Monday, March 30, 2009

Zander And The Chocolate Factory

The other night, I finally finished reading Charlie & The Chocolate Factory to Alexander. I fondly remember this book from my childhood and was glad to share it with my son.

Interestingly, when I picked up the first Harry Potter book I remember being filled with that same sense of wonder that reading the Roald Dahl book gave me -- and not all that dis-similar when you look at them. A young impoverished boy struggling through his days is given a chance to enter into a magical world of wonder and discovery.

Of course, this second read-through of the Dahl novel wasn't quite so fun for me as I remember it as a child. Alexander enjoyed it, though, particularly the very last scene in the novel when the glass elevator goes crashing through the roof of the factory (he's rather fond of smashing and crashing)

In any case, shortly after finishing reading the book, the locally owned Walker's Chocolates had an open house. People could go on a tour if they brought non-perishable food items for the local food bank.

And off we went to get a tour of the Walker's Chocolates factory in Burlington.

It was a decidedly fun afternoon. We got to learn a great deal about how they make their different chocolate treats and watch the various stages of the "life" of a hollow chocolate bunny. It was great to see how the hollow chocolate figures are made, and the stages they go through before they are complete and ready for the shelves. Not only that, but they flattered me by insisting that I wear a hair-net. yes, it was decided that I actually had enough hair to warrant wearing one -- wOOt!

Quick note -- Harry Walker, the owner, was not eccentric like Willy Wonka -- and the Oompa-Loompas must have had the day off, because there wasn't a single one in sight.

1 comment:

lime said...

oh what a fun activity to have just after finishing that classic. good memories you're making there. :)