Bristol (United Kingdom) | A Colorful Day - Day 67

This sign represents Bristol's best and embraces the city's bold colors. Bristol, in many ways, was the perfect city for me to transition to after spending a month immersed in Medieval History and muted shades of southern France. Undoubtedly I am very receptive to the new stimulating environment that is Bristol.

It is Saturday morning, and I haven't been up at 5 am since I left the States. I gather my things, water bottle, and daypack and then attempt to quietly walk down the stairs to Louise's house. Every step seems to crack or creak louder than the previous. Finally, I give up and decide the best solution is simply to get down the stairs. It is 515 am, and I head for the nearest e-scooter-designated parking area, a 5-minute walk. I open the app on my phone, only to learn that all scooters are offline. I am confused but need to get to Ashton Court as early as possible, so I start walking.

It's still dark when I think I must be in a different city today. The town is thrashed, and there is litter everywhere. What did I miss? How did I overlook all this litter over the last two days? Gulls are flocking around the remnants of discarded pizza boxes and other food items that line the streets and sidewalks. They are having a fantastic feast! I press on while I try to understand what happened. Meanwhile, people are already starting to gather rubbish.

I am hoping that the scooters will come back online at 6 am. However, I have no other choices than to press on. At 6 am, I am near Wapping Warf. I pause briefly to take the house picture below as the sun rises. Bristol has many neighborhoods where row houses have been painted in pastels; it is an iconic part of Bristol. I love that Bristol embraces color. After the picture, I open the e-scooter app; Bingo! I find the nearest parking lot, unlock an e-scooter, and I'm off. Fifteen minutes later, I park the e-scooter and finish the 1 mi (1.6 km) walk to Ashton Court. 

Through the trees, I see the set of balloons is already in the air. It's 625 now, and I have a bit further to go. So I pick up my pace a bit.

I arrive around 630 am, and the mass ascent is starting to peak. I love the display of colors against the clear blue sky. One after another, balloons inflate, rise, and head southwest away from the main field. Low on the horizon, I notice the set of balloons already disappearing beyond the trees. The black wolf balloon on the left has ears that extend out from the main surface, making the head appear in 3D. 

It takes only about 10-12 minutes before the balloons disappear along the horizon. Though they have no propulsion, they cover a lot of ground once they pick up the jet stream. 

As balloons launch, other cars and trailers roll onto the main field to take their place. Rinse and repeat; the ascension continues. I notice the white sheep balloon on the right side of the picture, making me laugh. I see the main field is still very crowded.

The field begins to thin around 7 am, and I enjoy watching the balloons take flight. 

One of the unusually shaped balloons is the JoyCam lips. 

Balloons look so different in the air. They can appear so plain on the ground, then look amazing against the blue sky. For example, the vertically striped gold balloon in the above photo looks more impressive the further away it gets.

Around 720 am, the last three balloons take flight. In all, just over 80 balloons were launched this morning. The parade of colors was beautiful to watch.

Once all the balloons have left, two more teams enter the main field. They start the deployment process, allowing the gathered crowd to see the entire process. The mass ascension is chaotic and not great for spectators to see the whole inflation process. First, they test and warm up the burner; the enormous flame is quite a site to see.

Then they lay the basket and burner down and prepare to attach the balloon. 

They unpack and unfold the balloon.

Start the generator to power the fans that will help inflate the balloons with the hot air.

The balloon inflates and begins to lift. A single person hangs on to the guyline. Their job is to keep the balloon from rising too quickly and swaying once the basket is righted. Notice the man in the black shirt, left of the photo. He is leaning back and adding resistance to the balloon as it rises.

A great way to spend a morning! I've seen many hot air balloons through the years, never more than a handful in the air at any one time, and certainly never watched 80+ balloons take flight. It was quite a spectacle, and I loved today's organized chaos on the main field. 

Around 8 am, I jump on the M3 bus and head back to Bristol. After getting off the bus, I notice, to my surprise, that the streets and sidewalks are clean again. People like the one in the orange jumpsuit keep the city clean. An impressive feat, as now I am questioning my memory of this morning as little trace remains of the rubbish.

After breakfast, I make my way back to my Airbnb. It's now 11 am. I spend a bit more time figuring out how to return to Ashton Court for the night glow. Unfortunately, I learned that special festival-only bus routes are not being run this year, like in years past. So, I decide against a late-night return and choose to explore more of the city. However, the Night Glow at Bristol was captured on video and uploaded to youtube; the Night Glow is coordinated to music and quite spectacular in this short video of the event. 

Below is a view of the docks in Bristol. These once essential docks are now used mainly for recreation.

I wander across Pero's Bridge and notice all these locks attached to both sides of the bridge. The colorful display is known as lover's locks. The controversial display is loved by many; however, some want the locks removed because they see it as an insult to Pero Jones, an African Man who was brought to Bristol when he was 12 years old as part of the slave trade. The article has excellent photos of the iconic bridge and discusses the tension within the city. The Pero Bridge is another example of the tension between modern art and defamation. I wonder if Pero Jones would support having these locks of love attached to the bridge that bears his name, or would he see it as an insult to his memory, as some people have claimed?

Earlier in the day, I passed this colorful globe that caught my attention, which now seems to fit perfectly in this post. This globe is intended to raise awareness about the worldwide African slave trade. The image is powerful, especially when I notice the numbers painted on important ports in Africa. More than 11.5 M people from the southern half of the west coast of Africa were captured, relocated, and forced into slavery worldwide.

There is a robust racial tension that exists in Bristol. The above display is intended to raise awareness and acknowledges that this is part of everyone's history regardless of race. I was surprised to learn that Bristol is 84% white. Part of the town's history and wealth resulted from the sugarcane slave trade. During the Black Lives Matter riots in the United States in June of 2020, Bristol had its own protests. Some historical landmarks commemorating people who were significant players in developing the city were removed and thrown into the bay because their wealth was tied to the slave trade. Bristol ranks 7th out of 384 communities in the United Kingdom regarding racial disparity in employment between whites and blacks. I take a moment to reflect on the past, the United States, and Ireland. I am reminded that inequality exists across the globe. Notably, the British settled Northern Ireland and the Southern United States. I wonder what it is about historic British culture passed down to people today that makes them feel threatened by equality? 

I didn't make the Night Glow tonight but was blessed with a fantastic sunset while having dinner. The fish and chips I had for dinner were excellent too! The silver inflatable below is a Mars Demonstration House that will open to the public in a few more weeks. Its focus is on teaching people to reduce waste.

On my way home, this scene catches my attention. Even after dark, Bristol continues to show me its beautiful colors.

I will cherish the colors I saw today and the history I uncovered. It made for a fantastic day! I have enjoyed Bristol tremendously and appreciate all the tension points I have discovered within the city. However, I use tension instead of conflict as a reminder that the city is struggling with adaptive problems that have not yet erupted into violent outbursts (i.e., conflicts). My time here starkly contrasted with my time in France, and I am grateful for it.