I am a Southerner born and bred and have always seen anything north of Birmingham as THE NORTH- just one big place of unexplored terrain full of people who spoke funny and put gravy on their chips and apart from a few family trips to the Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales, I was pretty much ignorant to what gems were hidden up there until I met Sam a few years ago and have since regularly made the pilgrimage up the M6 for trips.
Sam's family, although living in various parts of the UK now, are originally from Liverpool and since returning to England we have made the journey numerous times to the city of dodgy shell suits unjustified stereotypes to visit her grandparents who still live there.
Liverpool is slowly beginning to hold a little place in my heart now and what I've learnt about Liverpudlians over my various trips there are the following 3 things:
1. They're a friendly bunch
2. They're proud of their city
3. They love their football
Unfortunately as seems to be the case whenever I go on a city break (such as my trip to Birmingham) it seems to rain the entire time and this trip was to be no different! I'm pretty sure I am possessed with an ancient apache curse of causing persistent downpours on every city that befalls my acquaintance but not to be defeated we (being me, Sam and Sam's mum Gaynor) soldiered on into town to explore this great city.
Our first port of call was the Albert Dock, the newly renovated dock area encompassing shops, cafes and galleries which is easily one of the city's main attractions. Sam's grandad worked down this area for the majority of his life, when it was a fully working dock, and having his stories to contextualise how iconic this area is to Liverpool made it all the more interesting.
Being the cultured bunch that we are, I suggested a trip to the Tate Liverpool art gallery. I am not a huge art fan myself but I enjoyed my last trip to the Tate Modern in London with it's weird and wacky pieces and thought that this gallery would be a similar experience. I must be honest here and confess that I was slightly underwhelmed with the entire process- I do have my reservations with what is considered modern art sometimes and upon seeing four folded linen blankets considered an 'installation' I was worried that all my cynicism would be proved correct.
There were however a couple of pieces that I really enjoyed and did save the gallery for me such as the Pollock that was on display:
and this clever sculpture:
I tend to base all my judgements on art on aesthetics and although I didn't know if I considered this an art installation, I still felt that this 5- man- bicycle deserved a mention:
With it still being a little dreary outside we then opted to visit the ultra modern looking Museum of Liverpool and it was a welcome change from the quiet and subdued visit to the Tate gallery.
You're greeted with a plethora of noise and flashing images all of which proudly display Liverpool's role in modern pop culture from Cilla to a little known band called the Beatles, there's a karaoke room, there's a section on the city's sports stars and on the dance scene of the 90s surrounding the Cream nightclub.
As I mentioned previously, Scousers are a proud bunch and this is never more apparent than in this museum, I feel that even the most cold of hearts would struggle not to be moved by this city's pride.
You continue around the museum to learn of the city's involvement in WW1 & WW2, there's a really interesting section on all the different ethnic, religious and social communities that make up the L8 area of the city (something I knew nothing about until this weekend). There is obviously a prominent section on the docks which as previously mentioned is such a big part of the city's history and for transport buffs there's also a section on Liverpool's Overhead Railway (the first electric elevated railway line in the world) and you can even climb in a full scale model carriage fixed at the exact height from the ground as the original would have been.
A really interesting part, especially for Sam, was the section dedicated to the city's military- more specifically The Kings Regiment- which her father served in for over two decades in which she recognised the soldiers in the photos and can remember her dad wearing the various uniforms on display.
Following our trip to the museum we were in need in some refreshment (and further shelter from the rain) so we walked into town and looked for a coffee house. Sam's mum knew of a place and took us to the amazing Rococo which from the outside looked like the front door to a flat but once inside developed, in a tardis like fashion, into a trendy independent coffee bar complete with jazzy chandeliers, mismatching furniture and exposed brick walls- our table by the window just happened to look over the infamous Cavern Club just to add to the charm of the place and the coffee was bloomin' good too.
Image courtesy of the Rococo website
The remainder of the afternoon was spent browsing the city's shops and returning home for the most perfect lamb roast dinner.
I have never left a trip to Liverpool with anything but fond memories (and a few extra pounds from all the nan food) and I would recommend a visit to this city to everyone although I can't guarantee that you'll receive as many endless cups of tea and humorous TV punditry as you do when you visit Sam's grandparents.
Hello and welcome to This Ruth Is On Fire, a UK blog which is a haven for random thoughts and sarcastic observations.
I'm also into books, clothes and visiting places too.
