Travel – Page 18 – Beastie HQ

Right on Kew… Beasties Explore the Gardens!

Posted on September 30, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie

My trip to London over the weekend wasn’t just for me… It was also the perfect opportunity for Explorer Beastie to catch up with an old friend! Garcia Beastie left his skis behind for a day to join us at Kew Gardens for a spot of horticultural exploring… as you shall see.

Luckily for us, the Great British weather decided to show its finer side! We got one of those perfect early autumn days for our visit – warm, bright sunshine with just a hint of coolness in the air. Lovely stuff! Also, it turns out Beasties get into Kew Gardens free of charge! But of course, it wasn’t long before they were up to mischief…

I turned my back for five seconds, and the pair of them were halfway up one of the gnarly old olive trees in the Mediterranean Garden! Since they were so intent on climbing, I thought they’d enjoy the Xstrata Treetop Walkway…

Up here, you can stroll around in the treetops to your heart’s content! Explorer Beastie scaled the barriers to make sure he got the best views…
…And he did get to see some surprising things!

Sweet chestnuts growing at the very top of the tree, and an unusual bird having them for lunch! Kew Gardens is full of these green parrots, which are actually wild – they’re the descendants of escaped pets. We saw several large groups doing fly-by displays during our visit, and they’re hard to miss… they’re pretty noisy! The scenery up there wasn’t bad either…

Back on dry land, we made Beastie-sized tracks towards the Pagoda, a 10-storey Chinese-style folly that has been standing in Kew since 1762!

The building is doubly impressive up close…

…And there is also a Japanese-style gate and zen garden nearby!

But we couldn’t stop for long, because there was plenty more exploring to do! Our next port of call was Queen Charlotte’s Cottage, where Garcia Beastie helped out a lady who seemed to have lost her head over something…

And then, a spot of lunch.

Suitably refuelled, we took in some of the Intoxication Season exhibits…

… had a wander around the Princess of Wales Conservatory…

… explored the world of underwater plants…

…And took a trip to the top of the Palm House!

As the light began to fade, there was just enough time to take some final pictures with the rather imposing Plantagenet Falcon, one of the “Queen’s Beasts”. These ten heraldic-inspired sculptures line the path outside the Palm House, and are replicas of statues that stood outside Westminster Abbey during the Queen’s coronation in 1953. Perhaps I should arrange something similar along the street outside Beastie Towers…

And so ended another monster day out! More London-based Beastie adventures next time!

Viking Beastie has Landed!

Posted on August 13, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Knitted Beasties

Yesterday my wanderings took me along Fishamble Street, in Dublin city centre.

Looks pretty ordinary, doesn’t it? But Fishamble Street has quite the historical backstory! Its origins can be traced back to the 10th century, when it was used by the Vikings as a thoroughfare connecting the riverfront to the main market centre in what is now High Street. In fact, its distinctive curved shape is a deliberate design feature – it’s to make it easier to pull carts up the steep hill!
Fishamble Street’s varied history also includes a spell as a fish market (“Fishamble” is a running-together of “fish shambles”, “shambles” being an old word for open-air meat markets and slaughterhouses) and it was the site of the first ever performance of Handel’s “Messiah” in 1742. However, I will always associate this street with the people who put it there in the first place. The majority of the Viking artefacts currently on display in the National Museum of Ireland were found right here in Fishamble Street – they were excavated when Dublin City Council built their civic offices here in the 1970s. If you know where to look, you’ll see plaques in the pavement showing which items were found there.

So, given all that history, I was hardly surprised when I came across a very confused Viking Beastie. He was all at sea amongst the trappings of 21st century Dublin.

And you can’t blame him. I’m sure the view has changed a bit since the Vikings first sailed up the Liffey more than a thousand years ago!

Fortunately, I knew a place where he’d feel right at home. We walked around the side of Christ Church Cathedral…

…To Dublinia, where you can experience life in Viking Dublin for yourself!

We even found a longship! Feeling a little more at ease, Viking Beastie agreed to come back to Beastie Towers for a cup of tea. And on the way there…

What’s that? A longship… in the PARK?

Nope, just a children’s playground. All the same, the apparently thriving Viking community in modern-day Dublin has helped this Beastie to feel right at home! I think he’s going to stick around for a while!

Come dive with me…

Posted on August 6, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Info, Knitted Beasties

Every now and again, Beastie development takes a bigger-than-usual leap forward – often when I take on a commission, which pushes me out of my comfort zone and gets me thinking of new methods and accessories. And this was definitely the case with Diver Beastie! He taught me a lot about diving equipment, and encouraged me to experiment with some new materials in my quest to shrink human-sized tanks, regulators and dive masks to Beastie proportions. So, without further ado, I’m delighted to introduce Diver Beastie! Let’s take a look at all the cool stuff he has…

Diver Beastie lives in his wetsuit. You can just about see the snazzy yellow flashes down the side of his legs in this picture! The red thing hanging from his belt is a line cutter – although he’s also carrying a dive knife (inspired by every James Bond film I’ve ever seen), knives aren’t permitted in some diving sites. The line cutter is a safer tool, which can be used to cut through tangled or snagged lines. It’s always best to be prepared! Diver Beastie is also very proud of his watch/dive computer, which you can see on his left wrist. He also has…

… Felt flippers…

… An air tank…

… A dive mask and a regulator! Put all that together and you get…

One Diver Beastie, ready for action!

Then it was time to send him off to his new home… in Texas! He was very keen to swim there himself, but I managed to talk him out of it… the last thing I wanted was for him to end up as a shark’s lunch. Also, going by plane is a lot quicker. And it looks like he arrived safely! He now lives with two fellow diving enthusiasts, and enjoys borrowing their equipment…

…Marvelling at their enormous human-sized dive tanks…

… And scooting around in a conveniently Beastie-sized Landrover, which also came over from Ireland!

Thanks to Tracy for sharing photos of Diver Beastie in his new home! And to everyone else for keeping up with the Beasties and their adventures – talk to you again soon!

Exploring the Kaziranga Forest Trail… and then some!

Posted on July 9, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie

Sounds exotic, doesn’t it?

The best part is that we didn’t even need to leave Dublin to do it! Explorer Beastie was most miffed when he found out that I haven’t shared the photos of our trip to Dublin Zoo yet, especially since he had so much fun posing with the animals. So, to keep the peace at home, here some of the highlights of our day out!

One of the first places we went was the Kaziranga Forest Trail – isn’t that so much more exciting than “the elephant house”? Since I was last in Dublin Zoo, they’ve built a whole new enclosure for their group of Asian elephants, which more closely resembles their natural habitat. It’s surrounded by trees (that covers the “Forest Trail” element, then) and there are pools of water for them to swim in as well!

Our next port of call was the African Plains, where Explorer Beastie put his climbing skills to good use to get a proper look at the giraffes, rhinos and gorillas!

But the highlight of our visit was meeting the newest addition to the Dublin Zoo family… an okapi! These incredibly pretty creatures live in the dense forests of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and they’re related to giraffes. It was a real treat to be able to see one of these beautiful, graceful animals so close to home!

Well, after all that exploring, we both felt a little like these orangutans…

… And we figured it was time to head home for a nap! But we’ll be back for more Beastie adventures soon!

Postcard from Liverpool

Posted on May 24, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie

Hello there, Beastiebuddies! My Beastiesitter Helen is very busy at the minute, so I thought I’d share my latest adventures with you myself. As you know, I have spent the last week or so visiting the great human city of Liverpool, and I thought it would be interesting to travel out into the surrounding countryside too. Here I am looking at the river in a village called Ashford – I wish I’d brought my curragh with me for this!

Further down the road, I found this place!

A palace fit for a Beastie king! They had even set the table for my arrival!
Of course, I was very flattered… but I politely explained that I had brought my own sandwiches, and then made my way out into the gardens to find somewhere to eat them.

Success! I found this brilliant willow sculpture in the grounds of the house… perfect for a Beastie to hide in!

Suitably refreshed, I journeyed onwards to the Heights of Abraham. I couldn’t resist sneaking aboard the cable car… Look how high up I am!

Quite a novelty for a Beastie – normally we see everything from much closer to the ground!

Once I reached the top, I reckoned it was time for a cup of tea and a spot of birdwatching… perhaps I might be able to convince one of the birds to give me a lift back down the hill!

Well, that’s all my news for now. I’m off to do some more exploring! I’ll be back with more tales of adventure soon!

Monster hugs,

Explorer Beastie x

Explorer Beastie Heads to the ‘Pool

Posted on May 20, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie

So, the Pop Up Shop has popped back down again, and as I was unpacking the Beasties who didn’t find their new homes this time around, I was hit by a disturbing thought.

Um, where is Explorer Beastie?

OH HOLY MOLY! Did he sneak into someone’s shopping bag and venture off to parts unknown?

Fortunately, a timely delivery of some holiday photos stopped my rising panic in its tracks. He DID stow away in someone’s luggage, and I will be having words with him about that, but luckily for both of us, said luggage belonged to my parents. So I can rest assured that he will be coming home at some point, and he got to enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Liverpool. And he really got to see all the sights – here he is looking out over the city, with the Liver Building in the background…

…And he followed this up with a trip to see some of Liverpool’s most famous residents!

The Beatles theme continued, with a visit to Penny Lane…

…And then he headed off to the Japanese Garden at the Festival Gardens.

It’s lucky he didn’t send me this picture first, or I wouldn’t have known where to find him!

Last I heard, he was planning to see what the surrounding countryside had to offer… so I suppose I’ll be sharing those photos next time around! Stay tuned…

A Grand Day Out… With Victorian Explorer Beastie

Posted on May 5, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Knitted Beasties

I had to go out and pick up a few last-minute display bits for the Pop Up Shop over the weekend, and I thought I would treat myself to a quick wander around one of my favourite places in Dublin – the Natural History Museum!

I love this place. It’s like a museum of a museum – a real old-fashioned collection of interesting things in hardwood and glass cases, uncluttered by the beeping interactive displays and looping videos that infest most modern museums. Most of the animals are labelled with only their name (in English and Latin), where they came from and when they were added to the collection. If you want to know more about them, you have everything you need to do the rest of the legwork yourself at home. This frees you up to actually look at the animals while you’re in the museum, and appreciate their size, their colouring, the crazier features of their bodies that help them to survive… it’s also a great place to do some people-watching!

I figured Victorian Explorer Beastie would feel right at home here, so I brought him along for the ride.

The ground floor of the building houses Irish fauna. These giant Irish elk skeletons greet you as you walk in!

Even the smallest animals get a look-in – there are cases at the back containing all kinds of minibeasts, from beetles to slugs. Understandably, perhaps, the butterflies and moths are the most popular!

Upstairs is the “Animals of the World” exhibition, where Victorian Explorer Beastie came face-to-face with a monkey…

… Met a record-breaking Irish wolfhound…

…And realised he is much, much smaller than an elephant.

He also nearly got into a spot of bother – LOOK BEHIND YOU!

Turned out the hippo was only having a bit of a yawn, so we left unscathed. But we’ll be back! Hope you enjoyed visiting with us!

He’s Back!

Posted on April 25, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie

Ta-daaaaah! Explorer Beastie is back in Dublin. Well, for the moment, anyway. While I was away sunning myself in the West of Ireland (yes, that CAN happen) over Easter, he took a trip to the northern suburbs of the city to have a look around Glasnevin Cemetery.

Not everyone’s idea of a good time, perhaps, but Glasnevin Cemetery is actually a fascinating place. For starters, some of the monuments are beautiful – check out the knotwork design on this one!

There are over 1.5 million people buried in Glasnevin Cemetery. That’s more than currently live in the County Dublin region! Among them are significant figures from Ireland’s past – Daniel O’Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell and Michael Collins, to name a few – as well as many of our most famous writers, artists and musicians. Glasnevin also makes an appearance in James Joyce’s Ulysses, and Explorer Beastie appears to have caught up with Mr Joyce himself in the gift shop…

Meanwhile, I have enjoyed a relaxing week away! I’ve been flexing my farming muscles, babysitting these little sweethearts…

…being inspired by the scenery…

…And most importantly, knitting like a fiend! I have a bunch of new Beastie bodies ready to be decorated – I wonder what they’ll be?

Mystery Solved!

Posted on April 2, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie

Hurrah! Thanks to an eagle-eyed Beastie fan on my Facebook page, I’ve been able to trace Explorer Beastie to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands! No wonder he’s looking so relaxed!

You know, I had always written Lanzarote off as an island of packed beaches and sprawling resort hotels, and I have to say that I’m surprised by what Explorer Beastie has found on his travels. It looks like he has definitely strayed from the beaten track…

…and discovered everything from crystal clear rock pools…

… to prickly cactus trees…

… to out-of-the-way wine bodegas.

He also seems to have had no trouble finding quiet beaches there, either…

… which he can claim all for himself!

All the same, I hope he comes home soon. I need someone to accompany me to the new Muppets film.

See you next time… I have some freshly-hatched Beasties for you to meet!

Explorer Beastie Rocks!

Posted on March 26, 2014June 19, 2021 by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie

Another postcard from Explorer Beastie this morning! It turns out he’s quite the amateur geologist, and he’s been spending a few days checking out all the exciting stuff his destination has to offer. In the main picture, he’s peering into the caldera of an extinct volcano. There seem to be plenty of those around!

He’s also been scrambling through the lava fields…

… carelessly.

He even met some of the local wildlife in amongst the rocks…

… and discovered some interesting Beastie-sized caves.

Later on, he found some more elegant rocks – a local green gemstone called Olivina, polished and teamed with black obsidian (volcanic glass) to make some pretty spiffy jewellery. Maybe I can expect a present…

Anyone know where he is yet?

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