Interred Out West

We've had a few days visiting Aunty Kirsty and co. in Yate, near Bristol. We had 3 great days out.

We had a beach day. But instead of going to Weston-Super-Mud, we went a bit further - along the M4 into Wales to Rest Bay at Porthcawl.

It is a super sandy beach, next to the famous Golf Course and is reknowned for its surf. Indeed there were quite a few in while we were there. It is not at all commercialised, with just a small cafe and toilets and a well-staffed lifeguard station. If you want to check on the waves before you go, there is even a surf webcam.

We hadn't come equipped for surfing, though, so went rockpooling instead.

Our haul included only one crab, but lots of shrimps.

Our next day out was to the famous Bristol Zoo to see the mother-in-law.

Although on a fairly small site, they cram a lot in. Little W liked Bugworld, Little Miss liked the aquarium and Big Miss liked the penguins and seals. We all liked the baby gorilla.

They've just opened a new monkey house. Here is one of the inhabitants.

We were very tempted to leave them five more - our terrible trio and their two cousins, but we couldn't find where to book them in.

Our final day out was to Woodchester Mansion near Stroud.

Set in a lovely valley, owned by the National Trust, it is an unfinished gothic revival Victorian building. It is being restored to the state it was in when building stopped. We went on an excellent guided tour and got all of the history plus some interesting insight into the architectural innovations and building techniques. It is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest, mainly due to the presence of Greater an Lesser Horseshoe bats, who roost in the building. They have a webcam with microphone, adjusting the frequency so you can hear them echo-locate.

Thank-you Aunty Kirsty and Uncle David for a great stay. But now we are home we have to catch up on the washing and housework.