The Beatles

Hopped on the intercity bus for a day trip to Liverpool, as Mandy put it "to be groupies". Listened to the Beatles, and Gerry And The Pacemakers in the bus on the way to get us in the mood.

Lots of the civic buildings were near the bus station so we saw them first - the very impressive Town Hall, St George's Hall, the museum, the art gallery and the statues of Queen Victoria and Wellington (every city has them).

Found the bus interchange and went out to Anfield, home of the Liverpool F.C. and walked around the ground, though the thought of a second tour in two days was too much. Took some photos for Brett.

Back into town and down to the Cavern Quarter, home of all things Beatle. They featured on the Liverpool Wall Of Fame, and John had a statue in the street. Walked down Mathew Street where it all began, and went into the Cavern Club where they did 292 gigs in three years. Had lunch in a pub in Mathew Street (yes, there's a plaque claiming that they drank there), then walked all the way down to the river to the Albert Dock where the Beatles Museum is located.

It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day so we spent the afternoon walking down the Mersey River singing songs like 'Ferry Across The Mersey' and looking at the riverside development (every city has one). There's lots of walking, eating and shopping areas, and a big new Convention Centre.

Saw lots of canal boats moored at the docks, and visited the Immigration Museum. Actually it's a slave museum designed to tell the story that 90% of the U.K. slave trade was organised from Liverpool. It's how they afforded the cotton and the machinery that turned Liverpool into a large and prosperous city, and was one of the three largest European cities to base their economies on slavery.

Past the large port buildings and Town Hall back to the bus station for our return leg. Unfortunately, the connecting bus at Manchester was very late, so we didn't get back to the hotel until well after 8pm. Had dinner in the hotel restaurant, and for the third night in a row we listened to the Carpenters Greatest Hits on the musak. Mandy can't believe that its the same music that was playing when she was last here 40 years ago. A fun day.