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Published: December 13th 2009
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Blackpool Beach
Lots of people but not many swimming! In early August we had a birthday to help celebrate in Stafford so we went a little early and spent two days staying at a YHA in Chester. From there we visited around and about but the highlight was the day trip to Liverpool to catch up on a bit of Beatles nostalgia - very ’60s and just great!
On the Friday we drove up and detoured across to the big Bury market, just north of Manchester. It was quite interesting with the usual market stuff - I could have spent ages looking at all of the stalls but of course there were such a lot which were exactly the same as the others. It was very English and I really enjoyed the hot black pudding as a pre-lunch snack. We then went to Blackpool - we had briefly visited 5 years ago but it had been wet, windy and very depressing. This time it was sunny, hot and very busy. Interesting along the waterfront with lots of people sunning themselves on the concrete steps but there were no donkeys! Saw an Indian lady wriggling her bare feet in the sand - dressed in sari and winter coat! There were lots
Liverpool
Magical Mystery Tour of fish and chips and ice creams and about 30 young punks with their brightly-coloured extreme hair-dos.
We spent the next two nights at the Chester youth hostel which was due to close the next month. Although the floor-boards creaked alarmingly in the middle of the night and some of the maintenance was (understandably) obviously not being done, it was very comfortable and seemed pretty full the two nights we were there. It was also good value as breakfast was included. On Saturday we went to Liverpool for a nostalgia trip - visited The Beatles exhibition then did a Magical Mystery tour by bus (highly recommended for people of a certain age!!). We were taken past the houses the boys lived in as kids - both John and Paul’s are now owned by English Heritage and set up as museums. The bus drove down Penny Lane then to the intersection where the barbers shop, bank and shelter in the middle of the roundabout still stand - the bank is still there, the barbers shop is now a hairdresser and the shelter in the middle of the round-about still survives - but only just as it is derelict and very run
Penny Lane
This is the shelter in the middle of the round-about - the Sgt Peppers Restaurant has been and gone and the building not used any more. down. There was no sign of the fireman with the hour-glass (and his clean machine) or the pretty nurse selling poppies from a tray. We drove on to see the gates to Strawberry Fields - which had been an orphanage in the song and is now a Salvation Army Retreat. The whole tour was good value and quite nostalgic with the guide having a good patter and playing all of the songs at the right time. After the tour we walked down the many steps and had a drink in The Cavern Club. What was once the very seedy and run-down docks area is now redeveloped into a modern shopping complex and very busy on a fine Saturday afternoon - interesting that the Tate Gallery even has a branch there.
On the way back to the Hostel we visited the Waterways Museum near the Manchester Ship Canal - it was a pity we didn’t have a little more time as the whole area was most interesting and I even managed to find the shed full of old engines to drool over for a while. Closing time came too soon so we headed back to Chester. On Sunday we headed to
Liverpool
I guess if you had a choice of where to have one pint in Liverpool, this would have to be it! Stafford for the birthday party and on the way visited the Anderton Boat lift and did a quick tour of Quarry Bank Mill. The boat lift is a lovely piece of Victorian engineering which was in danger of demolition before a group of enthusiasts lobbied parliament for funds to restore it - part of the tour was a boat ride up the lift which was a real bonus.
(Bit of engineering stuff coming here) The lift has two caissons each of which could take two of the longest narrow-boats - or one wider barge. The original operation was by a large hydraulic ram under each one - as one went down it pushed the other up so required very little power to make it work. Unfortunately they chose to use water as the operating fluid and, as it was appreciably salty, the rams rusted and failed after about 25 years. The next re-build saw the frame strengthened and large counterweights fitted - electric motors drove gears, pulleys and wires to lift and lower the loads and this method lasted until the lift was closed in 1983 due to corrosion of the structure. The modern restoration reverted to hydraulic operation -
Anderton Boat Lift
From the boat about to enter the lift for our slow ride upwards. but uses oil rather than salty water - and the pulleys etc have been retained but are not used.
The Quarry Bank Mill is an 18th century factory originally spinning cotton, then later expanded to weaving the cloth as well. Home to Britain’s largest working water wheel, it powers the looms which are still used to produce Calico cloth - albeit as part of the museum activity and tourist attraction. We were once again able to gain free admission via our Historic Places Trust membership which was just as well - our time was limited so we did a very quick tour before heading on to Stafford in time for the party.
It was very nice to help Bob celebrate his 70th and on Monday we headed south and were home in time for lunch.
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Martin Burford
non-member comment
My Home City until I was 17
Hi Ian and Wendy, Some moving pictures for me as I used to go to the Cavern regularly. The music was so loud you could not talk to each other. Had a few holidays in Blackpool which has not changed much----no sea except for a 10 minute high tide which then quickly disappeared again. Did you visit Speak Airport (Liverpool Airport) where the series Easy Jet was made? It is also Bob's home town. Regards Martin