Chessington World of Adventures Zafari Bar and Grill

Chessington World of Adventures Zafari Bar and Grill.

It does sound like a long winded title for a children's adventure park even if the location itself was a delightful trip down memory lane. Children love the simple things in life and that can be no bad thing at all and, as we approached the entrance to what would prove to be a lovely family day out, we knew the day would be immensely enjoyable and wonderfully satisfying. And then we set about the day with the broadest of smiles on our faces.

Our wonderful grandson Arthur, on whom royal status has now been conferred, looked totally mesmerised and open mouthed with astonishment at the sight of so many childhood attractions and themes. It was hard to believe that we were so taken aback at something we may have seen advertised on TV so many times. But childhood never loses its lustre, simplicity and, above all innocence. No child should ever be ruined or sullied by anything that is quite clearly offensive and violent. Our children are our future and that is fundamentally important at any stage in their development.

We never fail to stop falling in love with the cartoons from the first years of our lives, the Disney characters who illuminated every moment that made those first nursery moments so memorable. It was a time when life was all about painting slapdash and haphazard pictures with pots of paint and then splashing watery colours on childish canvases. They certainly weren't Degas, Constable, Turner or Matisse but then our Arthur would never have been concerned with such lofty considerations while taking in the flying elephants at Chessington World of Adventures.

But today was very special for my wonderful family because today you witnessed the birth of a new generation, a discovery of something deeply magical, enlightening, revealing and so utterly pleasurable. My late and wonderful mum and dad always told me that becoming grandparents for the first time had to be the finest experience you could have as first time parents. It is now though, that as first time grandparents, that you begin to appreciate exactly what they meant. You see their beaming smiles, the happiness of seeing something that they can't help but laugh at because it's just incredibly amusing and entertaining. 

And so it was that we set eyes on the obvious optics, the vastly imaginative creations, the combination of art and horticulture, the sheer innovative genius of it all. In front of you, were beautiful pieces of grass sculpture, the revelation of a giraffe carefully designed by secateurs, cut and shaped to artistic perfection. There were also what looked like to be grass hedgehogs and elephants and, who knows, monkeys to boot. By now our King Arthur had become so enraptured by what was unfolding before him that only a seaside bucket and spade could possibly have surpassed anything he might have seen up until that point.

We wandered at our leisure around Chessington simply blown away by the appropriate music we could hear around the adventure park. It is some time now since you were introduced to Chessington and its manifold joys. There was a stall dominated by Pokemon creatures, those strange yellow and blue attired characters from the computer screen and somehow synonymous with the modern age. And so the colourful elephants flew up and down, the penguins appeared, waddling from side to side as if this day were somehow just another day at the office. There were squirrel monkeys, exotic and hypnotic as they jumped athletically from one bar to the next in a cage that looked so comfortable for them that you were tempted to hand them a glass of brandy and cigar just to make them feel completely at home.

There were the shows from members of the staff, girls dancing to the children and singing sweet songs that were perfect for their age group. By now our grandson Arthur was having such a good time that even mum and dad, grandma and grandma were joining in with the fun. It was a day to treasure, a day to remember when childhood was permanently uplifting and you simply didn't want the day to end. 

With the day at an end, both mum and dad, grandma and grandpa were pleasantly exhausted. The sun shone upon the righteous and we lived for the day and the present. Life was just flawless, summer was still here and you knew that the future was in good and capable hands. The school holidays were now in full flow and everywhere around Britain, the youngsters, teenagers and your beautiful grandson was having the time of his life. Sweet, sweet life.