Hi everyone! I’ve finally made it back to blogging world!
I hope you’ve all had a fantastic summer ♥
After a refreshing break, I’m very happy to be back ‘plugged’ in. I’m really looking forward to catching up with you! I’ve got lots to share this month, including some exciting giveaways and yummy recipes, but I thought I’d kick start my return to blogging by sharing some pics of one of my favourite family days out this summer.
I’m not sure whether my international friends will have heard about Wallace and Gromit, but they are the most endearing couple that feature in a series of stop-motion comedy films, created by Nick Park at the Aardman Animations Studios in Bristol.
This summer, 80 Gromits were ‘unleashed‘ on the streets of Bristol and surrounding area. The 5ft tall Gromits were individually designed and named by famous artists and celebrities.
While the trail finishes this Sunday (8th September), from the 18th to 22nd September, all 80 Gromits will be on display at the Royal West of England Academy (RWA) in Clifton, Bristol. They will then be auctioned in October to raise money for the Bristol Children’s Hospital ♥
The trail has been hugely popular with people of all ages. And what a fantastic way to encourage kids to go walking! I reckon we must have spent over 4 hours walking round the streets of Bristol, but Lil’ L was far too busy Gromit spotting to notice. Every time he spotted one, he photographed it, checked it off on his trail map, then he was straight onto the next one!
We ended up spotting about 25 Gromits, so there are still plenty more to discover. If we don’t make it over to Bristol this weekend, we’ll definitely have to go and see the display at the RWA at the end of the month.
In addition to the Gromits, we also enjoyed spotting all the amazing street art in Bristol. I just love wandering round the streets taking it all in. Every time we visit, we seem to stumble upon new pieces.
This visit, we also stumbled across this fantastic vegetarian community cafe called ‘Roll for the Soul‘, which promotes cycling (it even has a bike workshop upstairs).
I don’t think there could have been a more fitting place for us to have lunch! It was awesome! A large proportion of the food served at the cafe is vegan too 🙂
This time, all three of us chose the falafel wraps. They were HUGE, perfect for hungry cyclists (and Gromit spotters) and very tasty indeed. I can’t wait to go back again to try their soul burgers and vegan cakes. Maybe if I cycle across to Bristol I’ll have a big enough appetite to fit it all in 😉
All in all, it was a fantastic family day out. One that I’ll treasure forever ♥
Do you have any community or not-for-profit veggie cafes where you live? If so, I’d love to hear about them.
p.s. Thank you Lil’ L for allowing me to share your Gromit and street art pics. They’re awesome!
Welcome back! I’d love to go to Bristol some time, I hear it’s a great place for veggies with lots of ‘alternativey’ type stuff going on. Love the Gromit pics 😀
Hey there! So good to hear from you ♥
Bristol is a great city to wander around. There is a lot of ‘alternative’ stuff going on there. There’s a great selection of independent shops, cafes, restaurants and lots of cool street art. I would love to have lived there in my student days!
Lovely to see you back Sharon! Sounds like you’ve had a fabulous summer. Bristol looks fantastic, can’t wait to visit very soon, although it’s a shame the Wallace + Gromit walk won’t staying around any longer.
I’m sure you’ll love Bristol. It’s really easy to get there on the train from Bath… only about 10-15 minutes. It’s got a great ‘alternative’ vibe 🙂
Sharon!!! Nice reading from you !!…I am one of your International friends….and YES I had heard about W&G……because they are “International!”
Lovely to have you back xxx
Hello lovely! SO good to hear from you! ♥
Are you ‘jet setting’ at the moment?
Bristol?! I would love to visit that lovely city one day! Aw the Isambark Kingdog Bruenl looks so cute! I love all of these artworks you photographed. Hmmm, I don’t think I know any non-profit veggie cafes from Oregon, I live in a small city there.
Welcome back!
I’ve definitely heard of Wallace & Grommit, but I don’t think they’re anywhere near as popular here. I love the idea of selling those cute little sculptures to benefit children! It sounds like a great day out. 🙂
Sounds like you had a refreshing summer. Love all the gromits and the cafe sounds lovely.
How fun it must have been to go Gromit spotting! The ones Lil’ L photographed are great. I wish I lived close enough to be able to go on a Gromit spotting expedition too… And I’d totally stop at that café as well, it sounds fantastic! No wonder you remember fondly such a lovely day!
So lovely to hear from you Josiane!
I hope you had a wonderful summer too ♥
How’s the weather where you are? Is it starting to cool off yet? Summer’s definitely over for us 🙁 The rain’s back, it’s overcast and the evenings are getting dark & chilly. I guess there’s nothing for it but to embrace the new season. I better hunt out the sweaters and boots!
Oh, summer went by really fast around here – we were unfortunately too busy to be able to enjoy it as much as we’d have liked. And yes, we’re definitely having autumnal weather too. Still, we’ll grab cozy sweaters and will enjoy every minute of the tiny getaway we have planned for the end of this week. 🙂
Here’s wishing you a wonderful time on your weekend away ♥ xx
Loving Gromit. And the street art. And the Roll with Soul. Top weekend!
Glad you loved it!
Here’s wishing you a fun-filled weekend xx
Welcome back!!!!
Love those wallace & gromit statues!!!!
It’s a great website and amazing pictures