keep walking so you’re in shape when we see you.

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    1. I have a feeling we'll learn a LOT about England when we're with you next year, Ted. We can hardly wait. And btw, we spent a lot of time walking while in Belgium this past week!

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