Bristol, England
Tonight my wife and myself are in the city of Bristol in SW England. Bristol has a population of 467,000. The city straddles the River Avon (there are many River Avons in Britain) and can point to a prosperous maritime history. The Harbourside is home to a museum which explores local and industrial heritage with special emphasis on the SS Great Britain.The harbour's 19th century warehouses now contain restaurants, shops and cultural institutions. Bristol harbouside Due to limited time availability I hotfooted it to the Harbourside where in a dry dock is the famous vessel SS Great Britain. SS Great Britain The vessel was designed by hyper active engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) who designed and built ships, entire railways, tunnels and bridges. When launched in 1837 the SS Great Britain was the biggest ship in the world. Unusually, Brunel dispensed with paddle wheels in favour of a propeller. In addition to new technology the interior featured luxury fittings modelled ...