Wednesday 31 October 2012

The rule of thirds

In fine art there is a theory that informs us that we humans are satisfied when a picture is in three distinct parts: the rule of thirds. Today has subscribed to this theory and been extremely rewarding.

The morning started with our reason for coming to Cardiff: the Doctor Who Experience. I know a lot of adults who don't watch Doctor Who and who think it's a naff kid's programme. That's fair enough, but I would hope I am pretty well read and there are times when the writing on the modern DW is so philosophical, so profound, so funny, so true, that it can stand alongside most of the classics on my bookshelves. The Doctor Who Experience gives you an opportunity to live through an adventure - and I'm going to leave it there as I don't want to ruin it for you. These photos are from the exhibition afterwards and I don't think they count as spoilers, sweetie.





















For the middle third of our day we went to Techniquest which is a science museum for kids. It's packed with interactive displays teaching about parabolas, vision, Archimedes' screw, static electricity, resonance... All sorts. There's also a Planetarium and an excellent science lecture for kids involving dry ice and explosions.
















Afterwards my son was desperate to come back as there were loads of exhibits he hadn't seen.

But we had to leave for our third part of the day: watching the Birmingham Royal Ballet at the Millennium Centre. This was a surprise for my son, I hadn't told him we were going. Now, if you ask what 9 year old boys enjoy Doctor Who and science might well be on the list, but ballet? Really? Well, yes. When I think about my ethos for parenthood it would be not to limit him or his outlook. Why must boys just watch football and blow imaginary aliens up? The ballet was in three parts: the first was the traditional A Midsummer Night's Dream with fairies and tutus and woodland. The second piece was a contemporary ballet based on the Olympics with fencers, swimmers and runners. The final piece was a character based ballet called 'Promenade' and set on a 1920s cruise ship. It was hilarious. And my son loved them all.











We had a box!



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Tuesday 30 October 2012

Free museums, extortionate car parking

Today has been one of those bright autumnal days where the leaves seem to glow and you are perfectly warm in your coat. Sort of like summer, only in Britain. This was perfect as we went to National History Museum of Wales at St Fagans today. It is one of those museums which saves historical buildings from throughout the country and rebuilds and refurbishes them on site: a perfect place for an autumn walk.

The site is based around the original St Fagans Castle, an Elizabethan manor house.





The grounds are full of interesting buildings such as this woollen mill






A favourite site for my son was the fairground where we had toffee apples. I'd forgotten just how difficult it is to bite into a toffee apple..












Afterwards we drove into Cardiff to visit the imposing National Museum of Wales which has a great geology and geomorphology section, alongside natural history and an impressive art gallery upstairs.








We remember the entrance hall being used for an episode of Doctor Who and later in the tour we saw this recreation of a primordial beastie which would surely make an excellent monster for the Doctor to vanquish




We must have walked around both these sites for upwards of six hours, totally free. So the only disappointment was being charged £18 by NCP for four hour's parking. Outrageous.

Monday 29 October 2012

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

Did you have a 'go-to' book that you read endless times as a kid? I had three: 'The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe', 'The Adventures of Holly Hobby' and 'The Wolves of Willoughby Chase'. TLTWATW was the first book my son read independently, aged 5, and I still tear up at his verdict 'I'll never read a better book, mummy'. Today we went to Hay-on-Wye and I bought him 'The Wolves of Willoughby Chase' and I'm hoping for a similar reaction.

Hay-on-Wye is a magical place: it's USP is as a haven for bibliophiles and it's stuffed with bookshops. We went into the amazing Richard Booth's bookshop and cinema where I bought two books for my son and just one for me.















Afterwards we looked in the windows of some other shops: this deli particularly caught my eye.




And we treated ourselves to a drink in the Granary Cafe.




Then I had to make a decision: to drive up to Brecon and take the more dramatic road (presumably) through the Brecon Beacons or head towards Raglan, our original objective? I'm glad we stayed with our original plan as we stopped first at Tretower, a Cadw site, which was faintly unprepossessing from the outside and amazing inside. It has recreated the great hall of a fifteenth century lord and it is fascinating inside.













There is also the original Norman keep on site, glowering away against the backdrop of the Brecon Beacons.




Our next stop was Raglan castle (another Yorkist stronghold during the Wars of the Roses: my son and I identify strongly with the Yorkist cause). It was one of the last castles to be built in the British Isles and is heavily influenced by French architecture. Brilliantly, it has a moat with water in, which is fairly rare. It was a hugely imposing and impressive ruin.

















Our final stop was Cardiff. We will be staying here for three nights; I'm embarrassed to admit I've never been here before. As a treat my son and I went to watch 'Skyfall' at the IMAX and we both loved it.





Sunday 28 October 2012

His perfect cousins

Cousins are cool, aren't they? They are ready made mates who you have complete licence to play with whilst not being an irritating sibling (with apologies to my sister, but not too many, as when we were kids we did completely annoy one another). This week it's half term and my son and I are on a road trip. The first call was to Shrewsbury to stay with my cousin: which meant my son got to hang out with his third cousins who are not just boys, but his age. We arrived at 4.20 in the afternoon and by 4.25 they'd disappeared off together - only to be glimpsed when food was offered.
Today we all went to Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire. It's one of those places I've always wanted to go and it was lovely to go with my cousin. The bridge after which the town is named is the oldest iron bridge in existence and was basically built as an elaborate advertising tool to show the prowess of the town's forges. It is also stunningly beautiful. The irony is that the Ironbridge gorge area is a World Heritage site to protects its unique role in the industrial revolution, yet now is peaceful and utterly beautiful.




Afterwards we went to Blists Hill museum which is part of the World Heritage site and full of reconstructed Victorian era shops, factories and industrial heritage. A lovely element of the site is that they change your modern money into shillings, tanners and sixpences and give you a chart to help you calculate costs.








All of the shops are lovingly recreated: highlights were sniffing carbolic soap in the pharmacy and learning how candles were made.


















My son particularly loved eating real chips out of paper and getting to go on the steam powered fairground rides.










Afterwards we had to bid a sad farewell to our family, secure in the knowledge that the boys are determined to meet up again soon. Then we had the exciting drive through night time Shropshire and Herefordshire to Ross-on-Wye where we are staying overnight.
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