Spring Chicken

I was very tempted to have a go on this kids toy in Fairview Park! There was no one around, hence the photo in a children's park, but I controlled my child-ish urges and took a grown up photo instead!

Have a playful weekend.

Posters

The Brewery complex in town has been open for about three years and several of the units are still empty. In a bid to try and integrate them with the surrounding restaurants and shops the management are hosting an art competition for local school children to brighten up the boarded facades with posters. Nice idea, in fact its...

The London Borough Of...

...Cheltenham! Regular followers will know I have a thing for shop windows and the ingenius creativity that goes into creating an eye catching display, and this one is know exception. The window of Monsoon's childrens clothes shop on The Prom really stands out from the crowd. All London captured in cartoon style and looking very trendy and modern, just like the really thing. (Notice the address sign - City Of WestMonster! Made me laugh!)

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Hoarding Art

As I mentioned yesterday the hoardings surrounding the construction site that is Hotel Kandinsky have been brightened up with art. The paintings have been created by local school children and some, like this one, are really good. I like how they've been 'framed'.

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Amusing Mechanic

This is just one of those posts that I had to share, not the best photos but they say it all. The above shot shows one of the children's rides in the Regent Arcade and the photo below tells the story. I can just imagine the mechanic sucking his breath in through his teeth and saying "its gonna cost you"!

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Primary Colours

Here is the Primary Colours Day Nursery in Montpellier. It is one of the many nursery schools in and around Cheltenham that occupy former residential buildings. This one is a four story dwelling over looking Montpellier Gardens. I really like the coloured (primary coloured) shutters and front door. The shutters are closed as I took this photo on a Saturday, they don't tend to keep the children shut in the dark!
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A Rats Tale

This friendly little chap makes up part of the art work on the outside of The Pied Piper shop in Montpellier. The shop sells collectable teddy bears, dolls, dollhouses and all things soft and cuddly. The full shop front is below.

I decided that I would look into the story of The Pied Piper of Hamelin to accompany today's post and I have to say it is a disturbing tale. I must have read the Ladybird version when I was younger, as the true story is far from a fairy tale. Basically the town of Hamelin was over-run with rats and the townsfolk called upon the Pied Piper, who had suddenly appeared within their community, to rid them of the infestation. The residents agreed to pay the piper if he could do the job. As we all know - the piper piped, the rats followed, he led them to the river and they all drowned. The towns people wouldn't pay the piper so, while they were in church, he piped again and this time the children of Hamelin followed. The Pied Piper led 130 boys and girls to a cave and they were never seen again. The version I know is that two children, one lame and one deaf, remained in the town and told the adults of the other childrens abduction. The parents paid the piper and the children were freed.

In reality the children were never seen again. It is believed that they were either killed in a landslide, that they left on a religious pilgrimage, that they were drowned in the river or worst of all, the mysterious piper killed and dismembered them. The story dates from the 14th Century and over time has changed many times. I guess we'll never really know what happened but it was no fairy tale ending.

If you have some time and want to read a version of the story by Robert Browning, published in 1842, here it is.
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Touching Souls

Touching Souls is the name of this sculpture at the front of Tewkesbury Abbey. It is an exact replica of the same sculpture in Tewksbury, Massachusetts. Created by sculptor Mico Kaufman, its is cast in bronze and shows four children - native-American, European-American, African-America and Asian-American, sitting on the ground, legs outstretched, with the soles of their shoes touching. It is one of the many links that bind the two Tewkesburys. Has anyone out there seen the original in the USA?

Thanks to everyone who has left a comment while I've been otherwise engaged. Normal service has now resumed!

At The Car Wash

I've been waiting for ages to get a photo of this bubbly Beetle. I keep seeing it driving around town advertising a valeting service and on Monday it was parked in the Prom, so I finally got my photo. Its not the best shot, as the bubbles aren't showing up that well, but it is brilliant for highlighting a recent report in the news.

Back at the end of July The British International Motor Show carried out research into car washing and they discovered that British kids are generating a summer car wash industry worth £50 million! FIFTY MILLION POUNDS! This profit is created by the 64% of parents that pay out £5 a time for their little ones to wash their motors. The following stats are taken from an article at www.easier.com "Three quarters (75%) of the skinflint parents who pay their children £1 or less say it’s because their kids only clean the outside of the car with soap and water. In contrast, over a third of kids (37%) who wash, but also give the interior a thorough clean, make between £5 and £7, and 100% of kids who are paid between £15 and £25 thoroughly wash, wax, buff, vacuum and polish inside and out."

So if your on your school holidays, and you want some extra cash, you know what to do. Get washing!

Child Labour

One of the things I like about blogging is that I am always looking at things in a new way. This relief panel is on the corner of a small row of houses, on a brick wall, behind some gardens. Its not far from where I live and I pass it all the time but I've never looked at it, until now. It shows some angelic styled children hard at work. I won't tell you what they are creating, I'll let you work it out (you might need to enlarge the photo for a better look). I just wonder why is it there and what is it all about? I've looked on the Internet, but nothing. Its just one of those blogging mysteries.