Last time we caught up with Paddy and Plunkett, those globetrotting little monsters appeared to be living it up in the sunshine somewhere. But now…
Have they hit the slopes for a spot of skiing?
Ha! Nope. What you’re seeing is actually a beautiful rocky beach in Croatia, where the limestone “shelves” have been scrubbed by sea-tossed pebbles until they’re a bright, snowy white. It’s lucky the boys remembered to pack their sunglasses, or they’d have been truly dazzled!
Plunkett couldn’t resist poking through those pebbly patches in search of a new addition for his rock collection back home…
And hey, where’s Paddy? Oh, right. Of course.
CLIMBING! Looks like he’s scoped out the perfect spot for them both to stop and catch some rays in the late afternoon sunshine.
But soon, Paddy started to suspect that they didn’t have the beach to themselves…
“Plunkett, what’s that over there in the trees? I feel like we’re being watched!”
Strange for Paddy to be nervous, isn’t it? But Plunkett could already see that there was nothing to worry about…
…He can spot an interesting rock sculpture from a mile away! These guys might have slightly stony expressions (ha!), but even that couldn’t put him off having a closer look.
Just as well, too, because there were lots of them to see! The boys found a family next – the Flintstones, maybe? I hope they didn’t mind that Paddy briefly tried to ride their pet dog around like a pony!
And there was one who looked a little the worse for drink…
Oh, here’s a teacher with a bunch of schoolchildren!
Plunkett especially liked these enchanted toadstools he found, too.
Some of the pebble people proved a little trickier to identify, though. The boys were happy enough to agree that Plunkett is standing in front of Napoleon here, while the dapper gent on Paddy’s left is Willy Wonka from “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”… What do you reckon?
However, debate continues to rage about who or what might be represented here…
Any ideas? Let us know in the comments – the more outlandish, the better!
We’ll be back next Tuesday, when I’ll have a new Beastie to introduce to you all! See you then…
What’s the hurry? Well, we had plans to eat in 
Although I was sorely tempted to hide away in Nancy’s for the rest of the day, and sample some more of their delicious house cider, Explorer Beastie reminded me that we had planned to see more than just the inside of a pub. We also had others to consider – we were tagging along with my brother and Alfie the wonder dog, and at least one of them was due for walkies! So we headed off in the direction of Glencolmcille, to enjoy the cliff walk just outside the village and see some spectacular views.
It was still pretty blustery here though – as you can see! Poor Explorer Beastie was literally bent over backwards by the stiff sea breeze, and nearly lost his backpack to a particularly strong gust!
… And this pastime seems to be something he shares with his woolly cousins. How did they get up there?
… And with one last look back…
But we seem to have caught up with them just as their stomachs are starting to rumble – time for something to eat, perhaps? Hey, how about this place?
Let’s hope he left some for Plunkett!
I feel less bad using this now that it’s October. But remember, if you want to get your very own Bespoke Beastie in time for Christmas,
Next, how about we take a look at where these fibres come from? Now, I know that farming is hardly a squeaky-clean, environmentally-friendly enterprise. I realise that sheep are prone to all manner of parasites and diseases, and that the chemicals required to prevent against these nasties taking hold are probably pretty nasty themselves. But let’s not forget that synthetic fibres are extracted from crude oil, and held up against the oil extraction and processing industry, even the most intensive sheep farming comes out looking pretty angelic.
Explorer Beastie was tempted to freewheel down twisty Fishamble Street on this greenery-bedecked bicycle, but fortunately I was able to talk him out of it. Let’s just walk the rest of the way, perhaps?
And sure enough, it wasn’t long before we found ourselves in the narrow cobbled streets of Temple Bar!
And look… There they are!
The Beasties will be guests at Cow’s Lane Designer Studio for at least the next month, so if you’re in the area, please do pop in and say hello! All of them are eager to meet you, and maybe find their forever home!
Ta-daaaaah! The people have spoken, and they’ve come out in favour of a calendar gap year. Although I reckon I’ll really have to deliver on my promise to get something bigger, brighter and better together for 2019! It’s also interesting that the idea of abandoning the calendar altogether was the least popular option – I’ve been happy to discover that I’m not the last person on earth who depends one of these primitive devices to stop my world from descending into chaos!
Good spooky picture, too! So, it wasn’t long before Explorer Beastie was back to his usual carefree self.
And what’s Explorer Beastie looking at so intensely in the second picture? Well, he’s trying to find Gobbinsite, a mineral that was discovered right here in this very area. Deposits have subsquently popped up all over the globe, but it still retains the name of the place where it was seen first. What someone should probably tell Explorer Beastie is that Gobbinsite is one of a group of minerals that all look very similar, and can only be differentiated by looking at the crystals under a microscope… But the promise of poking around some Beastie-sized caves should probably distract him nicely from that small technicality!
In the picture on the top right, you can also see the remains of part of the old path, which hugged the cliff line much more closely than the current one. But the most striking part of the walk is just around the next corner – the impressive Tubular Bridge!
The hills are probably the most striking feature in the park, and I’m sure they can be seen for miles around! These 20 metre tall earth mounds represent the spiral galaxies of Andromeda and our own galactic home, the Milky Way. Did you know that while most of the other 100 billion-odd galaxies in the universe are moving away from us, Andromeda is actually heading right in our direction? The two galaxies are expected to meet in 4 billion years’ time, and this is an interpretation of what will happen next – they’ll whirl around together, stripping lines of stars and planets from each other in a sort of crazy spinning dance. I’m pretty glad I won’t be around to see THAT!
“Paddy, are you sure about this? Omphalos stones mark the mythical ‘navel of the world’… Who knows WHAT’S potentially lurking in there?”
…And check this out – a whole galaxy trapped in a rock!
“Plunkett, I think there’s one more place we need to go…”
“ANOTHER hill?”
“Not bad, Paddy. Not bad at all!
The summery mallow flowers might be in full bloom, but Woolly Jumper Beastie loves her stylish purple sweater too much to take it off! Still, it’s actually a pretty good piece of kit for an active, adventurous Beastie – its natty top-down construction keeps seam bulk to a minimum and gives her plenty of wiggle room!
And this isn’t the only Beastie in the garden today… Who’s that hiding in the undergrowth?
Hey there, Redhead Beastie! She’s a Barróg Beastie (one made with 100% Irish wool), which might explain why she’s drawn to all that greenery!
Too pretty!