Following on from our successful Chocolate Tweetup in 2014, we decided to do it again in 2015! This year we combined it with the #icypinktweetuptour with Lillian (from Twitter @icypinklemonade) so more folks could get to meet her too. We had arranged to meet in the CadburyWord café between 11 and 11.30am and gradually everyone arrived.
Most of us had previously met each other but we'd not met Fluffy (@FluffytheFluffy) before so we took the time to get acquainted. We had a little time to kill before our 12.30pm tour so Grace, TiredTeacherTed's cub went off to the African Adventure children's play area. We chose to take a look around the shop. Flat Stanley liked these Cadbury chocolate mugs shaped like a piece of Dairy Milk (the old squared off shape!) We also introduced him to the Caramel Bunny.
Before we headed into the tour, we thought we should get a group shot of us on one of the Cadbury Purple Cows. It was tricky balancing up here!
We headed in for our tour a few minutes early, collecting three bars of chocolate - Dairy Milk, Curly Wurly and Crunchie as we headed inside. The tour starts in the Aztec Jungle, a thousand years ago, in the tropical rainforest of the Mayan Indians. That's Martha (@MarthaBBear) below right, in front of the totem pole.
Aztec Emperor Montezuma's favourite drink was "Chocolatl". The cacao tree was central to their culture. There's a pool here where you can throw your gold (coins) into a pond. They are collected for charity. Martha's friend Emily was trying to get closer look.
The next area tells the history of Hernán Cortéz bringing cocoa beans to Europe via several mini-theatrical 3-D productions, which don't photograph well! Throughout Europe chocolate became a popular drink, though very different to the chocolate drinks we know today.
We entered Bull Street, where John Cadbury opened his shop in 1824. We were surprised to be recognised by one of the live actors, who was playing Sir Thomas Moseley. We had met him last year and he and a friend held us up for a photograph. He and his new assistant were very obliging. We just had to do it again! Of course, Reddy, Martha and Emily got up to some shenanigans too!
Here we could see some of the early Cadbury products on sale in the shop. We then had a few minutes to meet John Cadbury via video link!
I'm led to believe there's another theatre here, but as I've never taken a picture of it and I can't remember it it is either very forgettable or doesn't exist. You decide!
Next stop is a theatre experience where we learned about how chocolate is made. The learning is helped by the seats moving and shaking, as well as blowers and even heaters! Frank and Theo were surprised when the bench moved!
Through the other side we were able to see some cows as well as some interactive media to show you a little more how chocolate is made.
From here we continued into the packaging plant. As we climbed the stairs we spotted the African Adventure Playground.
We are not permitted to take photographs in the packaging plant. There were a selection of conveyor belts and towers with chocolates being wrapped. Being a Sunday, however, it was pretty quiet.
One thing they do have in here, though, if you remember from last year, is a "green-screen" photo booth. You stand in front of the green-painted wall to have your photograph taken, then they can add whatever background/foreground you select. Having surfed a Dairy Milk bar last year, we thought we'd be more relaxed this year in a Flake bath. What do you think?
There was a short queue for the Cadabra ride - small brightly coloured cars, driving through Beantown. While we were waiting, we decided to be a bit silly.
The sign behind us says Teddy Bear's Picnic so we tried to get a photo but we failed miserably. Trust me, that's what it says! They also have a map of Beantown, but as the car is on rails, we figured we wouldn't get lost. Probably.
They have a camera on this ride and this year it was working so we were able to get our pictures. At least we got the assistants out of shot and ruining the picture.
In the tasting area, you are given a small cup of liquid chocolate and a few choices to add - I had white chocolate buttons and fudge pieces but there were also marshmallows and jelly babies.
They make some intricate pieces in here - the lady below was working on an ornate design and it was only after the Royal Baby was born that we knew what she'd been working on - a chocolate pram! The large egg outlines the history of chocolate in chocolate. Pretty amazing huh? We saw some footballs being made - chocolate poured into the mould then placed on a spinning device that twists and turns until the mould is covered in a thin layer of chocolate all over. According to the sign, below right, they even make chocolate teddy bears!
Here's the finished chocolate pram, made especially in honour of Princess Charlotte.
We headed through Advertising Avenue to look at some of the Cadbury adverts through the ages - with some from TV that my aged assistants could remember to fairly recent ones, like the chocolate rollercoaster and the drum-playing gorilla. The final part of the tour is another interactive area - Purple Planet - where you can chase a Creme egg or stand in chocolate rain.
The tour exits into the huge chocolate shop and we bought a few things, before doing the ride we missed last year.
The 4-D Chocolate Adventure Experience had only just opened the weekend we visited last year and, despite queuing for forty-five minutes, we didn't have any longer to wait and had to give it a miss. This time the line was much shorter - and more undercover, though it was sunny anyway, so didn't matter. Once inside, you go up in a lift to an anteroom and, while waiting for the main show, you get to play a couple of memory games, not unlike the Generation Game's conveyor belt - guessing what chocolate appears and in which order. Grace, who was with us, got to have a go at hula hooping and even Lillian had a chance to volunteer!
Then it was our turn to head inside to the 4-D adventure, picking up our glasses and taking our seats. The show starts with a chocolate lake before taking a ride in a Creme Egg airship, piloted by Freddo and Caramel Bunny, as well as riding the Crunchie rollercoaster. I have to say it was a bit underwhelming! Even with the 4-D motion seats, but I've never been a big fan of 3-D anyway. Ah well, it is all included in the entrance fee. This also exits into a little shop, just in case you forgot something!
Outside, we spotted Freddo and Caramel Bunny were posing for photographs so we bears had to get in on the act. I like Freddo but I do think Caramel Bunny is a little intimidating! Poor Frank!
Diesel locomotive No. 14 is housed in the grounds of the Cadbury factory. This 20-ton diesel locomotive was designed to look like the rest of the fleet, which was steam, and it began life in 1955 at the Moreton factory, moving products and packaging around the site. It had a top speed of 14mph and could haul 200 tons! It moved here in 2007 after Burtons Foods took over the Moreton Factory.
Remember this from last year? They have the Freddo Faces stand set up out in the yard and so we couldn't resist becoming Freddo! What a scary looking bunch eh? We missed Sooty this year - his show was on but we didn't have time to fit it into our packed schedule, although I know Fluffy stayed behind to see him. Soon it was time for us all to part company and return home, but there was time for just one more photo, this time with the Flatties too!
We had a fabulous time again at CadburyWorld this year. Even though we'd been the previous year, there was still stuff to take in and, of course, chocolate to eat! The World's largest Cadbury shop is amazing too. We are thinking of making this an annual event!!
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