Off to the Show!

Every year in the October school holidays, our family loves attending the annual Perth Royal Show, which is run by the Royal Agricultural Society.  I started going before I can even remember, with my Nanna and my Mum.  These days Nanna is no longer with us, but Mum, Husband, Caitlyn and I still go every year.  Some things have changed at the Show over the years, and some have stayed just as they were when I was a kid.  It is a great day out, and we always look forward to it.

This year, the Woolly Alpaca family came with us.

It was decided that the twins, Gabriel and Tomas, might be a bit of a handful to keep track of in the crowds, and they were just as happy to stay home with Nanna and Grandpa anyway.  So Andre, Ariane, Joy and Angel set off excitedly.

When they arrived at the Show, the first thing the children wanted to do was go and meet some of the animals.  Angel was most entertained by the antics of the baby chickens...

"Look how soft and fluffy they are!"

Meanwhile, Joy had met a rabbit.

"Do you have any relatives in Macadamia Grove?"

There were so many places selling food!  The Woollys found themselves at a chocolate shop, and Ariane watched through the window, fascinated, as one of the confectioners made an enormous batch of honeycomb.

After that, the family was hungry for a sweet treat!  They considered chocolate, cupcakes, donuts, and even watched some popcorn being popped with liquid nitrogen, but in the end they decided on one of their favourite treats - ice cream!

Ariane and Angel chose their ice creams first.  Ariane chose raspberry, and Angel picked the richest chocolate he could see!  Andre and Joy seemed to take an awfully long time choosing their flavours.
"What can be taking them so long?" Angel wondered.  "Dad's been saying the whole time that he just wanted boring old vanilla."

Ariane looked around to see if she could see what was going on.  Just then, Andre and Joy turned away from the ice cream stall, both grinning widely.  Sure enough, Ariane noticed, Andre had his usual vanilla.  Then she spotted her daughter.

"What?" said Joy, impishly.

Ariane just shook her head.

The family then found a nice grassy spot in the Main Arena, so they could enjoy their ice creams whilst watching some of the entertainment.  

They watched the first heat of the sheepdog trials, saw ponies being judged ("It's kind of a beauty pageant, isn't it Mum?" said Joy), and a woodchopping relay that Andre found most impressive.  

"Murray Rivertail would love to see this!" he remarked.

Next, the children wanted to buy a showbag each.  They had brought some pocket money along for this very purpose.  They agonised over the decision of what to buy - there were so many options!

Finally, Joy decided on a lollipop bag, while her brother went for that old favourite, the Bertie Beetle bag!

As the sun started sinking toward the horizon, the Woollys spent the late afternoon exploring Sideshow Alley, with its loud music, flashing lights and the calls of "Come on folks, it's easy to win a prize!"

"I dare you to go on THAT ride!"  Angel laughed.  So much to her brother's surprise, Joy did!  She felt just a little bit sick afterward, but she wouldn't have admitted it for the world...

At the end of the night, it was back to the Main Arena for the big fireworks show!

It was the perfect end to a fantastic day.  The Woollys returned home, tired but happy.  They had had a great time, and hoped to return for next year's Royal Show!