Travelog for: Pisoni

Hi Mum,

Had a nice chilled weekend after the partying last week .... was lovely!

I helped out Julie with a little bit of sewing on Saturday, the weather wasn't nice at all so didn't want to go outside!

The sun even managed to come out for us on Sunday so we all went up to the 'Down's' with Julie & her friend. The Down's is a massive area of green grass & trees - it gets really busy up there on nice days with people having BBQ's, playing football & relaxing

After all that relaxing it was time to head home & cook some diner - 'bolognaise pasta' - me & the other toys helped Julie make it from scratch - will have to make it for you when i get home

We warmed up the pan, added the mince beef, cooked it till it was nice & brown, then added chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, garlic puree & lots of herbs. We left it to simmer while we boiled the past & put the garlic bread in the over. We had to grate lots of cheese too - we had a few sneaky mouthfuls while we waited for the food to cook - the smell was making me so hungry!!!

10 minutes later & it was done - it was delicious!

Hope all is well, and you & Maria are ok!

Lots of Love, Pisoni xxx

Hi Mum,

Sorry for the delay in writting to you, Julie hasn't been very well so we have been at home with her & helping look after her!  But now she is feeling much better has managed to get you our latest update

I went to see 'Banksy' Gallery at the Bristol Museum. It was amazing - he is so cleaver .... here is a little bit about him to explain about his gallery & his work:

He is a anonymous graffiti artist from Bristol and has been around since the early 90's, although it was since 2000 when he hit the big time with galleries accross the UK & USA, getting caught up in contoversy & media wondering who he is!

His art is often about politics, culture, and ethics, and combine graffiti writing with a distinctive stencilling technique!

Here are some of his highlights:

2002 - Gallery in Los Angeles

2003 - a show called "Turf War", held in a warehouse in USA

2005 - he had a display of his own oil paintings for a twelve day exhibition in Westbourne Grove, London

2004 - i think this is the best thing he has done so far ...... he produced a quantity of spoof British £10 notes substituting the picture of the Queen's head with Princess Diana's head and changing the text "Bank of England" to "Banksy of England." The individual notes have since been selling on eBay for about £200 each.

2006 - held an exhibition called Barely Legal, billed as a "three day vandalised warehouse extravaganza" in Los Angeles. After this famous people like Christina Aguilera bought some of his work for over £25,000 - WOW!!!!

2007 - At Sotheby's auction house in London they auctioned three works, reaching the highest ever price for a Banksy work at auction: over £102,000!!

Banksy funnily updated his website with a new image of an auction house scene showing people bidding on a picture that said, "I Can't Believe You Morons Actually Buy This Sh$$."! I thought that was very funny, Julie said it was very much what Banksy is about & stands for!!

Later in the same year a new record high for the sale of Banksy's work was set with the auction of the work 'Space Girl & Bird' fetching £288,000 (US$576,000), around 20 times the estimate at Bonhams of London!!!! Can you believe how much money people pay for his work? It's amazxing considering no-one know's what he looks like, he he he 

Also later in 2007 Banksy gained the award for Art's Greatest living Briton. Banksy, as expected, did not turn up to collect his award, and continued with his notoriously anonymous status - very cool guy indeed 

And another major thing for 2007 was that he made a replica of 'Stonehenge' from portable toilets for Glastonbury festival - it looked really funny, and they had some of the toilets at the gallery we went to see too!!

2008 - in London, Banksy hosted an exhibition called The Cans Festival.

2009 On June 13, 2009, the Banksy UK Summer show opened at Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery - this is the gallery we went too!!

It features more than 100 works of art, including animatronics, paintings, drawings & him adding his own work to art that already exists - adding a 'Banksy' effect .... you will see what i mean in the pictures!! 

He had over 8,500 visitors to the show on the first weekend!!! People from all over the world have trvaelled to see his gallery!!!

Banksy himself states, on his website:

“I am unable to comment on who may or may not be Banksy, but anyone described as being 'good at drawing' doesn't sound like Banksy to me.”

Pretty amazing guy eh?? And super cool i got to see his gallery while i was staying here, very Brittish & very Bristolian too The pictures will be uploaded soon for you to see

Only a day left to the weekend!! We are off to see Julie's family, taking her little brother to the cinema to see Transformers, cant wait!!

Lots of love Pisoni xxxx

Hi Mum,

Here are my pictures from the Banksy Gallery

The last picture is an actual piece of work he did on the side of a building in Bristol - some nasty people decided to paintball it though so it doesn't look as good as it used too 

Tomorrow me & the other toys are off to see Julie's family & go to the cinema to see Transformers 2 - cant wait 

Have a nice weekend, lots of Love, Pisoni xxx

Hi Mum,

I had a very busy day on Sunday, me & the other toys went with Julie on the train to Taunton ... when there we met up with Julie's Granddad & went out for some lunch in a local pub, it was lovely!

Then we went off to see Julie's brother Charlie - we chilled & hung around Julie's house while we waited for everyone to get ready! We played with Charlie in the arcades - i went on this car racing ride with him, it was wicked, we didn't do so great though, we came 15th!! Next me & Chance played a game of air hockey, that was great & i won too - ha ha!!

Julie bought us a big tub of popcorn & drink that we shared with her brother ... we couldn't wait to tuck in, we were starving!

The film was amazing - i cant wait for the next one to come out, sure we will have a long wait though!

Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the train station & head home to Bristol 

I am resting up this week as we have a really busy weekend this weekend - Julie's friend Jo is down & we are staying in hotel for 2 nights, i am going to show the other toys some local sights around Bristol that i went to previously, some great views for them to see!!

On Sunday it's T4 on the Beach, in Weston Super Mare, which isn't very far from Bristol! It looks amazing .... there is the main stage, and then 2 other smaller tents! Pop music mainly - Calvin Harris, Dizzeee Rascal, Basement Jaxx, The Saturdays & Metro Station to name a few! Fingers crossed we have some sunshine - not looking very hopeful at the moment though - grr!!!

Have a great week, Lots of Love Pisoni  xxx

Hi Mum,

Wow - what a weekend, busy non stop & not even the horrible English weather kept me from having fun! Me, Natt Noy & Chance had what must be the best weekend in England so far .....

On Saturday i helped Julie & her friend Jo, show the other toys a few sights of Bristol! We went where i went before, The Avon Gorge & The Clifton Suspension Bridge, this time we got to see some new views ...... in the distance on the pictures, and if you look really carefully you can even see the country Wales 

We walked around Millennium Square, and by the river & the harbourside in the centre of Bristol - all very odd that we are in the centre of a city, yet it can be so quiet & peaceful at the same time! Then finally we went to 'Blaise Castle' - even i hadn't been there before!! It's a beautiful 650 acre grounds with what looked like a mansion, lots of grass, forest & wildlife!! Julie told us it was over 5000 years old!!!! We walked around some little trails & walk ways, it is a little eerie in places though, definitely wouldn't like to of been there in the night time!

On Sunday we got up early & walked to the train station - we stopped of quickly though & relaxed by 'Bristol Bridge' - it goes over the River Frome .... we even spotted some swans chilling out there - they were up early!

Half hour later & Weston-Super-Mare here we are  We made our way to T4 On The Beach ..... it was raining, not best way to start the day, but we came prepared with umbrella & ponchos ..... while we waited to get in they had 'Red bull' planes doing stunts in the sky - they were so cool 

Once in we had the best day ..... it was very Busy & very wet in places so trying to take pictures was quite hard but managed to get a few of us through the day .... the Tour Bus where they were doing interviews, around the festival & in the crowd for the last set & with our Poncho to keep us dry! We saw so many music acts .... not sure how many you will of heard of, but you should look them up - JLS, Peter Andre, N-Dubs, Ironik, The Gossip, Metro Station, Daniel Merrywhether, Florence & the Machine, The Saturdays, Dizze Rascal, Calvin Harris, there were celebs around too - Gok Wan who does girls TV Programmes - 'Fashion Fix' & 'How to Look Good Naked', saw some of the cast of teen / young adult shows - Holyoaks & Skins! I am sure i have missed some people off, ha ha!!

But, the best thing was going to the signing tent & got autographs off to JLS - they were runners up in 'X-Factor' TV programme last year - they were amazing - the last pic is the best pic as it shows off the autographs, tickets & memorabilia from the day   

Found something else British for you to see .... we had the Fire Engine when we went to Derby a few months back, and Weston-Super-Mare bought us a Policeman & Police Women to have some pictures taken with ....  wicked  We queued for ages for the train ..... lots of people all trying to get home just like us    But, we made it back eventually & had time to get one last picture, and then relax & get some proper sleep!

All the pictures will be up soon from our adventure!!

Hope you & Maria are ok in Spain .... Lots of Love, Pisoni   xxxx

Here are my pictures form my fabulous weekend .... 

Hi Mum,

Well, the weather has been horrible in England all weekend 

We managed to pop out down the pub for a few drinks on Saturday but we stayed in for the rest of the weekend as Julie had a great idea to keep us entertained, she explained to me & the other toys all about English money!

We learnt a lot today .....

The 'Royal Mint of the United Kingdom' is the body who manufacture coins in the UK.  It began its operations in 'Tower Hill' London,  but moved to 'Llantrisant' South Wales in 1968, and has operated there since 1980!

Coins were originally hand-hammered, which is an ancient technique consisting of stricking two dies together with a blank coin in between them  - can you imagine how many people it took to make all the coins needed for a whole country? Luckily, since 1662 have been ' milled ' - which means machine made.

Prior to decimalisation (15 February 1971)  the British coins were:
                half crown (2s 6d)     
                two shillings or florin
                shilling, sixpence (6d)
                threepence (3d)
                penny (1d) 
                halfpenny (½d) 
                farthing (¼d)
 
Current British coins are:

                1p
                2p
                5p
                10p
                20p
                50p
                £1
                £2

In the years since decimalisation a number of changes have been made to the coinage:

                * 20p coin was introduced in 1982
                * £1 was introduced in 1983 to replace the Bank of
                * England £1 banknote which was discontinued in 1984 
                * 1990s the Royal Mint reduced the sizes of the 5p,
                    10p and 50p coins
                * £2 coin was introduced in 1998
               
In 2008, all coins aprt from £2 were redesigned - they introduced reverse designs that each depict a part of the Royal Shield of Arms, aoprt from the £1 which had the whole Shield of Arms on it!

Also, all current coins carry a Latin inscription 'ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA FIDEI DEFENSOR' meaning "Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Queen and Defender of the Faith"

And finally, all modern coins feature a profile of the current monarch's head - currently Queen Victoria II . The direction in which they face changes with each successive monarch!

Now on to the notes ..... Banks first made banknotes in 1694 - that was years ago  !!! And, until the middle of the nineteenth century  - weirdly, privately owned banks in Great Britain and Ireland were free to issue their own banknotes! But, 'The Bank Charter Act 1844'  gave exclusive note-issuing powers to the central Bank of England.

The first coloured banknotes were issued in 1928, these were also the first notes to be printed on both sides.

Like the coins all current notes have Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse side, as well as hidden watermark. On the reverse though, there are different people dependant on the note:

Current British Notes:

                £5 - has Elizabeth Fry on the reveres
                £10 - has Charles Darwin on the reverse
                £20 - has Adam Smith on the reverse
                £50 - has John Houblon on the reverse

There are no Welsh banknotes in circulation - Bank of England notes are used throughout Wales as the last Welsh banknotes were withdrawn way back in 1908!

Scottish and Northern Irish banknotes are very unusual, firstly because the notes are issued by retail banks, not central banks! And secondly, as they are not legal tender anywhere in the UK – not even in Scotland or Northern Ireland! Both use Bank of England, £ sterling as their currency.

Julie had some notes that we had pictures with, but the rest we had to look up on the internet ..... we even found some pictures of the really old coins too!

With all that learning we built up an appitite, and Julie thought it would be great idea to make her some tortilla wraps for tea ... wraps, chicken, lettuce, cucumber, sour cream & salsa dip, and lots of cheese, between the 3 of us it was done in no time - we defrosted the chicken and cut it up into little pieces! We heated up the pan with oil in it & let the chicken cook!

We sliced up all the veg, grated a huge pile of cheese, popped the wraps in the mircowave for a minute, de-greased the chicken & 'voila' - food ready - it was yummy 

The pictures will be up in no time for you to see 

Have a good day! Lots of Love, Pisoni 

Here are my pictures for you 

Hi Mum,

Last week we celebrated a birthday with Natt Noy, one of Julie's other toys! It was fun .... Julie got home from work, we took Natt downstairs, Chance covered his eyes until we were ready then we surprised him with a birthday banner, and a cake with some candles on it .... Happy Birthday Natt Noy!!

Lot's of Love, Pisoni  xxx

Hi Mum,

I had a busy weekend this weekend - Saturday was out last day with Chance, he is off to Fife in Scotland .... it was sad to see him go, we will miss him lot! We gave him one last hug & away he went

Me & Natt Noy made the most of the weekend, for once in about a month the sun was shining, yay!!

Bristol have a yearly event over 3 days called 'Bristol Harbour Festival'! It takes over the city centre & by the harbour, just streams of people, food & drink stalls from accross the world, as well as massive stages and area's with all kinds of performing arts ..... music playing, people dancing etc, it was amazing! It attracts more than 200,000 visitors over the weekend too!

We walked into the city centre from Julie's house as it was such a nice day - we went past a massive church - St Mary Redcliffe Church - It was built in the early 14th century, but parts of it date back to the 12 century! It is very medieval / gothic in design, and inside is a superb collection of carved bosses, elegant eighteenth century ironwork, beautiful stained glass and a world famous organ.

Way back in 1574 Queen Elizabeth even said to have proclaimed the Parish Church of St Mary Redcliffe to be the "fairest, goodliest and most famous parish church in England." The oldest part of the church, the inner porch, dates from the 12th century with its black Purbeck marble columns!

We wondered through the streets at the festival & had a look around the different stages, then walked along the river back home - Julie pointed out a boat called 'The Thekla' - the boat stays docked & is used as a nightclub, venue for small bands to play in!

Today Julie told me i am off on a new adventure this weekend - she is posting me off to San Diego, U.S.A ... later in the week Julie is going to show me where it is on the map to make sure i don't get lost, i cant wait 

Lots of Love, Pisoni    xxx

Hi Mum,

Here is my last update from England .... Julie showed me where i was going on the map, then i had a massive hug with Natt Noy before i hopped in the envelope & off i went, i am soooooo excited!!!!

I will update you as soon as i get there!

Lots of Love, Pisioni  xxxx

Hi Mom and Julie!

I arrived in sunny San Diego today after an easy but long voyage.  I am Nancy's first ToyVoyager!!  She enjoyed the postcard and note from Julie.  She visited Bristol many years ago.

This evening I am resting while Nancy and her puppy, Mitzi, play and do their things.  Nancy is not too sure that I will be able to be photographed with Mitzi as Mitzi is pretty playful.  She's a seven month old Maltese and Poodle - a Maltipoo!

Tomorrow we'll take some photos when I am a bit less jet lagged.

Good night for now,
Pisoni

Hi!

I had a relaxing weekend getting over my jet lag. 

In the photos you can see me sitting in the sun with Mitzi.  Mitzi is cute and fun but she tends to get a little rough so Nancy has to put me up where Mitzi can't get me most of the time.

The weather is very pleasant, sunny but not too hot.  I may get a little tanned!

We enjoyed the chocolate that Julie sent - ate it all up before we took the picture after my arrival!

See ya later,
Pizoni

Hi all!

I just wanted to let you know that I am still enjoying the mild San Diego climate. 

We will start seeing the sights soon beginning with a trip to Palm Springs Sept. 1 and then after a few days there we will stay at the famous and beautiful old Victorian Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego.

I am especially excited about our trip to Disneyland for Nancy's birthday in September.  We are both looking forward to that.

More photos to come in a week or so.

Take care,
Pisoni 

mmmpffgh!  mmmmpppfffghhhgghh!  help!