Birthday and Balloons

What was nana thinking giving me clothes........?

It was our grand-daughter's fifth birthday yesterday, but other arrangements for both her and us had been made so went the week before.  
She carefully unpacked al her goodies from the Peppa Pig bag carefully avoiding two dresses which were put on the top of the goodies.

**********************


This weekend Alex and I went to stay with our eldest son and daughter-in-law in Bristol.
I have always wanted to see the balloons, not necessarily go to see the take off but just to see them fly, but because they are weather dependent it is actually fifty-fifty whether you get to see them.  But Saturday morning we saw them in the distant, so hurriedly dressing and getting the car at 6.30 am Michael drove us to a vantage point to see the balloons ascending over Bristol, we thought we may go back to see them in the evening but the weather had other ideas!

Our Weekend in Bristol

I should have done this blog yesterday, please read and see why! We left Minehead about 7.30 in the morning on Saturday via Tescos for petrol, flowers and nibbles for the journey, well it would be long time till lunch!

When you see Bristol's famous landmark in the distance, you know you are at journeys end.

The Suspension Bridge

Another of Bristol's famous landmarks are SS Great Britain and The Matthew.
After we parked the car, we walked to Mellineum Square pass Bristol Cathedral

Planetarium @ Bristol's Mellenium Square


Taking photographs of the reflection

William Penn - Founder of the colony of Pennsylvania USA


Alex reading the script of To Catch A Thief with

Bristol's own Archibald Leach,

better know as Cary Grant.


Me with William Tyndale he translated the Bible



Thomas Chatterdon - Poet


The Wall of Water on Mellenium Square

Pero's Bridge named after a Bristol Slave


Water in Quakers Friar Square

Saturday they had Punch & Judy show


A derelict herb garden at Castle Green, where I managed to show off to my sons knowing most of the herbs and impressed to rather elderly ladies who actually knew what they were. Think they thought I was much younger than I actually am!


Taster to seeing the Banksy Exhibition (someone in recent weeks paint balled this) I passed this about three years ago saw it and didn't take much notice of it!!!




Sunday was spent quietly - meeting new friends, and watching this snail travelling upwards on the side wall of a house, think he should have turned left for the garden!!



What we came to see, we caught the Bus from Fishponds into the city and as the clock struck 9 O'clock we joined the end of the queue, we were near the front. Waited an hour.






Just some of the Banksy exhibition
After we left the exhibition we had lunch and found the CathK shop purchased a bag, Michael (son) who was with us saw an old school friend while he was waiting patiently for me to look in the shop. Then we headed for the bus - on the way I managed to trip up a cobble stone and landed face down in the only puddle for yards about! Tripping and falling is bad enough, BUT to land face down in a PUDDLE...................... I was shaken, wet but fine, and decided I could dry off in the sun.

***************************************

By three in the morning I was in a panic, but managed to get back to sleep. I decided to go to casualty at the local hospital in Minehead - the first thing the nurse said..............


They are going to have to come OFF!



I came off quite lucky just badly bruised fingers!

Was It All A Dream............?

We had the whole day to get there. Bristol that is, for a special treat lined up by our (Middle) Son Robert at, as they say, enormous expense (All in a good cause though, the Conservation work of the Bristol Zoo.

Alex went into Town to do a couple of chores, but on his return decided that the front tyres really weren't up to a motorway trip so off back to town. 30 minutes and £73 later we were ready to go, we just needed to call into Tescos to get some petrol using that 5p off voucher. Unfortunately we had forgotten it's changeover day at Butlins and Tescos was under siege. We decided we had enough petrol to get to Williton, and filled up there. On the road to Bridgwater, one damn Tractor after another but never mind we would soon be on the Motorway zooming along in the sunshine. Except that no sooner had we got up to speed when we started to slow down again and then to a stop, minor shunt up ahead. We eventually got going and the trusty Sat-Nav sent us on our way, up the A370. Never mind it must know what it's doing. We ended up in Bristol Town Centre so we might just as well gone our usual way. Still a nice day and no harm done. Picked up a key from Michael (Eldest) and ordered a Taxi for 5.30 which duly arrived in time. What we didn't bargain for was the the Taxi driver didn't know where the Theatre was and got lost! No need to panic as we had a spare 1/2 hour and a few pushes on the pad of the Taxis SatNav and there we were.

What's at this leading up to I hear you cry. Well, we had come to see a comedy hero of ours, John Cleese who was doing a Charity Night in favour of the Zoo. We saw him and Chris Searle in the Theatre and it was very entertaining the best bit however was the champagne reception afterwards where we were able to meet and greet the Maestro. Robert hadn't bought a ticket for himself but could stand not meeting JC so he persuaded the organizers to let him in after crossing their palms with the appropriate silver.

It was great. John Cleese took time to speak to us personally and where Robert told him he scared people for a living John Cleese said that was the most interesting job he had heard of for a long time!

A fascinating occasion sure to remain in the memory for a long time.

Colin the hand-reared Lemur

http://www.bristolzoo.org.uk/

Chris Searle and John Cleese

Robert and John Cleese

Funny Birds!

This tree in Bristol is amazing - these "birds" can only be seen when there are no leaves on the trees!