Visiting Grandad Polar

Last month, we went on a journey to the south coast to visit Grandad Polar (Polar's dad), who is 92 years old.  We were going to stay in his house with him, so our human guardians quarantined themselves for a week before we left, to make sure they didn't have the nasty virus, and didn't stop anywhere where we might be close to other people on the way there.

 When we arrived, Polar took us up to the big back bedroom, which had been her room for a few years before she married Grizzly.  From one window we could see what looked like a little chalet and used to be Polar's "Wendy House" when she was little, though Grandad Polar had to make it taller and taller as Polar grew up and now uses it as a shed for his lawn-mower and other tools.  The other window faces west, across the Solent, the estuary that leads to the port of Southampton.

Then it was time to test the bed, to check it was suitable for small bears to nap and bounce on (which it was).

We made friends with two little doggies who live in the room.  They told us about the doggies like them who used to live with Grandad Polar when he was fit enough to go for walks. 

They told us if we watched from the west window we might see the Isle of Wight ferries, big container ships and even ocean liners - and they were right!  We saw lots of different boats but couldn't see the whole ship all at once, because some conifer trees have grown up behind some houses in the next road and block the view.

When Polar called us down for lunch, we discovered there was a lift for taking small bears and humans up and down the stairs, so we had a down ride on that.  Then we pressed the button to go up again!  We were enjoying ourselves so much we almost forgot about dinner, until Polar came out and fetched us.

That afternoon, we explored Grandad Polar's garden.  He still looks after it himself, with help from Polar's sister, but wanted Polar to prune the apples trees for him as she learned how to do that properly at college.

Hanley Bear had fun sliding down the handrail beside the steps to the back door, while Endon prefered looking at the flowers.  Then we all climbed into the tree Polar had been pruning to see what she had done and to get a better view of the whole garden.

"There's the Wendy House!" cried Langwathby, pointing down to the end of the garden, in the shade of a huge oak tree.  We all went for a closer look and chuckled when we noticed that you could see where Grandad Polar had made the door taller.  There was another sliding rail next to it, so I had a go on that.

Hanley found a little path under the shrubs to explore, while Endon and Waverley had a look in the little pond.  Grandad Polar gets newts in his pond sometimes, and the bears saw one!

Then Endon and Waverley went into the greenhouse.  It was very warm, because it's lined with bubble-wrap in the winter, and that keeps it frost-free for all Grandad Polar's geranium cuttings.

 

The following day, Polar and Grizzly took us to the Royal Victoria Country Park, as Grandad Polar told them there was something new there which we would enjoy.  We have visited before but there are often new things to see.

The country park used to be the grounds of a military hospital.  The hospital buildings were demolished ages ago but the officers' quarters are now smart flats and the little houses where the other ranks used to live are now accommodation for people attending a police training college.

All that's left of the main building is the old chapel.  I think I showed you some photos of the inside in a post a few years ago.  Maybe one day we'll go all the way to the top of the tower, something that Polar has never done, even though she lived nearby for years and years.

There are monuments to the people killed and injured in both of the big 20th Century World Wars that humans had, as so many soldiers were brought back to the hospital for treatment

The view from the beach is not very pretty here, as there is a huge refinery and chemical works across the water.  We always growl when we see pollution coming out of the chimneys!

We did get a good view of one of the big ships we had seen from the window - this is the Queen Elizabeth.  We saw her sail that evening from the bedroom window.

After that, Polar and Grizzly walked across the fields and through a grove of small trees to where there had been a very old cedar tree.  Sadly, the tree had been poorly and some of the boughs were dangerous, because they might have fallen on human cubs, so they were cut off, but clever humans carved the trunk into a castle for fairies to live in.

We had great fun climbing on it and found lots of little doors leading inside but, no matter which one we knocked, the fairies wouldn't let us in.

 

"They must think we're fierce, wild bears," Endon said to Langers.  "What a shame - I would love to see what it's like inside.  I bet there are pretty lights and lots of fairies singing and dancing."

"And tasty fairy food and elf beer!" said Hanley.  He tapped gently on another door and tried singing to the fairies.  They still didn't open the door, but nor would you if you heard Hanley's singing!

 

"I'm going to see who lives in the little castle over there," said Hanley, and he ran down the steps from the castle and over to more little turrets.

We knocked on the doors and climbed right to the top to see if anyone was at home, but it was all very quiet again.  We were quite sad, because we are kind bears and wouldn't have scared the fairies.  As you know, we are great friends with the ones at Trentham Gardens.

There are some giant insects here, rather like the ones at Trentham, except that instead of stag beetles, there are a dragonfly and a grasshopper.

Before we left, Huddlesford told this wizard to let the fairies know that we were friendly bears and, if we came again, we would like to be their friends.

    

Before we left the park, Hanley insisted that Grizzly should should let him show Huddlesford the minature railway.  There were no trains running, so they were able to do a track inspection together.

The engines are all locked away very securely when it isn't a running day, so Huddlesford couldn't see any of them.  

 

"You'll love it in the summer," said Hanley.  "The little trains are great and there are always loads of human cubs waiting for train rides."

Later that afternoon, we got to see what Polar was like as a human cub, as Grandad Polar set up his old cine film projector and showed us some old home movies.

We sat with Grizzly and watched Polar, with her mummy and little sister, having holidays on the Isle of Wight, playing in the garden and having other adventures, and we saw our friend Old Bunny when she was very young and still had lots of fur.

We were sad to leave, as we had enjoyed our visit, but Polar says we might be able to visit again before Christmas.  But now she and Grizzly had an important journey to make, with us, which I'll tell you all about in my next post.