We Have Lift Off

Birthdays are too much fun to limit to just a day. We therefore enjoyed a second day out to make the most of our visit to the Midlands Branch. This day out couldn't have been more different to our visit to Bradgate Park, although it did have a trip to Leicestershire in common.

Our day out was an out of this world experience - literally! - as it was to the National Space Centre. If you've got a sense of adventure and a good imagination, just as we bears have, you'll be in your element, especially as there are so many interactive displays.

A first for us was a walk on the surface of Mars ...


... that's exactly what Moose and Pedro are pioneering in our picture. They said the surface wasn't quite as warm as they were expecting, although they understood why it is called the red planet.

The technical experts among us were quite fascinated by the model of the Beagle 2 space probe, as it would have looked, going about it's business analysing the surface of Mars, if it hadn't been lost on landing.


We don't like to brag too much, but we couldn't help feeling that had the contract been awarded to Bears Unlimited, the outcome could have been so completely different. Looking at it, we reckon we could have landed that probe safely, but we'll probably never get a chance to prove it.

Talking about crash landings, one of the highlights of the day for us, was the journey we went on from the moon, to Europa, one of Jupiter's moons. It was on a simulator, but ask any bear who was there, and it was incredibly realistic. We had to wear funny glasses and and had to be secured in with a safety bar. It was a real rollercoaster ride (which is why we couldn't take a photo to show you) and we were really shaken around, especially when we crash landed. Our craft skidded, at very high speeds, over the surface of Europa, hurtling through canyons and cliffs. We bravely clung on and enjoyed the adrenalin rush, although we were very relieved when our space craft finally came to a halt.

That's probably enough excitement for our readers for one day, but we'll be back soon to tell you what else we enjoyed at the National Space Centre.

Lots of love, all at Bears Unlimited xxx

Birthday Lunchbox

We ourselves had no need of the tea shop (at that point), as we had a delicious birthday lunchbox packed. We had to do a bit more walking before lunch though. We didn't mind, as it was lovely scenery, all new to us, and it is always good to work up an appetite. Mind you we were exercising our jaws, catching up on each other's news, as much as our legs.


When a break for lunch was called, we bears all eagerly gathered round to see what was in the lunchboxes. We were very pleased to see chicken tikka sandwiches and, one of our favourites, cheese with the famous Aunt Jessie's marrow chutney. This really makes a bear's mouth salivate (recipe available from chef bear Oakley for anyone who is tempted). In the lunchbox, we also had Aunty G's lovely buns (although it was very hard deciding between fruit or chocolate), Nutrigrain raisin cake bars (kindly provided by Fred's Mum and very good walking food) and some very juicy and rosy red Braeburn apples. Definitely a feast fit for a bear and very soon there was much happy munching.

Fortified by our lunch, after a fur raising trip across a golf course trying to avoid flying balls, we climbed up to two of the landmarks in Bradgate Park, the memorial and the Old John Tower, a local folly dating back to 1784.


We were too close to it to get the whole of Old John in our picture, and you can probably see more of the view of Leicestershire that we had, than you can of us. Some of us are there, but you'll have to look very closely, in true 'Where's Bear' fashion.

Tiny had to retire from the picture as he'd just had an accident falling into a muddy puddle (Norfolk branch minder to blame) and was in the process of being cleaned up.

As we descended from this high point, we spied the tea room again, a long way in the distance. This time, it beckoned to us, so we took a cross country route to get there. On the way we passed some lovely old trees which made a great playground for us with a soft carpet of bracken to cushion us if we fell off.


As we sat resting on this old tree, we wondered if it had been around at the time Lady Jane Grey was born in the park, and whether it had watched her grow up. We're sure that at least that stage in her life must have been happy, given how beautiful these surroundings were.

We didn't dwell on these thoughts for too long though, as our need for that cup of tea became even greater, so off we went.

Lots of love, once again from all 3 B.U. branches xxx

Birthday Day Out

It was great to see the Midlands branch having such fun in the snow. We were quite envious: not also did they have snow but they had lovely sunshine so they could go out and enjoy it.

Mind you, the weather was far from snowy when we, along with the Suffolk Branch, visited the Midlands Branch the week before last. We got together in order to celebrate the birthdays of two of our minders (twins!).

The birthday itself dawned dry and sunny and the weather continued that way all day. Present unwrapping, therefore, was largely deferred to the evening so we could make the most of the day and have a special outing.


The Midlands Branch organised a lovely day's walking around Bradgate Park and its surrounding countryside. The park is just north of Leicester and much nearer to the Midlands branch base than the Peak District, but as you can see from our picture, the scenery is equally lovely, and you could quite easily believe we were sitting in a Derbyshire dale enjoying the river and the sunshine.
Another great thing about the Park is that it is home to lots of deer, and you don't have to look to hard to find quite a few fine specimens.


If you look closely towards the back of our picture you should see a number of deer grazing. We wondered whether it was just a coincidence that this herd had taken up a position very close to the tea room! Had they earned money from the having photos taken with tourists, or were they just hoping for tid-bits or a raid on the bins?

We've lots more to tell you so will be back soon to continue our tale.

Lots of love, all 3 Bears Unlimited branches xxx

Fun in the Snow!

Hello Norfolk & Suffolk Branches and all our readers!

What a lovely surprise when we woke up this morning and saw the snow! While our minder was in the shower we sat in the window and gazed out at the unusual sight -


We then decide to go outside and have a snowball fight followed by an attempt to make a giant snowball. Unfortunately it was so sunny that the snow was melting too rapidly so our ball did not get very big. We tried to take a picture of Rupert pushing the snowball but his back was playing up, so being the eldest, we let him sit on top while we had a rest -


We got a bit damp so decided to sit in the sun under the tropical palm, and dry out -


and finished drying off indoors sitting on the radiators. Quite a fun morning! Hope you enjoyed the snow too.

Love from the Midlands Branch. xxxx

This Must Be the Place to Be!

It seemed that hardly had I been formally welcomed to Bears Unlimited, than I was taking part in the next ceremony to welcome two even newer members. I didn't mind though as I think that Bears Unlimited is such a great organisation, that I want as many bears as can, to share in it and experience the welcome that was so readily extended to me when I tentatively stepped through the door on our return from Ireland.


So here I am, trying to look like an old hand, welcoming, not one, but two, new members of Bears Unlimited. On my left - the right as you look at the picture - is Giovanni (Gio for short) who you will have already met briefly if you read our Easter Sunday post. Gio's t-shirt reveals that he is a member of the Society of St Francis, and he has come to us straight from Hillfield Friary in Dorset. He left there with a friend of my minders who looks after a neighbouring group of parishes to ours and spent some time at Hillfield as part of his recent sabbatical. Gio is called Giovanni, as Giovanni was the middle name of St. Francis, the founder of the monastical order which bears his name.

While Gio is a very religious bear, he came to join us as he wanted to have a rather more adventurous life than he felt he would have had, had he stayed at Hillfield. We've already told him he's come to just the right place for adventure, especially as he is very keen to see more of the world. Gio's t-shirt also has the Latin words 'Pax and bonum' - peace and goodwill - we think - and that certainly sums up his character. He is, not surprisingly, spending a lot of time with Bris, who is our main church bear.

The other bear, who you will not have met before is Pedro. He has travelled even further than Gio to join us, as he has travelled all the way from Spain. Do you remember Dilly, the very cute dog who stayed with us towards the end of last year and who introduced Gilbert to us as a thank you for looking after her while her minders were on holiday in France? Well Dilly came to stay again recently, while her minders were on holiday in Spain, and Pedro came back with them. Pedro also has a special t-shirt, but his reads 'friends always'. What a great sentiment - it really should be the motto of Bears Unlimited as it sums up all that we are about.

It might seem strange that we only have comings at B.U. and no goings, but if you spent any time with us, you'd soon understand why no-one ever wants to leave.

Lots of love Patrick & all my friends at Bears Unlimited xxx

P.S. I was very pleased to find that the B.U. company colour (the green of the bear flag) matches the emerald green of my homeland (and ribbon & shamrock) so closely.

Back to Blighty with a Piece of Ireland

With that last post, our wonderful Irish holiday came to an end. We hope you've enjoyed sharing our adventures, as much as we've enjoyed the reminiscing. The Northern Ireland chapter of the Friendly Planet Guide will certainly be packed with lots of ideas of places to visit and loads of local information.

But, as you know, we brought a little bit of Ireland back with us, in the form of the very lovable and charming Patrick. Following the Bears Unlimited tradition he was welcomed into our ranks, in the presence of the company flag, by the previous newest member of B.U., on this occasion, Gilbert.


As we've been blogging about Ireland for so long, this photograph is now quite old. Please rest assured that as a mark of his permanent position with us, Patrick has now had his Emerald Buddy manufacturers tag removed. As he is rightly, very proud of his Irish heritage, he has kept the tag safely as his Irish passport.

Patrick has settled in very well and says he is very happy living in Norfolk, although he does hope to return to Ireland for visits and holidays whenever he can.


Gardening bear Tommy, did his bit to make Patrick feel welcome by showing him round the garden to see all the spring flowers which were flourishing as a result of his green paws.


Lots of love, all at Bears Unlimited xxx

Artistic Derry

As we neared the end of our walk round the walls of Derry, Patrick told us that he had saved his favourite part of the tour until last.

He then took us straight to a modern sculpture by Anthony Gormley. You may not know his Derry sculpture, but most of you will be familiar with his more famous work, the Angel of the North.

So here is his bear adorned Derry statue, rather unimaginatively entitled, 'Sculpture for Derry walls' (perhaps we should launch a competition to come up with a more imaginative name).


What you may not appreciate from our photo is that the statue is the same whichever side you view it from. This is because it consists of 2 indentical cast-iron figures joined back-to-back. The intention is that the statue is a metaphor both for the city's divisions and it's common bonds (we're quoting the official blurb there). The bit we thought was fun was that as the eyes were open, we could look through from each side and see 2 very different views (that is when we managed to arrange it so that we weren't looking at each other!)

Our tour of the walls finished rather conveniently at a very nice restaurant where we enjoyed a fine lunch. It was then time to check out a few shops with a view to buying presents for those members of Bears Unlimited who had stayed at home and kept the wheels of business turning.

There were lots of shops hidden away in courtyards reached by small alleyways. Amongst some of these shops we found a very traditional Irish thatched cottage.


Can you see us peering through the window? It looked like the kind of place that should be serving cream teas, but sadly it wasn't. Perhaps that was just as well as we were planning a special end of holiday meal that evening, and knew hearty appetites would be needed to do it justice.

Lots of love from the Bears Unlimited Irish travelling party xxx