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stephbgThis morning Husband took us to see the rather optimistically-titled but buckets o' fun Guildford Museum of Natural History. My kind of fun bucket at least :-) It's a hall/warehouse full of stuffed and mounted animal hides and skeletons, run by the decidedly creepy (but quite possibly lovely) taxidermist himself. Value at $5 per adult.
I was a bit leery of going today because of the Avon Descent, but we got in early enough to find parking nearby. Arrived in fact bang on 10am, the theoretical opening time, but it's not the kind of establishment that keeps to a strict schedule. Instead we (or rather he) had coffee and toast at a neighbouring cafe. I wouldn't mind going back if the little macaroon that came with the coffee was any indicator of the general quality of the food. So tiny, yet so utterly divine.
We were permitted to take non-flash photos, but since starting the pretty rock project I've learned a little about post processing so most of the pictures came out surprisingly well in the end.
Some of the exhibits were disturbingly realistic, like this foal (raw image):
... and modified:
Some were amusingly creepy, like this pair of (non-floral) kangaroo paws:
I'd love to see these appear in a Cake Wrecks-style wedding centrepiece disaster. "No! No! No! Australian flora, not fauna!"
Some exhibits were Grrrrr! Aaaarrrr! fun, like our finny friends the piranha:
Unfortunately the challenge of photographing delicate things in low light conditions behind glass was too much at times, so you'll have to take my word for it that this bat skeleton was an amazingly beautiful and delicate thing. I've kept the pictures because you can see some of the background ambiance of the place.
This snake skeleton came up well:
And finally, a rare two-shot of Husband and myself taken at the traditional blind composition arms length. I rather like my horns :-)
We also got to watch a short and hilariously home-made documentary about the art of taxidermy. Despite the alarmingly low production values and lack of scripting, it was actually very interesting and I learned A Thing, possibly two.
Afterwards we went through some of the nearby antique shops (Husband being parked at the one with lots of books and records while I pushed on). Cane assistance was very much required, and the shops were a nightmare of inaccessibility. Steps and odd levels everywhere, crushingly tight spaces in the aisles, and many things waiting to be knocked off shelves. I found the stock a bit dull to be honest, not really being in the market for kitchenalia or rusty farm implements. Precious few things were actual curios. Not one shrunken head or Chinese torture implement, hmph.
By this time the Avon Descent crowd had descended and the traffic was incredible. Fortunately we were in no hurry, and went the back way to look at our old house in Midvale. The garden it has grown! I'll post about it separately once I get hold of some suitable Before photos for contrast.
Very tired on return home but it was really enjoyable outing. And despite some amazingly threatening clouds we scored quite a lot of sunshine and stayed almost completely dry. Winning.
I was a bit leery of going today because of the Avon Descent, but we got in early enough to find parking nearby. Arrived in fact bang on 10am, the theoretical opening time, but it's not the kind of establishment that keeps to a strict schedule. Instead we (or rather he) had coffee and toast at a neighbouring cafe. I wouldn't mind going back if the little macaroon that came with the coffee was any indicator of the general quality of the food. So tiny, yet so utterly divine.
We were permitted to take non-flash photos, but since starting the pretty rock project I've learned a little about post processing so most of the pictures came out surprisingly well in the end.
Some of the exhibits were disturbingly realistic, like this foal (raw image):
... and modified:
Some were amusingly creepy, like this pair of (non-floral) kangaroo paws:
I'd love to see these appear in a Cake Wrecks-style wedding centrepiece disaster. "No! No! No! Australian flora, not fauna!"
Some exhibits were Grrrrr! Aaaarrrr! fun, like our finny friends the piranha:
Unfortunately the challenge of photographing delicate things in low light conditions behind glass was too much at times, so you'll have to take my word for it that this bat skeleton was an amazingly beautiful and delicate thing. I've kept the pictures because you can see some of the background ambiance of the place.
This snake skeleton came up well:
And finally, a rare two-shot of Husband and myself taken at the traditional blind composition arms length. I rather like my horns :-)
We also got to watch a short and hilariously home-made documentary about the art of taxidermy. Despite the alarmingly low production values and lack of scripting, it was actually very interesting and I learned A Thing, possibly two.
Afterwards we went through some of the nearby antique shops (Husband being parked at the one with lots of books and records while I pushed on). Cane assistance was very much required, and the shops were a nightmare of inaccessibility. Steps and odd levels everywhere, crushingly tight spaces in the aisles, and many things waiting to be knocked off shelves. I found the stock a bit dull to be honest, not really being in the market for kitchenalia or rusty farm implements. Precious few things were actual curios. Not one shrunken head or Chinese torture implement, hmph.
By this time the Avon Descent crowd had descended and the traffic was incredible. Fortunately we were in no hurry, and went the back way to look at our old house in Midvale. The garden it has grown! I'll post about it separately once I get hold of some suitable Before photos for contrast.
Very tired on return home but it was really enjoyable outing. And despite some amazingly threatening clouds we scored quite a lot of sunshine and stayed almost completely dry. Winning.
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no subject
Date: 2011-08-07 10:25 pm (UTC)...And just about anything is a Chinese torture implement, you know.
Which cafe did you go to? Jezebelle? They're pretty good. The barista there blends his own coffee. :)
no subject
Date: 2011-08-08 01:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-08-08 01:19 am (UTC)