A BRIEF LOVE LETTER

I sometimes find myself saying “I grew up in Bristol”, which is patently untrue as anyone with half an ear can tell my accent lacks the required West Country twang. But I do consider the city my adopted hometown, and it’s a place that has shaped my life more than most: spending a year as a study abroad student was enough to lure me back for an MA; my PhD focused on one of the city’s landmarks, the Isambard Kingdom Brunel-designed Clifton Suspension Bridge; MrElaineous and I had our first date at the Bristol Zoo and chose to get married at the Bristol Registry office.

So it’s probably no surprise that despite moving away nearly a decade ago, I always enjoy visiting this dynamic city. It has a thriving street art scene (after all, international artist Banksy is reputed to be a Bristol lad), a bustling harbourside, and when the sun is out, like during a trip I made earlier in the winter, it is easy to fall in love with it all over again.