10 things we love about Bristol
1. The Train. This makes living in the middle of nowhere ok. Where else can you get a train for 75p? Also, note the fact, that at the peak of rush hour the train is extended to two carriages instead of the usual one so as to accommodate the service’s high demand. Our favourite thing is that there is always a seat available - think of that next time you’re on the tube…
2. Breakfast Club. Are you a fan of early starts? Living here means you will be. After pressing the snooze button one too many times, finally dragging yourself out of bed, and racing up the hill to get in before 7.30 a.m. you get used to seeing sunrise. Then on top of that, you have to be nice to kids! Seriously though, breakfast club is a lot of fun – lots of card games, lots of children, and lots of food – what could be wrong with that? It’s been a really good way to get to know the kids better as they tend to be more willing to talk in the morning even though it is crazily early! And even sunrise can occasionally be appealing…
3. Community Emphasis. Intentional community seems to be a really big thing here in Bristol. Across the city there are lots of community houses existing to serve local areas, helping to create the positive atmosphere Bristol is so well known for. The Oasis team is no exception to this, everyone lives in and out of each other’s houses, always looking out for each other. Luckily there are plenty of ‘mother’ types looking after us, which is probably for the best considering our lack of cooking, navigational and general life skills.
4. Mullers. A day of theology. And we mean a full day. It’s pretty intense, but one of our favourite things we do. By the time you leave your brain is exhausted, having spent hours thinking and discussing ideas that had never even crossed your mind before, all while trying to sound vaguely intelligent and not completely ignorant in front of everyone else. We have learnt a lot though and it has been good to have the opportunity to explore our faith with people who have more life experience than us.
5. Card games and Tea (fair-trade). A day in Bristol seems incomplete without either of these things. Card games seem to be a way of life here especially with the kids; a game of uno, unlucky or snap is always being played. Tea is another big part of life, no meeting, group or general staff member seems to be able to run properly without tea. And of course, it’s all fair trade. We’re not complaining though, a cup of fair trade tea can never be a bad thing!
6. Pensioners Lunch Club. Free (homemade) food, lovely company and some good old fashioned hymns. Pensioners lunch club conveniently happens just outside John Williams Academy, and we take a couple of students along each week. It’s a really good opportunity for the students to interact with people from a completely different generation. The elderly people love swapping stories with the teenagers, and it’s been good to see how both groups have enjoyed Wednesday lunch times. And some of the pensioners have come out with some wonderful one liners – which makes it thoroughly entertaining.
7. The Accent. It’s infectious. You will end up sounding like a farmer. End of.
8. Cakes and Coffee. It’s both amusing and slightly worrying to see the enthusiasm for the “real” coffee we serve in the staffroom. It’s like the entirety of Brightstowe staff population have a serious caffeine addiction – and instant just doesn’t hit the spot! We’ve also found that cake is a brilliant way to make friends. If you make too much and then burn it, rest assured – you will find plenty of people who are still willing to eat it.
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9. Kids. As expected we see rather a lot of kids. After weighing up both their hilarious one liners and their incessant whining we’ve come to the conclusion that we do actually quite like them. Time spent with the kids goes a lot quicker than time spent with the photocopier. This is probably for the best seeing as youth work is one of the main reasons we’re here after all.
10. Shirehampton. Known to locals as “The Shire”, and known to the rest of Bristol as “where?”. If you have ever wished to live in a village, and live in a city at the same time, Shirehampton is the place for you! Officially still part of Bristol, you literally have the best of both worlds; the shops and sites of Clifton are a 7 min train journey away, the hills of Somerset and Blaise Castle estate both in walking distance. And it is very quiet. Walking down the high street you never fail to see someone you know. And the sheer abundance of cats is impressive – possibly outnumbering the people.
Much love
Mim and Helen
xxx
