Bristol University and Museum

Luka, diligent lad that he is, decided he needed to hit the books Sunday morning (and not, I am sure, just have a lie in) so we had arranged to meet up again at the Albion pub for a late lunch. I booked a table for 2:15. 

So after a full breakfast at my hotel I decided to go to the museum and art gallery, but first had a wander around the University itself. This is not really Luka's haunt as it is all the STEM stuff. But it is a fine set of Victorian buildings with a few new additions. And it wasn't raining. So took my camera and roved around with hardly another soul about.

Actually the Bristol Grammar School which is adjacent

I wandered into Fort Royal Gardens, which I thought would be amazing in summer. Well they were originally designed by Humphrey Repton, second only to Capability Brown in standing. At least in winter I had them pretty much to myself, even if there were only a few hellebores and crocuses out.

I read the blurb about this statue, expecting it to be some notable academic at Bristol. No, it turned out to be some woman who died of cancer and whose cells had been used in research. Which seems as unlikely to be a worthy subject of a statue as anyone else who had donated their body to medical science. But apparently what made her special was that she was black. So even if they couldn't find a black woman to have achieved anything herself, at  least they found a black woman who had something important done to her cells.

Then into the Museum and Art Gallery which is really quite extensive, and has a thoroughly eclectic collection. (And although free, I found over lunch that Luka and Anna had never visited it...)

The ground floor has a decent Egyptian collection but rather more remarkable are the Assyrian carvings

Fearsome warriors but with neat little handbags

There is a large natural history collection but I largely ignored the skeletons as that is where all the under 5s were out. Sunday morning, what else do you do if you are middle class and have little kids?

But I love rocks and minerals and they have a fine collection of them

And up a further floor a good art collection from old masters to modern art

 I also took in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition that I normally see in London. No photos of that as they are forbidden, but it was very good and as always I think  the winner of the under 10s category beats any of my shots. Sigh.

Finished up about 2pm, collected my bag and returned to Clifton to the Albion pub, arriving about 60 seconds ahead of my young friends. Perfect. And Danny Dyer was there. Almost touching fame.

Sunday roasts all round. Not the best, and in any case I wasn't truly hungry after breakfast. But it was a comfortable way to spend an afternoon and finish off a very enjoyable weekend. I may get myself invited down again....