Anne Frank

The Pie Tribe went to the Cathedral in Chester today to check out the Anne Frank Touring Exhibtion organised by the the Anne Frank Trust UK.  A taster of the Anne Frank House exhibition in Amsterdam but interesting and thought provoking nonetheless.

How profound for a teenager of no more than fifteen years of age, amazing. If you get the chance give it a visit only half an hour at most not including a video presentation.

Martin Mere

 

The Pie tribe headed for Lancashire today and the Martin Mere Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust Centre not far from Burscough. What an excellent place absolutely fascinating with lots to see and do (if you want).

They have huge areas of mature and developing natural wetlands areas with lots of different hides to sit comfortably from and watch. There is plenty of information and very helpful volunteers keen to pass on information at the drop a hat.

As well as the natural areas there are the sympathetic man made areas around the centre which take you around the world with Wildfowl from many continents in themed areas. The fowl are fairly chilled and easily approachable particularly when armed with food ( not bread and definitely not Pie).

As well the wildfowl they also have some Beavers and Otters. With various talks and feeding sessions you won't get bored. We particularly enjoyed the Swan hides which overlook the mere where many many Whooper Swans congregate and others. 

At approx 3.00pm one of the staff comes along with an overflowing barrow of seed which sends the gathered throng into action. From a amiable peacful existence to bite your head feeding frenzy with many arrivals landing on top of the gathered mass without a care in the world like the Pieman at the doorway of a decent Pie emporium. We look forward to going again perhaps in the summer.

Pie Heaven

Of course the highlight of of our trip to Conwy was a visit to "Edwards of Conwy" Champion Pie makers !!! Located on the high street, our last visit to Conwy ended in tears as they had closed by the time we came back to sample their wares.

No mistakes this time however with ample time to feast our eyes on their wonderful selection and display.

The pieman chose to try out the Huntsman pie for which Edwards had been Champion Pie Makers in 2008. The Huntsman is essentially a pork pie with turkey and a sage & onion stuffing topping .Whilst the  Pie offspring both went for a beautiful looking Steak Pie. 

Upon eating the Steak Pie the Pink Princess was heard to say " I didn't know cow could taste so nice". Reasonably priced, plenty of choice and many standards available. So next time your shooting up the A55 take a few minutes of your time and dive into Pie Heaven.

Rainy Conwy

 

The Pie tribe headed to Conwy for the afternoon. In particular we headed for the Castle and its delights.  It was interesting, informative and with excellent views, that is apart from the Rail workers having a pee trackside.

 

The weather was not kind and a wander around the walls was curtailed as the rain came down more and more. So into town for sustenance and cover in a high street cafe. A wander down the town to the quayside was followed by a mad dash back as the rain came again. This was in no way related to the believe that the purveyors of fine meats "Edwards of Conwy" were closing their doors!!

 

 

Dads Army Singalong

 

Above is a Cherry Grove School photo circa 1927 taken from the Holland Family archive. Several members of the Pie Tribe have attended Cherry Grove in its various forms including 3 grand parents of the pie munchkins and this year sees the centenary of its opening.

One of the events to mark the anniversary was the memorial concert at the cathedral last week. An excellent evening following the life of the school through the various decades. It also gave us a chance to sing along to the Dads Army theme tune, excellent. 

Although the musical highlight for the Pieman was Loose Kites drummer Jai performing a brilliant version of Let It Be accompanied by himself on guitar.

Dog Is No More

The Dog is a total write off and is being replaced with the Moth.

Simply Pie

Mr and Mrs Pieman were wandering around Whitchurch today killing some  time and came across the small but interesting Farmers Market. In a year when the Pieman has abstained from all things pastry, temptation got the better. A Beef & Ale and a Chicken & Leek were quickly purchased from the "Simply Pie" company.

Based in Whitchurch their Pies are now appearing in various shops and markets in the South Cheshire and North Shropshire areas. They also produce gluten free pies and pastry.

The Beef and Ale was excellent and uses Stout from the Woodlands Brewery in Nantwich. The pastry was particularly light and moist. So light that it broke in the oven. So make sure you warm it up/cook it, in its tin!! Mrs Pieman was equally taken with her selection of Chicken and Leek.

Over The Rainbow

 

The Pie tribe including the Munchkins headed to the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool to hear the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra in concert. This year their theme was the "Wizard of Oz" and the Pieman went as the scarecrow! 

They basically show the film on the big screen with the full orchestra playing all the music songs and backing. The seats were comfortable and the scarecrow was soon giving it some ZZZZ's.

This was preceded by a visit to the Liverpool One big wheel which looked brilliant at night.

After the wheel we headed into town to find something to eat and ended up in Eddie Rocket's Diner in Bold Street. No pies consumed but a cracking jukebox and wonderful Chilli over fries which we would heartily recommend to you.