Nigel has reviewed the show from Thursday night so I'll post his comments below:
Seeing the Masked Dances of the Tibetan Monks at Snape Maltings was a good experience, that we are both glad we attended. Colourful, educational, calming and something new to us both........ however, we are glad we didn't take Molly in the end. The masks were at times scary, some of the instruments were made of human leg bones and other instruments at times sounded like your best impressions of your grandad breaking wind after the christmas sprouts !!!
The seating in the prom area was very cramped at best and excrutiatingly painful by the end of the performance. The view was also very obscured by the high stage and if attending such an event in the future a seat is a must for us. On a positive note all 3 staff members we spoke to for various reasons were very helpful and behaved as though customer service was their number 1 priority.
Friday
We were up bright and early to get the bus to Framlingham. It took a little over an hour to get there but the children were well behaved again and enjoyed the journey. When we got there we popped into the shop for snacks and sat by the castle pond before we went in. The children seemed impressed by the sight of the castle, which was a relief as Molly had said she didn't want to go there!
We got our tickets and walked up to the castle. Inside the walls it's mostly grassed area with a building to the left which houses the museum and shop. We spent time doing the highwayman trail which was part of the special event on then the children played with the outdoor chess, dominoes and chimney building game. At 11am 2 highwaymen came out to tell a story. It was a little gory for the young ones but most children there enjoyed it and joined in. Both actors were very good in their guises and had excellent rapport with children. After this there was musket training and ambushes. Molly wasn't interested in those so we sat down with our picnic. After lunch we went into the exhibition. It was small and the children weren't very interested so we headed up the spiral staircase to the wall walk. The view was breathtaking. We could see the Mere and Framlingham College. We could also see all around the castle surround, including the moat, which you could walk around. The children loved it so much that once we got down we had to go straight up again! We left just after 2pm to get the bus to Ipswich and then we met Nigel to make our way to the hotel. We really enjoyed Framlingham Castle and would definitely go again, perhaps when there is another event on. It was worth every penny.
Saturday
Up bright and early again with 2 very excited but tired children. We left the hotel too early for Legoland so we drove into Windsor to see 'where the Queen lives'. Molly was very impressed, although I think she expected us to actually see the Queen.
We got to Legoland before the official opening time but still had to queue for about half an hour before we got our tickets. We went on a couple of rides as soon as we got in as there weren't any queues but for the rest of the day we were having to queue a minimum of 30 minutes for a ride. One ride we queued for over an hour and the children hated it. I can't say I was patient either. Ours weren't the only ones. I've never been to a theme park where there have been so many tearful children! As we'd been in a hotel the night before we didn't take a picnic so bought our food there. That was a big mistake. It was so expensive and the staff so rude! We expected to be there until closing at 7pm but by 5pm we'd all had enough so headed home. The children actually had more fun looking out for planes from Heathrow on the journey home. All in all we felt very disappointed with our trip. I know that a Saturday during a school holiday is perhaps one of the busiest times to go but there's no way we could expect our 2 year old to wait patiently in a queue for an hour. We'd all been so excited and thought it would be a wonderful treat for the children but it was very, very expensive and Molly said she'd rather go to Pleasurewood Hills than Legoland. I've since spoken to friends who have been to Legoland and most enjoyed it but they complained about the queues too.
Sunday
We'd decided to go to the Rougham Air Show for the day. We took a picnic and expected to be able to sit and rest on the rug (and recover from Saturday!) while the children had a bit of a run around but there was so much there that we were walking around a lot of the time. First stop was the Heart team and their slippery slide. Molly and Charlie had a great time on the slide and then Molly beat Trev at Connect 4 (with a little bit of cheating from Charlie!)
We wandered around the stalls, had a look at the classic cars and fire engines, and watched the air displays. We were all very impressed with the planes, especially the stunt ones. After lunch Molly had another go on the slide and then drove a mini landrover around an off road course. She handled the fairly well! We then headed home where I promptly fell asleep on the sofa!
It was £13 per adult to get into the airshow, children under 12 free. Food and drink seemed reasonable. We said we'd go again next year as we all enjoyed it so much.
Monday
Today was a lazy day for us. We had a slow morning just pottering around then at 10am we biked over to Grange Farm, Kesgrave to spend the day with a friend and her two sons. The children played in the garden while us adults talked and it was lovely to not rush around for once. We came home at 4om, the children had tea, bath and early bed and then I spent a couple of hours gardening. It was lovely today but after being so busy for the last 4 weeks I felt incredibly lazy in comparison.
We don't have anything planned for tomorrow or Wednesday and although my house looks a mess and I really should catch up on housework I feel like I should be taking the children out. I guess I'm just trying to fit in so much with them before Molly is back at school. It really has been wonderful having her at home with us every day and I miss her terribly when she's at school.
Friday
We were up bright and early to get the bus to Framlingham. It took a little over an hour to get there but the children were well behaved again and enjoyed the journey. When we got there we popped into the shop for snacks and sat by the castle pond before we went in. The children seemed impressed by the sight of the castle, which was a relief as Molly had said she didn't want to go there!
We got our tickets and walked up to the castle. Inside the walls it's mostly grassed area with a building to the left which houses the museum and shop. We spent time doing the highwayman trail which was part of the special event on then the children played with the outdoor chess, dominoes and chimney building game. At 11am 2 highwaymen came out to tell a story. It was a little gory for the young ones but most children there enjoyed it and joined in. Both actors were very good in their guises and had excellent rapport with children. After this there was musket training and ambushes. Molly wasn't interested in those so we sat down with our picnic. After lunch we went into the exhibition. It was small and the children weren't very interested so we headed up the spiral staircase to the wall walk. The view was breathtaking. We could see the Mere and Framlingham College. We could also see all around the castle surround, including the moat, which you could walk around. The children loved it so much that once we got down we had to go straight up again! We left just after 2pm to get the bus to Ipswich and then we met Nigel to make our way to the hotel. We really enjoyed Framlingham Castle and would definitely go again, perhaps when there is another event on. It was worth every penny.
Saturday
Up bright and early again with 2 very excited but tired children. We left the hotel too early for Legoland so we drove into Windsor to see 'where the Queen lives'. Molly was very impressed, although I think she expected us to actually see the Queen.
We got to Legoland before the official opening time but still had to queue for about half an hour before we got our tickets. We went on a couple of rides as soon as we got in as there weren't any queues but for the rest of the day we were having to queue a minimum of 30 minutes for a ride. One ride we queued for over an hour and the children hated it. I can't say I was patient either. Ours weren't the only ones. I've never been to a theme park where there have been so many tearful children! As we'd been in a hotel the night before we didn't take a picnic so bought our food there. That was a big mistake. It was so expensive and the staff so rude! We expected to be there until closing at 7pm but by 5pm we'd all had enough so headed home. The children actually had more fun looking out for planes from Heathrow on the journey home. All in all we felt very disappointed with our trip. I know that a Saturday during a school holiday is perhaps one of the busiest times to go but there's no way we could expect our 2 year old to wait patiently in a queue for an hour. We'd all been so excited and thought it would be a wonderful treat for the children but it was very, very expensive and Molly said she'd rather go to Pleasurewood Hills than Legoland. I've since spoken to friends who have been to Legoland and most enjoyed it but they complained about the queues too.
Sunday
We'd decided to go to the Rougham Air Show for the day. We took a picnic and expected to be able to sit and rest on the rug (and recover from Saturday!) while the children had a bit of a run around but there was so much there that we were walking around a lot of the time. First stop was the Heart team and their slippery slide. Molly and Charlie had a great time on the slide and then Molly beat Trev at Connect 4 (with a little bit of cheating from Charlie!)
We wandered around the stalls, had a look at the classic cars and fire engines, and watched the air displays. We were all very impressed with the planes, especially the stunt ones. After lunch Molly had another go on the slide and then drove a mini landrover around an off road course. She handled the fairly well! We then headed home where I promptly fell asleep on the sofa!
It was £13 per adult to get into the airshow, children under 12 free. Food and drink seemed reasonable. We said we'd go again next year as we all enjoyed it so much.
Monday
Today was a lazy day for us. We had a slow morning just pottering around then at 10am we biked over to Grange Farm, Kesgrave to spend the day with a friend and her two sons. The children played in the garden while us adults talked and it was lovely to not rush around for once. We came home at 4om, the children had tea, bath and early bed and then I spent a couple of hours gardening. It was lovely today but after being so busy for the last 4 weeks I felt incredibly lazy in comparison.
We don't have anything planned for tomorrow or Wednesday and although my house looks a mess and I really should catch up on housework I feel like I should be taking the children out. I guess I'm just trying to fit in so much with them before Molly is back at school. It really has been wonderful having her at home with us every day and I miss her terribly when she's at school.
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