Move to Bristol

I distinctly remember the night when I arrived at Bristol from Tokyo for the first time. On my way to a service apartment by taxi, the new town looked calm and darker place, before seeing a bright significant architecture. It was the Clifton Suspension Bridge which welcomed me and made me feel something exciting should happen here.

Three first happy things

1. Green

To a man from Tokyo, a well organized and artificial city, Bristol looks green and full of nature. Substantial green parks are everywhere in the city and just 15 minutes drive away, you can see beautiful farms, sheep or cows on grass fields.

2. Food

Some of my friends sympathetically told me, “ You can not expect good food in the U.K.”. Now my view is different. There are so many varieties of tasty vegetables and less expensive at supermarkets than in Tokyo. I enjoy shopping at a farmers market in my neighborhood every weekend.

Availability of suitable meats is also a plus, especially beef for me. I went some steakhouses, but steak by myself at home is perfect.

3. Weather

Same as the food, “ You can not expect good weather in U.K.” told by my friends. It isn’t true. It’s not about good or bad, but just different. Far better than expected.

I learned an unusual expression, “In Bristol, there are three seasons in one day.” It is true that we have a very clear sunny moment and a hailstorm in the same day.

Three first surprises

1. Access to fresh fish

It is not easy. There are some very good fishmongers in my neighborhood, but variety is not enough for me and twice or three times as expensive as those in Japan.

As I love fishing, I am thinking to source them by myself. I have done mackerel fishing once in Brixham. It was effortless, caught a lot and tasted great. Cooking and eating fish which I catch for myself is such a great experience.

2. Day length volatility

In Tokyo, the sun never shines after 8 pm in summer, or it never sets before 4 pm in winter. I know this from textbooks but living here and experiencing it is a different story. Summer is very cheerful; winter is a bit melancholy.

3. Hard water

Tap water tastes different. I feel different when taking a shower. I did not know I needed to put some water softener in dishwashers or washing machines.

Now, I became a little British to the extent that I drink nearly ten cups of tea and talk about the weather every day. There are lots more to learn and get surprised. I will keep enjoying new experiences and life in Bristol!