Gromit spotting in Bristol

Isambark Kingdog Brunel

Stepping out of the majestic Bristol Temple Meads station I was tickled to be greeted by this fellow - Isambark Kingdog Brunel.

But I was soon rather perplexed as I spied a second one as I made my way towards Clifton on the number 8 bus. Then another particularly bling Gromit emerged as I rounded the corner to Colston Hall.

It seems Gromit has been unleashed, and you can find him all dressed up and all over Bristol throughout the summer.

Gromit Unleashed is an art trail of 80 larger-than-life Gromits painted by various invited artists. 

These gorgeously decorated Gromits have bounded all over Bristol and will be there for you to find until Sunday 8th September. There's even a Detect-O-Gromit app for you to log photos of the Gromits you spot. Or for the old school amongst you, you can pick-up a Gromit Unleashed passport and get it stamped at six locations across the city.

And when the trail comes to an end, the sculptures will be auctioned off in aid of The Grand Appeal at Bristol Children’s Hospital Charity.  

How many have you found so far?

2012 in review

As another year draws to a close, minds inevitably turn backwards to cast a critical glance over the successes, highlights and happenings of the preceding 12 months. It's also, of course, an opportunity to identify those things that remain on the 'to do' list.

For me, blogging was stuck obstinately on the 'to do', rather than the 'done' list, so here's a quick catch up of 2012, to bring my adventures back in Britain up-to-date.

Monasterio de piedra
(Zaragoza, Spain)

January - the year opens in Zaragoza with a bicycle ride and a visit to magical cascadas (waterfalls)

February - snow fell and out came the black and white film to capture Birmingham's spellbinding industrial past

March - David Hockney takes me back to Saltaire and reminds me of the perennial beauty of the English countryside

April - spring blossomed and Birmingham burst into bloom

May - Brunel's mighty feats of engineering made themselves felt in marvellous Bristol

June - the heat of summer in blazing Spain 

Meet the parents at
Lincoln Cathedral

July - graduation time, family time and another dislocated knee!

August - a welcome return to the Jewellery Quarter

September - getting back on the horse (or learning to drive again)

October - turning 30 in Paris

November - a return to the eternal city

December - Birmingham is at its most magical at Christmas-time

Birmingham: I love you best at Christmas

I love Birmingham. The city has been my home for 11 years now (minus a brief sojourn in 2010/11) and, though I say this quietly, has to be one of the UK's most under-rated places. Or perhaps it's just a well-kept secret.

Birmingham has some wonderful architecture, fantastic museums and great places to go. It also has a brilliant atmosphere. But it really comes into its own at Christmas-time.

Birmingham Town Hall looking festive

Come November, Victoria Square and New Street begin to get taken over. Wooden huts begin to appear, and evening strolls are spent dodging cranes that are lifting lights into place.

Then, before you know it, the city is swarming with people wrapped up tightly against the cold, clutching huge flagons of beer, negotiating the crowds while attempting to eat grilled sausages, chocolate-covered waffles or giant pretzels, or huddling together over a paper cup of hot mulled cider/wine/Pimms/apple juice.

I'm talking, of course, of the Frankfurt Christmas Market. By happy coincidence, the market has also been in Birmingham for 11 years, and is one of the country's most popular outdoor Christmas markets.

I love it because of the truly happy atmosphere the market brings, as if Birmingham has become a kind of magical wonderland for the season, full of twinkling lights, delicious smells and goodwill.

Elsewhere, you can hear angelic voices coming from St Philip's cathedral, and marvel at the giant bauble-shaped lights (or as I like to think of them, Strictly Come Dancing-esque glitterballs!)

Excuse me while I practise the tango

So if you've never been to Birmingham for Christmas, make sure you put it in your diary now. And I can definitely recommend the winter Pimms. Just don't tell everyone...

Birmingham's Frankfurt Christmas Market runs from around mid-November to Christmas Eve, and is open every day from 10am until 9pm. You'll find it in Victoria Square, Chamberlain Square, Centenary Square and New Street, all very central.

Turning 30 in Paris - part 2

Sunday

The momentous day dawned with bright sunshine and clear blue skies.

We took advantage of the 'Paris breathes' programme and hired one of the city bikes for a ride down to the Eiffel Tower, taking the riverside road which had been specially closed to traffic (sadly not in honour of my special day, but rather so local residents and tourists alike can enjoy a day off from the usual chaos of traffic).

On a gorgeous day like that was, there is simply no other way to travel.

After dropping-off our bikes, we headed straight to the Place du Trocadéro, reputed to be the best vantage point for viewing the Eiffel Tower in all its glory. Crossing the river and heading up the sweeping steps leading to the Palais de Chaillot, we discovered that 'The Rough Guide to Paris' was indeed correct - this was the view of the tower that all the postcard photographers come to capture.

Soon, we joined the queue for climbing the Eiffel, taking the stairs up to the second floor - at a height of 128 metres. The view was as breathtaking as one would imagine: we looked out over the Jardins du Trocadéro, from which we had admired the tower earlier that morning, towards the futuristic-looking Arc de la Defense which designates Paris' business district.

A little more to the right and we could make out the Arc de Triomphe and Champs-Élysées stretching away to the east, and up on the brow of Montmartre in the distance, Sacré-Cœur. Directly below us, the Seine flowed, its length punctuated by bridges all the way to Notre-Dame and beyond. Turning and facing the other direction, we looked out onto the Champ de Mars, and the military academy behind it.

Due to the large volume of visitors (it being a sunny Sunday in half-term) the very top of the tower was periodically being closed, so we left that for a return visit...

Back down on tierra firma, we decided to once again rejoin the Seine, this time in a guided tour by boat. As the sun went down on a perfect day, our guide told us about the palaces, museums and galleries lining the river and the stories that lay behind them.

We returned to the Eiffel with just ten minutes of my twenties left, so what else to do but to head back to the Trocadéro for one last light show to celebrate.

Then it was back on the bike in search of the perfect birthday meal: French onion soup, steak, and crème brulee, all washed down with a nice glass of French red wine.

Turning 30 in Paris

As milestones go, entering your 30s is a big one, so I figured what better way to mark the occasion than in true style and elegance, in one of the most beautiful cities in the world: Paris.

Friday 

I couldn't quite believe I'd never made it to Paris before now, being just a short hop away on the Eurostar. While the Eurostar may not be as luxurious as it perhaps once was, particularly compared with the new high-speed rail links in Spain (the Ave), leaving St Pancras International in the heart of London and pulling into the centre of Paris just a couple of hours later is still pretty exciting.

Having located our hotel, (with the assistance of a passing man in a beret!), how else could we spend our first evening, other than strolling along the Seine. As night fell, we rounded the river's meanders, being treated to the twinkling lights of the Eiffel Tower in the distance, and drinking in the city's sumptuous architecture.

The Louvre by night

Saturday

Notre Dame

Saturday morning brought a bitterly cold breeze and we huddled amongst the crowds in Notre Dame to warm-up. Back outside, we began to see why Paris has such a reputation for romance - although we may have been shivering alongside the Seine, its myriad of elegant bridges make it simply beautiful to look at.

That afternoon we took some respite away from the river and joined the throngs promenading along the Champs-Élysées.

Passing the Opera House, the Place de la Concorde and onwards to the Arc de Triomph, I began to feel rather mind-blown at the sheer audacity of all these magnificent buildings. With every corner you turn, you are greeted with another expression of the endless quest for beauty and a spectacular show of wealth of splendour. In some small way, I started to understand why heads did roll...

At the Arc de Triomph, we took the opportunity to climb to the top of the gate for an almost unrivalled panoramic view of the city and the Eiffel Tower now right there beside us. Luck was on our side, as we had arrived just as dusk was falling and five minutes before the first light-show of the night. Taking our positions, we watched the tower change from its golden illumination to thousands of sparkling silvery-purple lights - the tower's special treat for five minutes on the hour after dark.

Never short of a panorama in Paris