Day 8: Travel Day
Nau mai
Yesterday we drove from Leeds to Bristol.
Tristan and I began our day with a run to Woodhouse Ridge, an urban park crisscrossed with leafy trails, densely planted in old oak trees, and decorated with rays of filtered sunlight.
I have found that I am having to relearn the skill of sitting comfortably in the van for long periods. Our travel day had us crossing a good chunk of England, leaving the north behind and making our way to the city of Bristol, in the southwest. Teddy was behind the wheel, our handsomely moustached driver/merch operator, and we were nestled into our seats and took in a very pleasant countryside of farms and woodland.
Breakfast came from the Leister Forest Motorway Services area, specifically the eastern-most Starbucks that is located in this elevated food court that sits astride the highway. I ordered a cheese toastie and brought it with me to eat in the van.
The view (southbound) from the Leister Forest Motorway Services dining area.
We treated ourselves to a fairly luxurious pub lunch. Tristan had put in the time researching and plotting our route and thanks to these efforts we were able to enjoy an extremely relaxing couple of hours in the comfort of an old stone inn, dining by candlelight on fresh, locally grown produce and sipping local cask ales.
It was a still, clear evening that we arrived in Bristol. The night was ours to spend. Tristan and I travelled to Easton, sampling the local bus services to get us to a pub that promised live music. There was a band in the corner wailing out New Orleans style Dixieland Jazz, and the room was warm and rowdy. It was nice to be off the clock and off the stage for an evening.
One final prank before bedtime.
