Getting there is really easy, as it is to get any where in London. People always complain about London Transport but those that do are just professional complainers as London has a great transport system. Not perfect but great never the less. After all you can get just about anywhere in London at just about any time of day or night, be it by Tube, Bus, Boat or Train. There's always a way of getting from where you are to where you want to be.
At the Excel we found that the baby show wasn't the only thing going on that weekend. There was also a comic convention, a hoteliers convention and a Zumba trainers convention. Now I always thought that you would get no stranger bunch of people than those attending a comic / Sci-Fi / Horror convention, after all where else would you find people dressed up in all kinds of weird and wonderful garb than at one of those. Well let me tell you where. A Zumba convention, that's where.
I kid you not when I say that walking through a crowd of Zumba devotees is like walking through a Japanese Anime movie. They were all dressed in the brightest colours you could imagine, with several tassel's hanging from their baggy Goldie's Gym style leggings, tight vests with baggy cut down tops over the top and some even had multi coloured hair (with yet more tassel's) I ask you, is it a qualifying condition of being a Zumba instructor that you have to dress like a cartoon character on acid.
Now don't worry my dear peeps for the comic fans didn't disappoint. As my pictures below clearly show, there were plenty of fun loving comic book fans all willing to dress like complete wazacks for the cause. A skinny kid in a Green Lantern costume that was about 5 sizes too big for him, a fat kid dressed as the Flash ( I mean come on, accept you size and choose a character more appropriate like the Hulk or the Thing) A guy dressed as the Joker who looked more like a really camp version?!?! Of 70s Elton John with Harlequin in tow. A Wonder Woman who has definitely seen better years with a guy who was dressed as..... Ok I have no idea on that one and some people who were also just as baffling to me apart from the guy dressed as the Lizard from Spiderman (who by coincidence is also the bad guy in the new Spiderman movie re-boot coming later this year) I didn't manage to get any pics of the Zumba lot but you can see a few of the Super Hero peeps below.
Before I move onto the baby show itself I have one last Super to tell you about. This guy was dressed as the Punisher and I have to admit it was a good costume. This guy had everything the white skull on the shirt, pistols, knives and a big automatic weapon of some description hung around his neck. He really did look the part. The only problem though....... He was about 5ft tall! I think he was compensating for something.
Now onto the baby show.
First off I was surprised by the size of it. Me and my lovely wife (Romanianmum) had been to the baby show once before but at Earls Court, this was a couple of years ago when Kara was just a baby and if memory serves it was some what bigger there than it was at the Excel, which is surprising given the over all size of the Excel. But never the less it was still a good show. There were plenty of brands and products on show, both to look at and to buy. From nappies, breast pumps and dummies to prams, cots and play things. There was even a place for mummies to get a manicure if they so wished (what exactly this has to do with babies I have no idea but mummies do need pampering sometimes so I'll let it slip)
There was a free baby change area where you were supplied with everything you needed to clean up baby free of charge, which is always a bonus especially in these hard times. A play area where you could drop off the little one for a while and demonstrations and advice been given on stage all day long.
Some of the products on show were great like the Bunkcot, a two level cot that can be converted into bunk beds when they get older or a combination of the two. As you can see below, Kara loved playing in one while we were there. I think a purchase may come later if she ever gets a sibling.
Another great fun thing were the Happy Hopperz. If you ever had a space hopper as a kid then you will know what I'm talking about. These bouncy animals are the same kind of thing as a space hopper but rather than a big ball these animals were small enough for small toddlers to play on. Click on the link and check them out. While there we met up with some friends from the blog sphere, Snuggle-bubby and her husband to be (not long now) with their little one Dexter (lets hope the homicidal tendencies don't start showing later in life) After a coffee we all ended up looking at some rather nice leather changing bags from Koochu. These were very nice designer bags and looked no different from some handbags. There were even some that looked just like you're average leather man bag (now there really is no reason for Dad to avoid carrying the nappies)
While their you are also treated to a fair amount of freebies, from drinks and nibbles for the little peeps to detergents, anti bacterial sprays and dish washer tabs. Freebies, always a good bonus.
The whole experience was a good one but if there is just one complaint to make about the show its this, there wasn't enough toddler stuff. Now I know its called the baby show but really, there's not much of a leap from baby to toddler and while there was still some stuff there for the little peeps I couldn't say it was a balanced share of the floor space. I think for the sake of 2 words, the Baby AND TODDLER show it could be a whole lot better and appeal to a whole lot more people. But this is just a minor gripe.
I also have a small complaint about the Excel but it is by no means limited to just the Excel as Ive experienced this all over the place. Dads take the little ones to the toilet as well not just the mums. Kara needed to go to the toilet and so off I went with her, through a door, down 2 flights of steps through another door just to find that the baby change toilet was situated in the ladies! So I ended up taking her into the men's, not an ideal place for a 3 year old girl. Worse thing is you know how messy men's toilets can be and I had to sit my little boogie down on a seat in a men's cubicle. WHY OH WHY, when they only have space for a gents and a ladies do they only think to put a changing area in the ladies. I just don't get how architects can be so narrow minded as to think only women take little ones to the toilet. There were other baby change toilets scattered around but when a little peep says they need the toilet then you take them to the closest one, lets face it, they don't have the best bladder control at that age do they? So you don't have time to pick and choose which toilet you go to, but it might help if on their signs they actually told you if the baby change was in the women's or not instead of letting you go down the steps and be at the door before finding out. Excel management I hope you get to read this.
Below are a few more images from the baby show, nothing special but a quick glimpse into what to expect should you decide to go next time.
One last thing about the Excel itself. Should you get hungry while there, and lets face it that's pretty much a definite, then there are a great variety of food places to choose from as well as various places you can get a coffee, tea, beer or wine from. But be warned they're not cheap by any stretch and if your on a diet then all you've really got is salad, in abundance. But as exhibition / conference halls go, its not a bad place to go if you want to take in a show. Or a Zumba conference should you have a deep seated burning desire to dress up like a character from a Japanese cartoon.
Till next time....
The Voice has spoken.
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