That’s that then. The last Bank Holiday until the end of August. Why are our public holidays spaced out like this? The lucky people of Cheltenham had a great street fair today, full of noise and bustle, dogs and pushchairs, music, bouncy castles, stilt walkers, sizzling food, plants, stalls, music, coffee, Tristram Stuart campaigning about food waste, showing how fruit that would be otherwise thrown out had been turned into a delicious mango sorbet in fruit leather. More about The Taste of Freedom campaign here. And Gill the Painter, who had abandoned her sourdoughs and her bicycle for the day in order to run a stall with her friend Lelia showcasing some of her lovely artworks. Her Marmite painting greeting cards were surprisingly popular! I love her picture of her sister and twin and the great picture of the Dan Lepard baking class.
Zeb Bakes 
Oooh, I love a street fair. We were just commenting this yesterday that we love summer in the bay area, because there are so many events/fairs on the weekends. We had a long weekend for Memorial Day which kind of marks the start of summer here. Our local street fair is next weekend.
Cheltenham is a very upmarket sort of place, fun to visit, it was a spa town and is full of genteel Regency buildings and tree lined streets. I was thinking that what we lack in England is ‘promenade culture’ probably down to the unreliable weather, but it always struck me in Italy that people used to go out after supper, all spruced up and promenade and chat with their friends and relations and how civilised that was on a hot evening when no one wants to be stuck indoors. Street fairs like this one are the nearest we get to that!
Sounds like great fun! Thanks for taking a photo of Gill’s stall for us – every bit as impressive as I expected! :)
My photos don’t do her justice I’m afraid! That pic is mostly of the cards. I am sure you get a better idea on her blog of her work.
Oh thank you Joanna – I wanted to see what Gill was selling and now I know. Sounds like a fun day. We don’t get much down here in the way of street festivals. It’s made me rather nostalgic for the Leamington Peace Festival which was the highlight of the year when I lived in Leamington Spa.
Dan, enjoy your street fair this weekend, this was my first time and it was a blast! Everyone is so kind.
Hi Joanna, Celia and Choclette
I’m just writing up my blog post now, I really should have made it yesterday, but I slept in till 08:30, unheard of for someone who gets up before she should (at 5 or 6).
Joanna, you do realize you are h-h-honoured to have chatted to Tony for half an hour. My other internet chums I’ve met, Lucinda and Elisa from the Beeb, have only had 5 seconds max and he’s off to his private world while I meet up with my friends.
They are rather envious of you, but are only joking.
It was rather wonderful to meet you again. Next time I’ll pop over to Bristol and we can have a long, long long chat again, although you do know I’m the silent type really!
Gill, do you have art trails in Cheltenham like they do here? My local one is in November usually http://www.northbristolartists.org.uk/home.php. Good idea given the weather. PS It was delightful to see you and meet Tony too!
Just heard on R4 that it rains twice as much in Sydney as it does here! Can this be true?
Ah yes. We have an Open Houses organisation, which I join in September, to have an open house June 2011.
Is it really rainy like in Sydney then? That’s got to be wrong surely.
I think it rains twice as much in Wales as here.
If you want to see Brian’s pic of me and Gill you have to visit her blog!
It is raining here now, raining raining thundering raining. Twice as much as the UK though, I don’t know.. :)