We last went to Twycross Zoo when H was still a toddler and I’m not sure why we hadn’t been back since because it was a good day out. So when we were invited along to review the zoo, we jumped at the chance because we were overdue a return visit. Twycross Zoo have a lot more apes and other primates than any other zoo we’ve been to and we have been to several around the country. So the Gibbon Forest seemed like a good place to start. We got to see quite a few different types of gibbon and learn more about these fascinating creatures and their habitat.
The only time I’ve seen Orang Utans is at Twycross Zoo. They are fascinating creatures to watch: H and I found it quite hypnotic to watch them move around and we got there just as they were being fed too, so we got to watch them gathering up their food and settling down somewhere comfortable to eat. In fact, Twycross Zoo is the only place in the UK where you can see all the different types of great ape, so it’s a great place to compare the different species.
We certainly learnt a lot about monkeys and apes as there were all sorts of different ways to learn. There are lots of fun exhibits and educational displays. The primates are in large enclosures and it’s easy to watch them moving around. You can even get up very close to the lemurs by taking a visit to the Walking with Lemurs enclosure.
We enjoyed trying to spot the various zoo babies and there were helpful signs so we knew which enclosures had them. The monkey babies were usually easy to spot as they were hanging onto their mothers.
Other highlights of our trip included visiting the beautiful rainbow lorikeets and like the lemurs, you can get up close to them. This picture was taken without any fancy zoom lens, so you can see we were able to get a really good view.
There’s plenty of other animals apart from the apes, monkeys and lorikeets. We saw meerkats, zebras, giant tortoises and much more.
A big highlight for us was visiting the alpaca in the Explorer Zone – we have been fans of alpaca since our visit last year to the Scottish Alpaca Championships.
We had a great day out and I think we’d like to go back again on a warmer drier day to try out the Wet n’Wild area which looked a lot of fun, but H wasn’t quite brave enough to get wet on a day that wasn’t the warmest.
In more recent years it’s got easier, but there were still issues. There’s a limit to have much watching material a tablet can store and at the rate that H gets through books, it’s difficult to carry enough without weighing you down (he’s not keen on a kindle). So when London Midland offered us the chance to try a day out on their rail network, we jumped at the chance. We put their newish (launched in April) on-board entertainment scheme, 
Motion is a free service accessible via London Midland’s free on-board Wi-Fi. H packed his phone as his entertainment device as it has a reasonably big screen and it’s smaller/lighter than a tablet. The variety of content on Motion is brilliant with Hollywood Movies (such as The Kings Speech and The Girl on the Train), Kids Entertainment includes Ben 10 and Peppa Pig, for grown-ups there’s Now TV with entertainment, drama and comedy to watch, books, magazines (such as Horrible Histories, Olive, Top Gear, Cosmo and Hello), news and a range of games to choose from, there really is something for everyone.
We got off the train in the heart of the city and got to work seeing the sights. H had asked to visit the 
On the spur of the moment we decided to go onto the 
A wander around Liverpool finished the day off before heading back to catch our train at Lime Street station. The journey back whizzed by as H caught up with some Dexter’s Lab and I read Olive, both via Motion.
When H was younger he was a massive Octonauts fan (in fact, he still likes to check if they have a new series out to watch). He’s always been interested in the ocean and he has a lot of books about sea creatures. Not long ago we watched a documentary together about the giant squid and he found it fascinating. So it was no surprise when he started watching The Deep on CBBC. The Deep follows the adventures of the Nekton family: a brilliant team of underwater explorers. With state-of-the-art technology and a thirst for discovery, the Nektons explore the mysterious depths of the ocean. The deep is a place where leviathans swim through sunken cities, pirates lurk amid floating black markets, and a mysterious group of Guardians hide long-lost secrets.
As H is more than a bit of a fan of the TV series he was very keen to go along to one of his favourite places to have a go at being a Nekton himself. He went around the Sea Life Centre solving the clues, using the decoders and learning a few facts about the sea or the creatures that live in it. Of course, he got to visit all his favourite fish and other sea animals while he was there too. He always learns something new when he’s going round. At the end he got a badge and a sticker sheet for his efforts in correctly solving the puzzle.
For further information on this event which runs to 17 September or to pre-book tickets online before your visit please go to