It took more than 2 hours from Heathrow to Bristol. After a brief settlement at my friend's home, my wife and I started to browse around this peaceful city.

Unlike HK where it is described as a forest of concrete, there are plenty of vegetation in Bristol. There's a small pond near Stapleton (a suburb area in Bristol). You can see a lot of birds there, including mandarin duck, teal, swan and others that you may not be able to name it. I think the lake is an artificial one, however, it's evident that the landscape architect tried to minimize the human footprints on this natural habitat.

Without the fear of avian flu, bird feeding is a common activity there. The people here are more friendly to wild lives. If your motions are gentle enough, the birds will become less cautious and come close to you. The bird feeds (i.e. bread) can easily be obtained from Tesco (a local chain supermarket just like Park'N Shop in HK) just a few blocks away from the pond. With discount, a loaf of bread may be as low as only GBP 1.00.

Fishponds is a small town in the north-eastern suburb of Bristol. For those who are fond of sight-seeing, it may not be a good idea to spend time in Fishponds. However, Fishponds is a typical English small town. You can smell and touch the British life there.

If you want to have a closer look of the typical English small houses, there are plenty of those in Fishponds. Some of them were even built in our grand grannies' time. As a Anglican country, chapels are commonplace everywhere in Britain. These chapels were originally served for either the private families only or the local communities. The architecture of these chapels is exactly the same as what we watch in the Harry Potter's series. Take a sweep and a pair of oval-shaped glasses and you will become Harry.

I think College Green is named because it's close to the University of Bristol. But it's not that close to the main campus of the University. Instead, it is just next to the Bristol Cathedral. It is a large open space covered with grass. At the western end of the College Green is believed to be the Bristol municipal building.  On a sunny afternoon, there are a few people sitting on this green carpet. They are either reading or just walking their dogs. Some may form a circle and have their private camp-fire like gatherings. With the warm sunlight and soft grass, it is very hard to resist lying on the grass and feel the mild breeze. Better than this, of course, is to read something. It would be much easier to get yourself connected with the literary giants.

There is also an old but lovely building next to the Cathedral - the Marriott Hotel. The outlook of the Marriott is similar to the Peninsula in HK. The Queen's statue stands outside the hotel. This statue is made of granitic rock. When you take a closer look, the statue's head has become greenish. And that indicates the difference between the Chinese and the British. The Chinese cannot tolerate a taint on Mao's picture. The British don't give a shit about the dirt on the statue. The birds, however, do.

The Park Street demarcates the northern boundary of the College Green and it is one of the busiest street in Bristol. When you walk up the street, you will find the main building of the University of Bristol. When you look at the second last picture, you may see that the tower on the left is polished while the rest of the building remains dull. Thanks be to the subscriptions from the overseas students!

The British has got a long railway history. It is dated back to the age of Industrial Revolution in the 19th century. Inevitably, it's quite easy to find some antique buildings and structures along the whole British railway network.

Our journey to Bath started at the Bristol Temple Meads Station. The main building is apparently over 100 years old. Despite the old furniture and finishes, you need not worry about the room temperature as it has been regulated by air-con, which has been there some couples of years ago.

When you look up into the concourse ceiling, it is crossed with steel arches and trusses. Playing back the Harry Potter series in your mind, you may wish to find out where platform no. 9 3/4 is.