I am writing this from a friends house in Bristol, England. This is for me a brief stop off on the way down to see my mother who has not been well but my layover in Bristol has given me the chance to revisit old haunts that I have not been to for over 25 years since I lived and worked here while at the BBC. The shot above is a portion of what remains of what was once a thriving working water front. To the left is the remains of some of the warehouses now turned into trendy shops and restaurants, but in a former life were used as bonded storage for tobacco products much of which was imported from Virginia in the USA which at the time when much of Bristol was being developed was a still a colony. This area is known as the watershed and would have been filled with sailing ships all the way up to the tower block that you can see in the distance. Sadly much of Bristol was severely damaged or destroyed by German bombers during the second world war but the although many of the former shore side buildings have gone it is still an interesting place to walk around. Rich in maritime history Bristol is home to the SS Great Britain one of Brunel's finest achievements and the ship that laid the first transatlantic telegraph cable. While I am over on this side of the pond I plan on visiting some boat builders so with any luck I shall have some photos to share of that with you in a day or two.
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