Tatton Park Biennial

Yorkshire Sculpture Park

This Easter holiday has been a completely different one from last year's for various reasons, one of them being the weather. Today was meant be a nice day so I decided to take the monkeys to Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YPS). After a good start of the day with a lovely cappuccino in the presence of the wonderful Mr G. we set off in the sunshine, with coats and one umbrella, just in case (my Rob Ryan one to keep in style with YPS!). Not long after we passed Stockport it started pouring down and it didn't stop until lo and behold, 4 minutes away from YSP when blue sky and sunshine appeared magically.

Monkeys pleased and very excited when we got there. Although they had been looking forward to seeing the sculptures, still impressed from a visit to Chatsworth House some time ago they were slightly embarrassed by the 'rude' sculptures along the road to the car park. They are at an age (nearly 8 & 10) where, what they call 'the rude bits' should not be on display for the eldest and produces a wave of giggles for the youngest.

Anyway as soon as we got out of the car they were delighted to see 'Big Bertie' or The Horse is a Noble Animal as it is titled, commissioned by Marcia Farquhar and carved by Anthony Dew, a Master Rocking Horse maker near York. Originally made for a show in Tatton Park it now lives at YPS.

Regular readers of my musings will know that I like to take the monkeys out of town during the holidays and take them to places where they don't get to go on a weekly (or even monthly) basis, what with girl monkey's acting, singing and dancing there is not much time left at times apart from pretending to be a taxi driver.

We had a glorious day today and marveled at all the sculptures and trees. The monkeys had both taken drawing materials and sat down at various times to draw the Henry Moore works and write about what they saw. They were most impressed by Anthony Caro and Eduardo Paolozzi, remarking that at school they really only learn about Picasso.

We visited a couple of the galleries, in particular the Underground Gallery was fabulous as this is where the current Joan Miro exhibition is installed. The monkeys LOVED it. We stayed for quite some time, watching footage of the master at work, dissecting the work, examining the use of colour and how to apply it with your fingers. They were both greatly inspired and will go back to school next week with essays and sketches.

Walking around the lake we got to the sign of David Nash' Seventy One Steps and what better way to check how many there are than to walk. They both shouted there weren't 71 but either 46 or 48. Needless to say I had to see this for myself, sure enough there were 71 (what else?!?), counting skills were left in Manchester today!

At the end of our visit I was really pleased to see this work, which is part of The Bee Library by Alec Finlay. This project was launched to coincide with World Book Day 2012 and comprises 24 books about bees and bee keeping and once the artist has read a book it will be transformed into a bee nest. These works will be installed around the YSP from May I believe. We'll have to go back in the Summer to try and find them all. I had heard a bit about the artist from my lovely colleague so was excited to see the work 'in the flesh'.

Alec Finlay - The Bee Library

And just when we felt it was time to go home, heavens opened! Looking forward to a next visit. This is such a wonderful place to go and only 1 hour drive from Manchester. Anyone with kids will be able to keep them entertained here for a whole day, there is a parking charge of £5 and donations at your own discretion. Well worth a visit!

Kung Hei Fat Choi

Today was the day that the monkeys have been looking forward to for weeks: the day of the Chinese New Year Parade in Manchester's China Town. It's been a yearly highlight since we moved here nearly seven years ago. Over the years we had a lot of screaming with fear from either of them and there was a little anticipation again from boy monkey today but there was no need to worry as we only saw the end of the parade. No dragon in sight just some fireworks.

We went to the usual supermarket to stock up on our favourite Chinese biscuits, sweets and crackers and of course some delicious Jasmine tea.

Along the way we acquired some paper dragons and a free bottle of Amoy soy sauce that were handed out. How nice is that! I passed on the scientology newspaper; I think I can deal with my own stress. Instead got a fortune cookie, which told me that I will soon discover my hidden talent. I shall let you all know when I find out. It's not going to be singing that's for sure.

We are currently waiting for a food delivery from the best Chinese take away The Laughing Buddha in Didsbury. With that we will have started the Year of the Rabbit nicely. I love traditions and I love celebrations. Life is too short and I think the more fun things we can do the better. Next on the calendar will be Valentine's day.

Beatles, bugs & butterflies

I apologise for probably the worst image of the evening available but it is purely used to illustrate the Debra Charity Ball I went to last night. Until the ball last year I had not ever heard of Debra (Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa Research Association) but this charity provides crucial funds for children suffering from EB, a dreadful genetic skin blistering condition, worsened by touch. I was so saddened by all the pain these little ones suffer and all the work that needs to be done before they can even leave the house. Please, do all click on the link above and try to leave all the chocolates alone this week and donate the money saved to Debra.

The snapshot just shows the beautiful painting that my friend Rosana donated for the auction and the lovely Emmerdale boys leaving the stage after scooping up a trophy for their skills on the playing field. The ball was held in the Palace Hotel and apart from the fire alarm going off and all of us having to leave the building the night went smoothly. Still wondering though about table 14, there were no names on the table setting list just "Celebrity table". Now I always find that a little sad and I did not recognise any of them (as expected). They may have been from some soap series but as I don't watch any, even their names on the list would not have clicked and for those who do watch I suppose they will recognise them anyway. Next time be brave and just put a name down, make up one if you have to......

Today we were off to Liverpool. When I first visited the city, about 15 years ago I was not impressed but I have been back several times since last year and am in awe every time I find myself near the docks. The buildings still standing and the new ones fit perfectly together and it really feels like a happening place, much more so than my beloved Manchester. I was even impressed with the Liverpool 1 Qpark carpark, loved the view from downstairs, seeing shoppers walking on top of the dome.

There was a surprise for us and all we knew was that it started with a "B" and that it was new. Girl monkey thought it was the Beatles museum and she wasn't far off as we went to the BugWorld Experience. Both monkeys were very impressed; we were shown a very good movie of bug life and were allowed to touch the biggest millipede I'll ever see, this one was about 6 years old and we were told they could live to about 8 and could reach a length of about 30cm.

Then there was also the biggest snail in the world. I never knew they could grow so large. This would not be possible in our garden as I am not very kind to the species. Don't get me wrong, I do pass them on to the neighbours or give them a lovely meal in the bin.

Before long we hope to move into a new home and girl monkey gets very excited about the new room decorations. The butterfly wall paper and mirrors in BugWorld are now on the list. And then we got to admire some examples of existing butterflies as well. We tried to find the ones we saw in Chester Zoo but no luck. However there were hundreds of stunning examples. BugWorld Experience is certainly worth a visit.

We ended the day in our favourite haunt Tate Liverpool where I stocked up on lovely books for presents and the Mini Masters art classes. Girl monkey impressed some visitors by pointing out works by certain artists, love her!

"Oh sweet butterfly, just fly away from me"

We're having a quiet bank holiday weekend, partly due to family members who can't plan in advance, partly due to the fact that Betsy herself needs a bit of a break. However we did spend a lovely day with friends in Chester Zoo. It wasn't our first visit but many areas had changed since we were here 4 years ago. This time round we did see all the attractions, most animals are just amazing and stunning but we were particular delighted with the new butterfly journey. Such wonderful colours and patterns on their wings.

I can't remember the name of these with the transparent wings but in flight they were even more stunning.

I tried to capture a number of quite big purple ones chasing each other but they were not in the mood to sit still. Their colour seemed almost unnatural, but was just so beautiful, I'd just go back to the zoo to see them. I will now chase my monkeys here at home and hope for a quiet night.

Wizards, Goblins and Knights in shining armour

With my new National Trust membership card and handbook in hand we went to find a nice place to walk today. There are quite a few places to choose from within 30 minutes drive and we decided to go to Hare Hill near Alderley Edge. This was described as a "tranquil woodland garden, especially spectacular in early summer" with a walled area. It isn't exactly early summer but I decided to take the chance. As I am a NT newbie I clearly did not read the information properly so when we finally got to Hare Hill after several detours we found the gates closed.

Luckily we were close to another lovely place :The Edge.

We had taken a little picnic and true to the North West, as soon as we sat down to enjoy our meal we felt a few drops of rain. Luckily this only lasted a few minutes and we had a beautiful afternoon. We particularly enjoyed our picnic, Mr Betsy had come over from London and brought us some delicious Poilane bread and I had made a simple chicken salad from some left over roast chicken, mayonaise and chives from the garden.

As we were enjoying the view above and fantasising about the cave we got chatting to a couple of lovely local ladies who told us all about the goblin in the cave, the legend of the farmer and his white mare, the knights in shining armour and the local mining history. I wasn't aware of the long history of mining in this area but I had heard about the Wizard and the teenage Halloween parties on the Edge and there is of course a tea room called The Wizard next to the entrance of the park. And funnily enough boy monkey had made up a story earlier on about a knight in shining armour and some animals. The area clearly tickles the fantasy!

The ladies also told us about the books by Alan Garner, a local fantasy writer whose books are better than the Harry Potter stories in their opinion. I am intrigued and will browse through the library on my next visit. The Weirdstone of Brisingamen and The Moon of Gomrath, his first two books, are drawn from local legends and locations and I have been told suitable for children.

A little further on we sat down to eat a snack next to the Armada Beacon Monument and there we bumped into a nice Dutch couple (they really are everywhere aren't they?). They told us all about the Armada fire warning system. Beacons were lit up and down the country as warning signs for the invading Spanish Armada. Absolutely fascinating. I am a great believer in talking to people. Not only because I feel it is important to show interest and compassion but you'll always learn something interesting whether it be about life, love or history as we found out today. We had a thoroughly lovely afternoon. Girl monkey was still talking about all the things she saw there two years ago (the monument, certain paths, the gnome tree) and I hope that in two years time she will still remember today.

Family fun day in Lyme Park

Today we had a family fun day in Lyme Park. We'd been there before, about two years ago after girl monkey had gone there on a school trip. She had not forgotten about our walk in the "jungle" and it was first on her list of summer activities for this year. As it was a beautiful day today (hooray!) we packed a picnic and off we went.

We found a perfect spot for our picnic near the lake on a fallen tree over which we draped our picnic rug. Although it looked lovely the reason was that girl monkey was wearing a very short summer dress and I didn't want her to scrape her lovely little legs.

After a walk through the park and a visit to the deer the monkeys were very keen to visit the gardens but also the house. Girl monkey still remembered several rooms from her trip and told me all about them. Reason enough for me to become a member of the National Trust. For years I resisted, thinking it sounded like a good idea but we wouldn't actually use our membership but now that the monkeys are starting to show interest in history I feel we might get our money's worth.

The house itself is beautiful and all the guides very helpful and very informed (and very Cheshire!). The monkeys got a little guide to search things in various rooms and there were many little red bags lying around the rooms for them to explore. Some had jigsaws, others items of clothing to try on and some binoculars which I thought were brilliant. They were from the ELC for those who'd like to try them out, I think I might get them as a birthday present.

The Victorian gardens are equally stunning but the best bit for the little ones had to be the "jungle".

I do not know how to describe this exactly but it is the area south of the lake, rather 'overgrown'. Upon entering this area the monkeys spontaneously started singing "Lions and tigers and bears, oh my".

This plant surely has the biggest leaves I have ever seen. If anyone could tell me the name I would be most grateful.

Now that we have got our National Trust membership I think we will go back soon again. There are some great activities over the next few weeks and months and it is certainly worth a trip for the whole family, young and old.