This weekend I headed out of town again because Karen was going to see her mum in Cromer, North Norfolk. I have been there before but it was rather cold, so nice to be going in better weather.

I started by making myself at home and selecting my beach hut. I was lucky to get one as a lot were ruined in last winter’s storms and some haven’t been rebuilt yet.

I thought I should be active and go outside as it was such a nice day so tried to have a round of golf. The golfer did want me to be their caddy but I wasn’t keen on that idea, far too much hard work for such a hot day.

I then headed to my own private beach and also saw some lovely orange fish. Orange is my favourite colour but I can’t imagine why.

     

Karen needed some fresh air so we headed to the beach proper as it was a super sunny day. The first thing we did was have a paddle and I then had a swim as was still too hot.

     

Mum thought I’d had quite enough fun by then and didn’t want me getting over excited, so she intervened.

However, I couldn’t help but run off and play again as I saw an old shipwreck that looked worth investigating. And, as I was at the beach, I couldn’t help but build a sandcastle – I’m getting quite good at those now.

     

The beach at Cromer looked really lovely in the sunshine and we had a brilliant view of the pier and church when we walked back. The church is where Steph and James got married on 5 July 2013 so happy anniversary to them. 🙂

All that playing, paddling and walking was rather exhausting, so we stopped for tea and cake in Rocket Cafe which overlooks the sea. No ice cream though.

In the evening, Karen and Mum left me at home resting and went to the end of pier show. Apparently it was an experience. What a lovely sunset, though, from Cromer pier.

This weekend wasn’t terribly exciting and a bit mundane but there were a few good bits.

On Saturday we went to the supermarket. I got a little go on the conveyor belt by the till to get some exercise but Karen didn’t think I was very safe – I think she was more worried about me eating her cashew nuts.

On Sunday, we went to the hairdressers (although I don’t really have any hair to cut). I did suggest that I dry Karen’s hair but the hair dryer was a bit big for me.

After that we went to the cinema to see the Minions which was much more fun. I got to have a ride on their motorcycle and then nicked some of Karen’s M&Ms.

     

On the way home I got to go on the Ride with Pride DLR which I was more than happy to support.

As the sun had come out, thought I needed some fresh air after all that inside time, so went to the Olympic Park. I had a bit of a short sunbathing session too and pondered the leaves, although not for too long in the sun as otherwise I’ll fade.

          

And then I finished off by doing some gardening in the biodiversity garden.

On the way home, I saw some people abseiling from the Orbit which was impressive. It reminded me of when I was at the O2 the other Friday and wanted to do the Up at the O2, which Vicki had told me all about, but unfortunately they didn’t have a jumpsuit or harness to fit me, so I had to do my own climb.

          

Regular readers amongst you may recall that at the end of my last post I mentioned that Karen was going to have to negotiate with Adam on the next holiday.

The good news is, its been approved – hip, hip, hooray!

However, I did have to go through an occupational health assessment by Dr S Knowles from the International Clinic for the Wellbeing of Monkeys based at Harley Street.

Dr Knowles’ recommendation was: “We note that the combination of his travels alongside his supervisory duties at work have led to some tiredness which left unchecked could be detrimental to his wellbeing. Therefore we recommend a period of recuperation at a spa facility, focusing on plenty of rest. Ideally this would be at a seaside location for maximum benefit. We particularly recommend September as an ideal month in which this period of rest should take place.”

When Adam read this he was rather concerned, primarily as he hadn’t heard of the International Clinic for the Wellbeing of Monkeys (and he wonders why he no longer has custody). As well as this, he also raised the following concerns:

“1) Following Monkey’s trip to Nottingham (17 May 2015) he returned very distressed and I noticed bruising around his head.  Photographic evidence suggests that Monkey was mistreated.  I would tend to think that the findings of your review may be bias?

2)  Whilst your clinic logo is very impressive, is it really appropriate for a Monkey who is less mobile in the leg department?”

Dr Knowles was quick to respond, advising of the following:

“1) We’re an internationally renowned clinic but as we only cater for elite clients we don’t advertise our services hence you not being able to find our clinic on the lists you have searched. Please rest assured that we are both experienced and insured for treating our clients.

2) We are aware of the incident in Nottingham to which you refer. Having extensively studied the photographs and questioned Monkey at length we are satisfied that his escapade of being upside down head first in a drinks bottle was entirely of his own doing and no mistreatment occurred. His behaviour, whilst misguided, does fit with a primate of his age and experience. The distress was a result of believing he would get into trouble and denied his daily banana treat. We examined his head for bruising and are satisfied that no lasting damage has occurred.

3) We aim to be a fully inclusive clinic. Although Monkey does not have the running capabilities as detailed in our logo, he is clearly a very active monkey as evidenced from his travels.”

Dr Knowles also pointed out that “well rested monkeys tend to make much more productive employees.”

In response, Adam was “pleased to approve an executive break in September. He also said that he would hold the International Clinic for the Wellbeing of Monkeys personally liable if any issues arise or if I do not see an increase in Monkey’s productivity following said break.”

So, it was touch and go for a while but, in the end, worth the effort as I now get to go to Karen’s favourite hotel which is The Scarlet Hotel in Cornwall. Her favourite picture is below (September will be her sixth visit).

As I didn’t have a paddle when I was in Cardiff, really fancied a trip to the seaside so headed to Margate on the high speed train – gosh, that does go rather fast.

Saw this lovely carved poem when I arrived (can you read it?).

As the beach wasn’t far away, headed there very quickly and was rather pleased the sun came out. It was really fun on the beach. First of all I did some shell seeking.

Then I built a sandcastle and adorned it with the seashells.

After all that sand, I needed a wash so had a paddle and then practised for my spa visit by having a seaweed bath.

     

After all that fresh air and exercise, I had a snooze on the train on the way home.

I’ve just had a proper holiday and visited Cardiff which is a really beautiful city.

I started the holiday a day early and had a wander in the sunshine around the Olympic Park on the Sunday. I had to stay in Karen’s bag for quite a while as it was busy but we found a quieter spot for me to sun myself.

Then the official holiday started on the Monday and we set off from Paddington station. Nearly had a little panic as Paddington had moved but we found him and, even better, he’s got this most brilliant bench which looks like a book. I tried to have a nibble of his marmalade sandwich.

     

We then headed onto the train and Karen made sure I was fed and entertained during the journey. I enjoyed the nuts but found it a bit difficult to turn the pages of the Kindle.

     

Once we’d arrived in Cardiff and checked into the hotel, we headed to Bute Park and had a delicious Welsh afternoon tea.

I then had a bit of a run around the park to exercise off all those calories. Came across these rather lovely wooden sculptures, one was a daffodil and the other an archway with different leaves carved onto it.

     

Bute Park was so beautiful that we came back the next day. We were so lucky with the weather. I found a couple of rather nice resting spots which was just a well as needed the rest after walking so far on my little legs!

We needed some sustenance after all that fresh air and found a really lovely cafe called Madame Frommage – this was the mini cheese plate (not so mini!).

On the final full day in Cardiff we headed to Cardiff Bay by boat and that was fun, especially as I had a really good view.

Once we got to Cardiff Bay, there was lots to look at. I tried looking through the viewpoint camera but wasn’t very easy to use (and neither were the cannons!).

   

We made the most of the sunshine and sat outside the Welsh Millennium Centre and Welsh Parliament building having a drink and a sit down.

Karen has lots more (sensible) photos from Cardiff so let her know if you’d like to see them.

An enjoyable break and looking forward to my next one, although Karen won’t tell me what that is, probably because she needs to negotiate with Adam about releasing me from my office supervisory duties.

Oh my goodness, what a weekend. It all started early on Friday when Karen and the girls went for a cheesy chips lunch at the Cat & Canary. I got completely led astray and had alcohol which, as we know, isn’t a good idea for someone so little. Had a bit too much cider but then couldn’t resist some Guinness for dessert.

 

Saturday was a rest day and lots of sleep for both me and Karen.

On Sunday, we went to Tate Modern on Southbank. We met up with Julie and I had a chat with her over tea before we went in to see the Sonia Delaunay exhibition. Karen and Julie really enjoyed the exhibition and Karen was a bit inspired by some of the colours and textiles. She particularly liked the straight lines which, for those of you who know her, will come as no surprise! There aren’t really any pictures of me though as cameras aren’t allowed in exhibitions. Outside it was a bit windy and the trees didn’t have any branches to climb on, so not ideal. We then had a late lunch and met Jay which was fun and I joined in with the conversation there too.

Monday was doing  more of the Shaun the Sheep trail and Karen completed Shirley’s trail, which is the second one finished out of four trails. The maths is a bit weird though as there are 120 sheep to find and we’ve found 26 in total, which isn’t half of the total, so feeling a bit confused about that.

I got to play a bit more today and it was nice to have some fresh air but it was rather tiring.

We started at the Barbican Centre which is nice but not nice at the same time. It has some lovely terrace gardens and water features but then loads of concrete, so the senses are confused as its quite a contrast. I quite liked the fountain in a kayak and was trying to have a paddle, but Karen said it was too deep.

To make up for that and for Sunday, Karen found me a tree near London Wall which I had a bit of a climb in. It was a bit breezy so I had to hang on.

We then headed to Guildhall and I found a really lovely pond amongst all the historical architecture. We also saw the Guardian Shaun who was standing to attention.

  

That was such a lot to fit into a weekend that I had to have an afternoon nap when I got home. Hope I’ve got enough energy to go to work tomorrow …

We did some more of the Shaun the Sheep trail on Saturday. It was a lovely day in London with quite a bit of sunshine.

Started at the BFI then got the bus to Covent Garden. It was so, so busy there so I stayed safely in Karen’s bag. We did see a couple of lovely Shaun’s though and I particularly liked the Sweetie one as it had Love Ewe on it.

     

Then we walked to Somerset House and had lunch on the terrace. Karen tried sketching for the first time in many years – it wasn’t too bad for a first attempt and she enjoyed it. I took in the scenery of the river then we headed home.

Best of all was that Karen has now completed Timmy’s trail and has found 20 Shaun’s in total (some from other trails). Only another 100 to go in two weeks, so not sure how we’ll have time to do any work!

This was a rather exciting weekend and lots of firsts for me, including going on a big train and in a car.

We went to stay with Karen’s big sister, Steph, and brother-in-law, James, in Nottingham. We went to get the train from St Pancras station which was super busy so Karen made sure I was safely tucked away for the train journey and didn’t fall out.

On the Saturday, we went by car to Yorkshire Sculpture Park. It was my first time in a car and I was super excited. I wasn’t allowed to stay on the dashboard for the journey as would’ve been too distracting.

We arrived in time for lunch (of course) and they tried to feed me chilli’s but I wasn’t convinced. The rest of the lunch looked rather tasty though but they ate it all and didn’t share any.

Steph and James were rather naughty when Karen wasn’t at the table and put me upside down in a bottle. Steph tried to say that monkey’s are good at climbing but I’m too little for that.

We then went outside in the sunshine and saw some lovely sculptures, including Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth. I even saw sheep for the first time too but stayed safely behind a fence as they were rather big, even the lambs.

          

It was a rather lovely day but we were tired and had to go home (aside from the park closing). I wanted to drive home but Steph said the key might be a bit big for me.

I did have a treat later, though, as I met Ted and Snowy, as well as Milo and Travel Ted. Ted is older than Karen and he’s been much loved over the years.

     

Sunday we made biscuits. Well, I say we, really Steph and James made the biscuits then Karen helped with icing them. Can you guess what they are?

Not surprisingly, we slept on the train home!

Well, what a busy weekend I had. So much so that I thought the Bank Holiday Monday was actually Sunday.

Hayley from Norwich visited on Saturday. We had a bit of a hiccup in where we were meeting but fortunately sorted it out quickly. Had a lovely brunch and then wandered around Southbank. Saw another Shaun the Sheep near the London Eye and then there was this huge purple cow known as Udderbelly. Hayley is a purple fan too.

It was quite fun in the temporary gardens and I particularly liked the pretty flowers.

We walked quite far so had to have a sit down and rest which meant tea and cake (of course!).

Karen made me get up again on the Sunday as we went to Grand Designs at Excel with Maria. I met some friendly ducks but wasn’t allowed to play in the bath with them.

Fortunately I had Monday to recover which was just as well as not used to so much activity in such a short space of time. I made sure I was nice and warm with the dressing gown that Krissi made me.

Then I made sure I had some extra sleep.

I had a wonderful surprise this week which Karen kept completely secret from me – Krissi was over from Hong Kong and, even better, she’s got engaged.

Krissi is a special friend as she used to help look after me when she worked in London and Adam forgot about me when he went on holiday. She’s special because she makes sure I’m fed and have a holiday too – here’s one of me in the Alps eating a banana.

She made sure I got fed this time as well.

We went out for drinks on Wednesday to celebrate her and Max’s engagement – I had so much fun.

I started slowly with some water (look carefully and you can see the beautiful and sparkly engagement ring that Max had designed for Krissi).

Then I was feeling a bit silly and made myself some arm-warmers.

Thought I should join in and have a proper cocktail, so was eyeing up Maria’s creation, but then found out it was non-alcoholic.

I was pleasantly surprised when Krissi was allowed to take me home. Karen was most concerned that I would get taken out or even fall out of her bag. Even though I had to go into the tube, Krissi made sure I was alright. We spent the rest of the evening with her brother and I had some wine – perhaps a bit too much as I nearly fell over.

And then we had some silly games including hide and seek. Can you spot me?

What a busy, busy week I had but really enjoyed it. I think Karen has got some other things lined up for us this bank holiday weekend but she won’t tell me what yet. Hope I get some rest.