July news....

We had a lovely meeting in June, hearing from Mark Chapman, about his highly successful COR in Southville and have recently opened the highly acclaimed RAGU in Wapping Wharf.

 
On Wednesday 30th July, we will be heading out for a visit to Heart of BS13 Flower Farm, a social enterprise and charity creating and inspiring change in Hartcliffe and Withywood. The charity plays an active role supporting the local community with food insecurity via a community freezer and kitchen; advocating for climate action; and growing celebration and sympathy flowers in line with their ethos of sustainability and soil health. 
 
They offer education initiatives and outreach work to promote their message and to increase awareness of the changes we can all make everyday to safeguard the future of our planet. 
 
Their priority is firmly rooted in the community with their long-term strategy to eventually reduce organisational reliance on grants, as well as to offer high quality opportunities for people in BS13 to develop vocational skills and find jobs. They have three enterprise streams that align with their work programmes. The Flower Farm supports vocational training and jobs in horticulture. The Climate Action Hub offers a range of climate and environmental opportunities, specifically aimed towards young people and supporting them to consider jobs and education in the green economy. The Kitchen, produces a range of high-quality meals that are sold in retail outlets across the city of Bristol to financially support the Heart of BS13 Community Freezer.  
 
We will meet with Sol Harmsworth, the Horticulture Program Manager for a tour and a talk. 
 
Please note that we will be meeting at the earlier time of 6:45pm for a 7pm start. There is limited parking, so we suggest car sharing to reduce our impact on the farm during our visit. If you haven't already arranged a lift with someone or you can offer a lift, please let us email:wearemalagowi@gmail.com and we will endeavour to put you in touch with each other.
 
The flower farm is not usually open in the evening so we will have to go to the back gate to access the flower farm. There will be a sign by the flower farm gate.
 
The address is: 
 
Heart of BS13 flower farm  - (the metal gate at end of the road)
Court Farm Rd, Bristol BS14 0DF - anyone with accessibility needs can park on site (there are about 3 spaces on site)
 
Please can you park a little further up the road, near the John Harvey arms, so the residents get to park by their houses.
 
We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 30^th.

June news...

 

May saw us have a lovely session with Louise David, Luliloves. We had the chance to chat whilst being creative in our lovely new space at the Tobacco factory
 
This month we are getting foodie. Mark Chapman, together with his wife Karen run the highly successful COR in Southville and have recently opened the highly acclaimed RAGU in Wapping Wharf
 
Mark will talk to us about his background and what led him to Bristol and such successful ventures; the trials and tribulations along the way, the ethos of the restaurants, what inspires them and how this informs their menus.
 
We have been invited to help with some craft activities in the family tent at Bristol Pride on Saturday 12th July on the Downs. The activity will run from 12 noon until 5pm. If you would like to help out please let us know at the June meeting, or e-mail wearemalagowi@gmail.com, letting us know what times you are available to help. We will need to share your name and e-mail with the Pride festival organizers so that they can organize wristbands for access. Someone else is leading the session so no need for any prep, they just need extra pairs of hands. Volunteers get free access to the event, and to an after party! There is an information session and social event for volunteers planned for Tuesday 8th July from 6pm at the Trinity Centre; if you can't make this, we'll share info with you by e-mail. If you have any questions, please let us know.
 
We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 25^th.

May news....

We hope that you enjoyed our April meeting. It was so lovely to focus on ourselves with the Alice Barclay who lead us through a very tranquil Iyengar Yoga session.

The trial of the space in the Tobacco Factory went very well. It may take a few meetings for us to get everything running smoothly, but it really is a lovely, relaxing space. Therefore, we will holding our monthly meetings there from now on. As a reminder, please enter the building through the Raleigh Road entrance (the same entrance as the theatre) and use the lift or stairs to go to the second floor. Committee members will be there already to make sure you find the room.
 
This month we will be getting crafty with Louise David, Luliloves. Louise is a screen printer, surface designer and abstract painter - passionate about colour and fascinated by mark making. Louise works intuitively with ink, squeegee, fabric and whatever else turns up, no household object is safe.
 
Louise will be helping us to create some simple decorative papers with pencils, sharpies, and watercolour pens. Then folding them using a Turkish map fold. Using repeated shapes allows us to focus on the rhythm, slow down a little and relax. The folded papers can be fixed together or glued into a cover for a book structure or unique ‘card.’ 
 
As a reminder, please pay your membership fee if you haven’t had a chance to do so. Membership for 2025-26 is £51, and you will be able to pay by cash or bank transfer (BACS). We'll have the bank details available on the night. We also welcome guests at £7.
 
We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 28^th.
 
MWI x

Thank you for those who joined us in March to make kombucha and kimchi, hopefully you've been enjoying the results.

As mentioned at the meeting, we are trialling a new venue in April, a room on the second floor of the Tobacco Factory (Raleigh Road, BS3 1TF). We'll start at 8pm as usual, please enter the building through the Raleigh Road entrance (the same entrance as the theatre) and use the lift or stairs to go to the second floor. Committee members will be there already to make sure you find the room.
 
Our guest that evening will be actress and yoga teacher Alice Barclay who will be telling us about Iyengar Yoga, the most widely practiced form of yoga in the world.  Alice went to her first Iyengar class when she was in her late twenties, and it has been a huge and important part of her life ever since. She has lived or worked and travelled to India for intensive Iyengar courses. Alice will take us through a brief session that we can all join in with so please wear comfortable clothes that you can move around in. She will make it inclusive so that everyone can join in, she'll just need to know about any pregnancy or significant health issue before we start so she can make adjustments. 
 
April also marks the start of the new membership year. Membership for 2025-26 will be £51, and you will be able to pay by cash or bank transfer (BACS). We'll have the bank details available on the night.
 
We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 30^th.

Our February meeting was a literature delight hearing from the entertaining AA Abbott about her latest novel, Run For Your Lies.

 
This month, we will be trying are hand at the art of fermented foods by making kombucha and kimchi. 
 
Kombucha is a mildly fizzy, fermented drink made from sweetened tea. As kombucha is the product of fermentation, a number of probiotic microbes are produced. At specific concentrations, these probiotic bacteria can help to balance levels of bacteria in the gut and improve digestion.
 
Kimchi is a traditional Korean side dish of salted, fermented vegetables. It’s been around for hundreds of years. Kimchi has gained popularity in the West more recently, partly for its flavour and versatility and partly because of its reputation for being healthy.
 
We will be providing the ingredients for both.  In order to take them home, please bring two jars  and their lids (preferably wide necked). You need to make sure they are clean.  If you can, please bring a chopping board and sharp knife (we will have a few spares).
 
As a reminder, membership subs are due in April.  The cost of membership for 2025/26 will be £51 and can be paid by cash or cheque.
 
We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 26^th.