Huggy, Hoppo and reunions

This is a varied blog just to update you before we have our annual Baboon HQ holiday.  Some special things have happened in the last couple of weeks, to tell you about.

Firstly, a new baboon arrived at Baboon HQ.  This was definitely not intended but he is settling in well.

Meet Hoppo, he is a big baboon like me, 45 cms/22 ins tall.  He is one of the most handsome baboons I have ever seen.  He came from Germany.  How did he get his nam? Well let's let him tell you.

Hello, I'm Hoppo.  When I first arrived we watched the Australian programme Bondi Rescue, about the lifeguards on Bondi beach.  I really like the lifeguards.  I couldn't choose a name between them but wanted one of their names, because they are so brave.  Our manperson suggested Hoppo after the head lifeguard and because he thought the name suited me.  I agreed, so I am now Hoppo!!

The second thing to mention is our 80th rehoming.

 

 

 

Meet Huggy, he went to live with @Avofpunkinhead, in Canada.  He is a very polite baboon so he started out by shaking hands with Punkinhead's girl.

 

 



He soon started hugging!  Here he is with Punkinhead, they seem to be getting on well already.  Huggy was very tired when he arrived but when he had had a good sleep:

 

he woke up and told them that his name was Huggy.  Huggy may look a little bit familiar to you.  That is because he is the brother of Marley who was rehomed with Willy, in Oregon, a few weeks ago.

 

 

This is Marley with his new primate friends.  You see they are similar but have their own individual faces.

Another very exciting thing happened this month.  One of our rehomed baboons was reunited with his parents.  This is so exciting, its never happened before.

 

Dear @CelesteB3 managed to reunite her rehomed baboon, Xolani with his parents.  Can you imagine that!  What a great thing to happen!  Xolani's dad is called Babatunde which means daddy has returned and his mother is called Yewande which mans mother has returned, Celeste explained the meaning of the name to me and they seem very significant.  Can you image the happy scenes, they all live together now.  How wonderful of Celeste to make that possible.

I also love to see rehomed baboons meeting up.  It happens from time to time but this one is particularly funny.

 

 

 

What a lovely cuddle puddle with @MumbasGabig, @BooBooBearGreen and friends including their baboons Tartuffo and Tony who is sitting on @MumbasGabig's head.

 

Well that is what has been going on at and from Baboon HQ.  Thanks for reading.  The next blogs will be from Mini-Kolo in the US, including tweet-ups and meetings with some rehomed baboons.

Bear exhibition

We have a guest blogger today and I have to warn you that he is not a good photographer!!  Actually he is not even a guest blogger as I am having to write it for him.  Anyway here goes.

My person's lovely old Teddy Bear, Tet Bee met up with Henry @Henryandfriends to go to a Teddy Bear exhibition in Portsmouth City Museum.  I am sure this exhibition is old hat to all of you,as both Tabitha and Martha have already been.  However, these bars wanted to have a look for themselves.  Tet Bee, who has been with my person since her first Christmas, doesn't get out so much so he got all dressed up in his Bearmani outfit for the occasion.

 

Tet Bee ran into some famliar faces including Sooty and Sweep and Winnie the Pooh, there are others here whom he didn't recognise but he stopped to have a look anyway.

 

Prime example of poor photographic technique here, despite directions from Henry, and we also know that Martha and Tabitha have both shown you this picture (well actually a much better one of the same bear), but we couldn't resit him as he really is so much like @DoctorRedBear.  He was labelled as Napoleon Bearnoupart.

 

With a slight improvement in photographic technique Tet Bee managed to get a picture of this lovely old chap.  He made Tet Bee feel very young indeed!  So young, in fact, that he climbed up this wall with Henry hot on his heels!

 

Yes the old boy actually got to the top first!!  He is very proud of that!!

 

This was a big exhibition of moving Steiff bears and monkeys.  Tet Bee was keen to show me some of the monkeys.  Henry took part in the production of Shakespear they were performing.  I'm sure he will show you.

 

Before leaving Tet Bee was delighted to see a chap who might be an ancestor of our dear friend @OllyTed.  If he is he would be a great, great ancestor at the very least, as he was born in 1910.  He really is a handsome chap, and very like our Olly we think!!

The lighting wasn't excellent, to protect the bears, so the pictures are not excellent (well that is Tet Bee's excuse), that is for the protection of the elderly bears. However, we hope you get a flavour of the fun they had.  It is a great exhibition.

Tet Bee has a word of caution for you all.  When planning days out make sure you are not going on a day when there is a special event for the under 5's.  Elderly bears find noise challenging and the cafe was packed out.  However, he did enjoy his outing.

Emirates Cup

Yesterday Mini-Kolo had a very exciting day.  He went to the Arsenal stadium to see the first day of the pre-season friendly tournament, the Emirates Cup.

He got ready in his Arsenal shirt.  He was hoping Mr Wenger would give him a game.

First he had to go on the car ferry from Fishbourne, our car ferry port, to get to Portsmouth.

 

Mini-Kolo got on the ferry first so he enjoyed watching the other cars being loaded.  Then they set off to sea.

 

Heading towards Portsmouth.  When they got off the ferry there was a long drive in the car to London, that is around 70 miles.  Mini-Kolo needs his mid-morning coffee so they stopped to get that.

 

He had to be careful not to spill his coffee on his Arsenal shirt, Mr Wenger wouldn't like a coffee stained Arsenal shirt would he!!

 

After parking the car at Richmond, on the edge of London, they got the train to Highbury and Islington.  Mini-Kolo had a little nap to be ready for the game.

They had great seats at the Emirates stadium.

 

Mini-Kolo watched the games and cheered in all the right places.  Arsenal didn't win their game, they were two goals down to Napoli at half time, and Mini-Kolo was a bit disappointed.  But then Alex and Theo came on and everything changed.  The action was right in front of them for most of the second half with Arsenal shooting lots at the goal.  We got two goals for a draw, and Mini-Kolo was much happier.

Some old favourites were playing, our old friend Eboue was playing in the other game for Galatasary and they saw Mr Drogba the famous Chelsea diver playing for them too.  Pepe Reina the old Liverpool goal keeper was playing for Napoli so they saw some familiar faces.

They came home on the tube and then in the car.  There were two games so it was quite late by the time they got to the ferry.  Mini-Kolo thought Portsmouth Harbour looked very interesting in the evening light.

 

Now we are watching the second day of the tournament, on television, so we will see if Arsenal can win today.