Liverpool Part One: City
I tend to go quiet on social media during the school holidays. Too many demands on my time, and it’s all about doing things with Joe. Sitting and editing pictures, putting blog posts together and taking any sort of organised approach to all things Frond & Feather - well, just no. Not an option.
School opened its doors again yesterday and term has started, so here I am.
We’ve had an eventful summer and made the long journey back down to England at the beginning of August. I want to write some catch-up posts, to bring us up to date, and the first is our stay in Liverpool. We had a few nights with Jay’s auntie who lives there, and we were all looking forward to a day in the city; I do get the occasional urge to experience the hustle and bustle, to visit museums and galleries and book shops…
We started with a trip up the Anglican cathedral to look out across the city from the roof (I’m terrified of heights), passed through Chinatown then had a wander around Bold Street and the Bluecoat (one of my favourite places; I love the courtyard garden and little shops). After that Jay, his auntie and his mum took Joe for a tour of Anfield.
I’m not a football fan - I don’t even take a passing interest - so I stayed put and took my camera down to the waterfront.
I really like Liverpool; it’s such a varied city, friendly and great for discovering on foot. I didn’t get to walk along Hope Street, another favourite area, but I had a long itinerary and it was a hot day. There was a lot going on by the docks: carousels and food trucks, boat rides and lots of people coming and going, visiting the shops, museums and the Tate.
I don’t usually like crowded places. Nothing to do with feeling claustrophobic, I just get irritated easily by other people. I’m nice like that.
But it was good to see a bit of life and culture, and I always enjoy looking up at the architecture. Liverpool has a rich history and its buildings are amazing, both in the city centre and the residential areas. I think you could easily spend a week there and discover the outlying places too, like Sefton Park and its palm house, Lark Lane with its independent shops and cool cafes, Port Sunlight…
Living on Skye you generally can’t wait to get at the shops, and you’re prancing about in anticipation like a racehorse in the starting gates. I did have a good look around but to be honest, I didn’t buy that much. Several pairs of brightly coloured tights (John Lewis), cartons of nut milk from this wonderful shop (I regretted that later on when I was lugging them around in the heat) and a mooch around Waterstones. I thought I’d be trying on clothes in Zara, looking at cool earrings in Urban Outfitters, trying on shoes in Office… But no. Some days you’re just not in the mood for shopping and this was one of those days.
After several hours I wound up sitting on the steps of the World Museum, nursing a bottle of cold water and waiting for my lift. Cities are great but exhausting, especially in summer. Still, I got my tights and that made me very happy.
Joe had had a good time at Anfield although he’s not really into football either. I think it was some sort of father-son rite of passage where Jay was concerned, and that’s a good thing because it meant I’d had an afternoon alone in the big city. Sometimes we need a change of scene. I may have been hot and tired by the end of it, but I also felt refreshed in a way. Could I live in a city? Probably not. But I do love them in moderation.
Just as well because we’ve booked a week in New York in March, and I can’t wait. And Joe’s beside himself with excitement…
