Chester was chosen because it has an amazing zoo, with a reputation for excellent facilities for all its animals. Chester is an old medieval fortified city, standing on the site of the old Roman fortress of Deva. The hotel was positioned in the centre of the city, so once parked in the hotel's car park, you were within a few minutes walk of the shops. The city also boasts a wonderful Cathedral, a Roman Museum, boat rides on the canal, as well as horse racing at the Roodee Racecourse.

By six o'clock on Friday 30th June, most of the families had arrived and were safely ensconced in the luxury of their rooms. Our first guest speaker was Mrs Penny Rudd, who has been at Chester Zoo for nearly twenty years. Penny talked about the conservation work that Chester Zoo is involved with around the world, and it set the scene for some of the animals we were to see the next day. Chester Zoo is very proud of its two new baby giraffes and was anticipating the birth of its first live baby elephant for many years.

That Friday evening we all went down for a buffet meal in the Prince of Wale suite - this year all the children were given a desk lamp as their welcoming present. It was a lovely relaxed evening and the younger children seemed to mix really well - the stairs seemed to provide hours of endless fun!

On the Saturday morning a coach arrived at the hotel to take us to Chester Zoo. The weather was not looking too promising so we were all dressed for rain. It was after all the 1st July!! Penny met us at the entrance to the zoo and guided us around for the morning. We started with the elephants and the rhinos before entering the new bat house. Sophie certainly enjoyed the fruit bats as did many others, although the tunnel in the twilight zone was a bit scary. All the families appreciated Penny's inside knowledge and we were certainly all amazed when Cleo, one of the chimpanzees, moved from a fair distance away to come and see her when she heard her voice. The train ride gave us a good overall view of the zoo, and the children certainly enjoyed this vantage point. We split up for lunch and we all had lunch vouchers to use in the various restaurants around the zoo. The rain held off for the most part and we were all subjected to a light drizzle when it did rain. We all met up again to finish with a boat ride, before we walked back to the coach and returned to the hotel.

Many of us felt Penny's input during the morning had really been a fabulous insight into life at the zoo and had added greatly to the enjoyment of the day.

Our evening entertainment began with a set meal in the Prince of Wales Suite, followed by barn dancing with caller, Terry, and music from the country band, 'Shake a leg'. Terry definitely led us through our paces. However, he did allow us a rest in between dances, to enable us to catch our breath back. Everyone joined in and it was wonderful to see the children all enjoying themselves. We all retired to bed, tired but happy.

On the Sunday, our guest speaker was Professor Pearce who started by asking us to move into a circle. He is a very softly spoken man and discussed with us the feelings of anxiety and anger. Many of us voiced the problems of dealing with schools and other institutions that didn't understand the needs and implications of scoliosis sufferers. On a more positive note, Professor Pearce helped many to confirm their ability to cope in normal life, not withstanding their scoliosis, hard though it can be.

We finished our weekend with a lunch in the main restaurant, before travelling home. As ever we had packed a lot into our days in Chester and many families told me how much they enjoyed the weekend, and it was good to make new friends and see familiar faces.

Scoliosis Association (UK)
Registered Charity Number 285290

These pages are maintained by Jane Jackling. They are Copyright © 2000-2008 Scoliosis Association (UK)

This site was last updated on 21 December 2008