Imperio, Hexham, England

Snamoen Posted Jul 20, 2012, 4:01 am	Hi Mum, Today I went to a house party!  It was SO much fun!! I arrived and HelgaHH invited me and some friends in. The carpet in her Hostmum's house had been converted to a dance floor and the music playing was some of my favourite tunes, so I danced most of the night. When I wasn't dancing, I was talking to other TVs, in particular HelgaHH - we have lots in common. I was also dared to drink some... or rather, a lot... Which might explain how I found myself like this when I woke up: Oops... Oh well, it was a lot of fun!  And when hostmum came back, she had no idea what we'd been up to.  She was quite surprised to see me, of course.  But she said because I've become such good friends with the other TVs she's hosting, and you're a good friend to her, that I can stay and go with her and the rest of the TVs on their holiday, yay! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Jul 20, 2012, 8:36 pm	Hi Mum, Today was SUCH an early start to the day!  We all had to get up at 3am...  Which is why I'm so tired now. First we said bye to Niiskuneiti, who left today, she's going back home. And then... a quick last minute check to make sure we hadn't forgotten anything.  Once we were sure, it was time to be on our way! I'm now on the cruise ship, we have just left Istanbul.  Unfortunately we didn't really have time to take any pictures... but I promise to take some tomorrow  Bye! Imperio
Snamoen Posted Jul 22, 2012, 10:07 pm	Hi Mum! Today was such an exciting day!  We’re in Kusadasi in Turkey.  We did quite a lot today. First we went to visit the Virgin Mary house.  This house is believed to be the last house that the Virgin Mary lived in before she died.  Every year thousands of people (Christians and Muslims alike) make a pilgrimage to visit the house. They write prayers on pieces of paper, or napkins or anything they can find and put them on this wall.  Look Mum – how many thousands of prayers do you think are here? Then we went to the ancient city of Ephesus, which was built in 2000BC. This is where people in the government went for meetings – kind of like the houses of parliament today. Here you can see part of the city, with the library in the background. And this is the theatre, where they held plays and sang. We also ran in to some fellow Toyvoyagers!  Unfortunately I forgot their names... Look - these mosaics are the original ones. We stayed in Ephesus for about 3 hours – it was so hot!  About 38C.  Afterwards, we went and had a look around Kusadasi.  Here you can see me overlooking the town. Eventually the sun wore us out and we decided to go back to our ship and relax on the balcony. It’s been a great day Mummy! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Jul 24, 2012, 3:07 pm	Hi Mum, We spent the day at sea today.  It was fun.  I loved sitting on the deck looking out at the sea.  I really wanted to jump in and go for a swim (I am, after all, a penguin and can swim very well!), but hostmum said no…  Such a shame! It got a bit hot for me though – it was about 37C, so I spent most of my time sitting in the shade chatting with the others. Then there was an ice-sculpting demonstration.  That was so much fun! Can you see the two dolphins he made?  I couldn’t believe that he managed to make it in 15 minutes! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Jul 25, 2012, 4:23 pm	Hi Mum, Guess where I was today?  In Beirut, in Lebanon!  It was so exciting. But before we explored the city of Beirut, we went to the ancient ruins of the city of Byblos.  Here I am entering the city. We spent a good few hours exploring the ruins. Did you know that the city is over 7000 years old?  And that the Bible is named after this city? Look – here I am with a lovely view of the coast of Beirut. Once we had finished exploring the ruins, we went to the caves in Jeita.  Unfortunately we weren’t allowed to take any pictures inside though. Guess what Mum?  I’ve now seen the world!! This statue represents the Guardian of Time. After the caves, we went in to Beirut.  Here I am in front of the parliament building. This is the main Mosque in Beirut.  In Lebanon, 50% of the people are Muslim and 50% are Christian. It was a great day Mum! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Jul 27, 2012, 4:31 pm	Hi Mum, Today our ship arrived in Marmaris, Turkey. It was quite a relaxed day, with us all taking in the amazing views. The beaches are lovely – the water is so warm! We explored some of the little villages.  Each village has about 200 inhabitants and has a Mosque as well as a café. This tree was in one of the villages and it’s about 1800 years old.  Local legend says that if you walk around it then you will live a happy and healthy life. When we got back on board our ship, we sat out on the balcony and enjoyed the wonderful view. Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Jul 28, 2012, 4:04 pm	Hi Mum, Today was the last day of our holiday – tomorrow the ship will dock in Athens, where we will catch a plane back to England. So I made sure to make the most of the day in Santorini.  In these pictures, I’m on the highest point on the island, and I can see the whole island. Walking up to that vantage point was quite tiring, so a rest at this little café was definitely needed! Then we looked around several of the towns.  Look at the view, isn’t it pretty? And the church you can see behind me is Santorini’s most famous church. Can you see the ship behind me?  That’s our cruise! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 2, 2012, 4:12 pm	Hi Mum, What a long day it's been!  We left the ship at about 9am yesterday (Sunday) and have only just arrived back at hostmum's house now, at 1am on Monday.  I'm soo tired... But before I go to sleep, it's time to say goodbye to Flummi, who is travelling to Germany. And now, bedtime! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 2, 2012, 4:24 pm	Hi Mum, Today we all hung out in the garden. It was a bit cooler than the weather that I've been used to from the meditterranean, but it was still quite hot for me, so I relaxed in the shade underneath this plant. Look Mum, Snoopy came to say hello to me! Then I noticed all the flowers that had fallen off the plant... so I decided to have a bit of fun.  Hostmum said that I look very handsome. Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 2, 2012, 5:38 pm	Hi Mum, Today was a sad day, as I had to say bye to HelgaHH.  She had become quite a good friend of mine!  But she's very excited about going to her new host in Finland, and I wished her all the best. In other news, hostmum says that she has a big surprise planned for us tomorrow.  I'm really excited and intrigued, I wonder what it could be...? Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 3, 2012, 9:58 pm	Hi Mum, Guess what!!  Today I went to an Olympic event!!  The surprise that hostmum had for us was tickets to the women's football in Newcastle.  Here I am outside St James' Park, the stadium where it was held. The teams that were playing were America and New Zealand.  Here they are warming up. And now... let the games begin! The final score was 2-0 to America.  It was a very good game, and I'm so happy to have seen an Olympic event! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 10, 2012, 7:31 pm	Hi Mum, Guess what?  Lizzy Lizard had a brilliant surprise for us today - she had made a swimming pool!!  We had wondered where she'd gone, and we came across her like this. We all thought it was amazing - such a good idea.  And of course, while the others relaxed on the chairs and Sheela played us some music on her drum, I jumped straight in the pool. I had so much fun swimming. And floating on my back... And leaning on the corners of the pool, enjoying the cool water and the warm sun.  Aaah... bliss! Paula Hip joined me as well, but she didn't want to get wet, so she used the canoe.  It looked like fun - but I much prefer to swim and get wet! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 13, 2012, 12:11 am	Hi Mum, Today I said bye to Sheela, who is travelling on to Sweden. We posed for one final group picture. And now she's on her way! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 13, 2012, 12:52 am	Hi Mum, Tonight was the closing ceremony for the Olympics, so of course we all had to watch that! All the athletes walk in to the stadium, to celebrate the end of the games and the fact that everyone played so well.  I think they should all be proud of themselves! Of course, I had to have some popcorn as well! The winners from the men's marathon came to collect their medals. Hostmum was thrilled when these children signed the song 'Imagine', as hostmum knows BSL herself. Russel Brand had a part in it as well.  It looks like so much fun - look at all the colours they're wearing! And then, the long-awaited Spice Girls reunion! And finally, we saw Rio take over.  I wonder what their opening ceremony will be like in 4 years time? Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 17, 2012, 6:47 pm	Hi Mum! Today we visited Alnwick Castle, which is pronounced 'An-ik'.  It's quite an old castle, and was home to the lords and ladies of Northumberland. This carriage was used in the wedding of Lady Katie only last year. This statue was built in honour of Sir Henry Percy, who won many battles in the 1300's. Look at the dragon Mum - doesn't it look scary? Behind me you can see kids learning how to play the Harry Potter game 'Quidditch.  Did you know that some scenes from Harry Potter were filmed here? Look at all these weapons! Here I am inside a canon.  It's so big! Unfortunately, we had to cut our trip short, as it started to rain quite heavily! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 18, 2012, 6:52 pm	Hi Mum, Today was another fun day.  There was a Regatta held in Hexham, as well as a fair.  It was great! And look, there was even rock-climbing!  I wanted to have a go, but there were no harness small enough for me! And look who I saw rowing - Matt Wells!!  He's a very famous rower, and he grew up in Hexham. Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 22, 2012, 3:45 pm	Hi Mum, There was a beautiful sunset this evening, overlooking the countryside outside hostmum's home. Isn't it gorgeous? Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 23, 2012, 5:15 pm	Hi Mum, Yesterday we travelled down to Essex, as we're spending the week at hostmum's Grandparents' house.  And since Essex is only an hour or so from London, we went and explored some of London. Here I am in Camden. Camden is such a great place - eccentric, with a great atmosphere and awesome shops. Inside this building is a great market with so many stalls selling lots of great things. In Leicester Square, we came across this great shop - it only sells M&M products. Then we went to the theatre.  Here I am outside Her Majesty's Theatre. We watched The Phantom Of The Opera - though unfortunately we weren't allowed to take any pictures of the actual show. What a great day! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 26, 2012, 1:41 am	Hi Mum, We've all been relaxing at hostmum's Grandparents' house.  Hostmum has been busy helping out her Grandparents, so I've been entertaining myself by exploring their house.  And boy - there's a lot to see!  I especially like all the army things that can be found around the house. Hostmum's Grandad was in the army, and he was given this sword for excellent service. And look - this was his service dagger. [img]nhttp://i1069.photobucket.com/albums/u474/Snamoen/P1110859300x400.jpg[/img] This is a picture of hostgrandad's regiment, when they met the Queen.  Can you see her?  She's sitting in the middle. Just look at all these medals!  Not all of the medals are hostgrandad's though - some belong to his dad (so that would be hostmum's Great-Grandad). Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 26, 2012, 5:19 pm	Hi Mum, We've all just arrived back at hostmum's home.  It was a long car journey.  And look, there was a package waiting for us when we arrived... We started to open it, and out popped Mefito! He's travelled all the way from Mallorca. We've promised him that tomorrow we'll show him around the area. Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Aug 30, 2012, 4:26 pm	Hi Mum, We went in to Newcastle today, but unfortunately our trip was cut short, as hostmum's camera broke!    The repair man said it would take 2 weeks to fix... but in the mean time hostmum will be using her mum's camera. Anyway.  Here I am in front of Grey's Monument, which was built in 1838 to commemorate Earl Grey, who changed the face of British politics with the Great Reform Act in 1832. Then we went to one of hostmum's favourite cafes and she bought me a delicious cupcake.  Yum!  Unfortunately, that's when hostmum's camera broke.  But she's promised to take us all back in to Newcastle to continue the tour! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Sep 3, 2012, 2:30 pm	Hi Mum, The weather has been pretty bad recently - it's been raining so much!  But today, we had a short time when it didn't rain, so I went for a walk in the countryside. We came across this village. And saw some nice views of they countryside. Then we continued our exploration and went deeper in to the English countryside. Pretty soon, we were in the heart of the forest, with not another person around for miles. We came across this little waterfall and stream. It was so nice getting back in touch with nature! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Sep 6, 2012, 5:11 pm	Hi Mum, Today we went to visit Alnwick Gardens.  The Alnwick Gardens are part of a stately home and were designed by the Duchess of Northumberland.  They're now a big tourist attraction. First we went on a tour of the Poison Garden - a garden full of poisonous plants.  The really poisonous plants were locked behind bars. Then we had a little stroll around the pond - isn't it pretty? We also walked through this cherry orchard - it's the biggest orchard of its kind in the world. This is the Ornamental Garden and is absolutely huge, with lots of nice flowers. Then we came across the Rose Garden, which was very pretty. And look Mum - a labyrinth made out of bamboo!  That was fun, although I did end up getting lost for a little while...  These grapes are used to make some local wine. And here you can see honeybees - there was an observatory where we could watch them make honey! And finally, we saw this huge treehouse - which is actually a restaurant! And you had to cross this swing-bridge to get to it (hostmum loved that!) Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Sep 12, 2012, 3:40 pm	Hi Mum! Hostmum would like to apologise for us not being able to write anything for a while - she's been really busy.  But - guess where I am now?  I'm in China!! We arrived yesterday after a very, very long flight.  And even though all of us are suffering from jet lag, we went to see the Great Wall of China today.  It was so much fun! But before you get to the wall, you have to walk up to it.  On the road up to the wall, there are people that try and sell you things. Then... we saw the wall! Isn't the view quite spectacular? And this is the massive pot where the oil was kept, so that when the guards spotted intruders, they threw fire on to the oil to warn people that invaders were there. One final look at the wall... It was such a great day! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Sep 14, 2012, 5:25 am	Hi Mum! Today we went to see the Temple of Heaven - it was amazing! There used to be 7 of these stones, and they represent the peaks of the Taishan Mountains - which, in ancient China - was a place of worship. This is the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. It's surrounded by different religious buildings. This door was built for one of the emperors, who was 70 and whose health was in decline - it was put in so he could use it a short cut.  However, the Emperor was worried that his son would also use it and become lazy, so he passed a law that said you could only use this door if you were 70 years old or older.  Hence the name; the 70 year old door. And finally, this is the Imperial Vault of Heaven. Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Sep 17, 2012, 3:18 am	Hi Mum, Today we went to the 798 district, which is the famous art district of Beijing. It was fun wandering around all the different art galleries. I saw so many awesome paintings and sculptures. Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Sep 22, 2012, 8:09 am	Hi Mum! You'll never guess where I was today - the Forbidden City! It's a huge place! About 961m - I had no idea it was so big! It was used as the Imperial Palace for about 500 years. In total, 24 Emperors lived here. It also has a beautiful Imperial Garden. Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Sep 26, 2012, 3:47 pm	Hi Mum, Today is our last day in China, so we're spending it relaxing at our hosts' house.  I had so much fun in their massive hammock! I also played with Lugnut - he's such a sweetie. I also played with Mecredi, who's a right character! Love, Imperio
Snamoen Posted Oct 12, 2012, 10:28 am	Hi Mum, Look at all the stuff that hostmum bought back with her from China! Do you know what this is?  It's a hat! And this tea was very yummy. Don't you think this box is very pretty? As are the cakes that were inside it! Love, Imperio

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