Blogs from Liverpool, Merseyside, England, United Kingdom, Europe - page 2

I am on the train (14:40) to Liverpool after three hours in Glasgowwandering up and down the imposing streets in the city centre. The huge sandstone Victorian buildings speak to the wealth of the Glasgow merchants who made the city a financial hub. Even now, bigger than Edinburgh, it also looks more prosperous – no premises for rent or charity shops in high rent districts. This morning, one last time I sat on the #11 bus watching the bungalows of Buckstone turn over to the attached Victorian residences of the inner city and then to the monumental buildings of Princes Street. Walking to Waverley Station was simple, because of scoping it out yesterday, and because I left in time not to rush. I got on the train, which was almost empty and wrote travel notes for ... read more

It took only 30 minutes after catching the train from Hoylake to Liverpool via the Mersey River Railway Tunnel. I enjoyed the day as I was totally surprised by the ease of moving around. There was no congestion on footpaths or roads. From exploring the inner city to the waterfront to the cathedrals to quiet streets to the Radio City Tower it was a day of new learning and appreciation. Mary was kind enough to let us drive her car to the Hoylake Train Station, where one is able to park free for 24 hours! With return tickets in hand we were set for the day. The temperature was kind to us and very conducive for comfortable walking. As I had not been into the ‘depths’ of Liverpool city before, I took it slowly, so as ... read more

I usually spend much too much time describing the journey of getting to where I am going, so this time I am going with the abbreviated version. Dropped at Canberra Airport, through to Sydney, KL then London. Each time making use of the lounge. Flight out of KL delayed but still got into London ok. Then it was the Heathrow Express, to the tube and finally a train to Liverpool, then a taxi to the Airbnb, arriving a little before 2pm after leaving home a good 36 hours previously. A quick shower and we headed out for a bit of an orientation tour down to Albert Dock. Ended up visiting the Tate Liverpool despite neither of us really liking modern art, but we were trying to kill a little time before going to bed. So we ... read more

After our sojourn in Ireland, Caribbean Princess returned to the UK where our next port of call was Liverpool. Liverpool was a city I very much wanted to visit. My great-grandparents had sailed from here for America. Several of my ancestors lived or were married here. Caribbean Princess docked at the Liverpool Cruise Terminal, the latest iteration of the Liverpool Landing Stage. The location is ideal, adjacent to Pier Head, with a view of the "Three Graces" World Heritage buildings and downtown Liverpool. Liverpool has heartily embraced the cruise ship business, as evidenced by dockside greetings by the Liverpool Ukulele Orchestra and the costumed Town Crier. Walking across Pier Head towards the reimagined Albert Dock, we noted the old and new. There are the imposing "Three Graces": the Royal Liver Building, Cunard Building and Port of ... read more

I was finally able to sleep in for once. I went down to see what the breakfast was going to be that the hotel was offering. For about £8 you had a choice of undercooked bacon, hash brown triangles, baked beans, toast, bagels, large pork sausage, somewhat runny scrambled eggs, and various cereals. Juice, tea, or coffee were the beverages. Typical English breakfast. So, I decided to walk up the street for about 5 minutes and grab a bite to eat at McDonalds. Yes, again! I have eaten more at McDonald's in the past 3 days than I have in America for the past 2 years! I grabbed a biscuit sandwich and a melon fruit bag (McDonalds offer various bags of fruit). I headed back to the hotel to catch up on some blogging. The Magical ... read more