Enjoying retirement
In The Red Rose County
York or Chester? This visit confirmed that Chester is the best of the best in terms of historic cities. But first a slight digression. We all know how our towns and cities have been disfigured by ugly concrete carparks. Well it needn't be so. Stratford upon Avon has a car park which although concrete has so much greenery growing on its various levels that it quite hides what's going on inside. And here are two very modern examples spotted from our train as it was pulling in to Manchester Victoria where the planners have gone for some imaginative solutions. Bravo. The train journey to get to Chester through the flat plains around Warrington and Newton le Willows was uninspiring to say the least, but once in Chester your soul is lifted by the range and quantity of architecture. We started at the famous clock hanging over Eastgate. Some people may look down their noses at the signs sported by modern chain stores but I think it is all rather well done. Good on you Chester planners. Wherever you go in Chester you must look up.... We were on our way to visit the cathedral. Someone had recently left a note on Trip Adviser saying don't visit, there is nothing inside to see. What drivel. Don't ever let negative reviews put you off without finding out for yourself. The surroundings were lovely. The ironwork on one of the doors was interesting. Inside, if there was nothing else, there would be the huge range of monuments of all ages to fascinate and arouse interest. The cloisters and chapter house were very atmospheric..... and all enclosing a pretty garden which didn't appear open to the public unfortunately. In our historic cathedrals and churches you have to look down as well as up....... We quickly found the oldest Norman part of the building in the North West tower but all the major styles of medieval English architecture are here. we were both particularly taken with this group, a near-life size Nativity scene.......... and medieval craftsmanship was everywhere to be seen in the woodwork...... At one point we moved from First Elizabethan..... to Second Elizabethan. I didn't realise, until Frances pointed it out, that this group is made up of a mosaic of computer keyboard tiles. Wonderful imagination I think. We had a tea, Earl Grey naturally, with a snack, in the Thirteenth century monks' dining hall..... Chester was as brilliant as any other cathedral we have visited. What a cretin that reviewer was. We were now to make our way to the walls, two miles in length, and a great bit of exercise. On the way we spotted the old facade of 'Westminster Coach Motor Car Works'. We then came across a side street which no-one else was using, and what a privilege it was to walk down its Georgian length away from the crowds. We joined the walls at the water tower (Chester was once a strategic port). All the way along the wall walk there are informative signs which are a cut above the normal. Talking of water, we passed above Thomas Telford's warehouse, the brick building here, and we must investigate this another time. Currently a lot of renovation of the walls, which are Roman in origin, is taking place, and you can see why when you consider the soft red sandstone here......sometimes our medieval ancestors used Roman tombstones and altars to patch up various bits of wear. We didn't actually see any examples. Must look harder. It is pretty astonishing what you see from the walls. Here the old infirmary (now part of the Girls' School next door?) This Georgian house looks as if it is being gradually pushed down into the ground. Most odd. I suspect that the road level has risen over time...... The racecourse is laid out before you. What a fantastic view of the finishing straight you would get on race days. We just couldn't resist coming off the walls to visit The Architect pub where we sat on the garden terrace with refreshments. What a really lovely place this was. And inside was special too. Huge book and picture-lined walls and I think I counted at least half a dozen beautiful dining rooms each with its own character. Next time this is where we will book our meal. Menu unusual and prices reasonable....what more could you ask. Resuming our walls walk we came across the castle, quite impressive but although owned by English Heritage (in other words you and me) it is very rarely open. A great pity. We walked close to what were obviously the castle stables. You can see the Norman keep too. Here is what was obviously at one time a watergate... More desirable side streets were followed by a stretch alongside the river - the Dee of course. and you pass just above the Roman Gardens. We ended up at the cathedral once more and strolled around town in a leisurely way..... Wherever there were empty premises (here Debenhams) the Council had done its upmost to ensure the street scene wasn't affected. Well done again. But in truth, considering the awful times we have been through, Chester gave the appearance of continuing prosperity and renewal. There were only a small number of empty premises all through the city.... and the cafes and restaurants were still taking big advantage of the expansion of outdoor eating we have seen. It all added to the vibrant atmosphere. This unprepossessing row of houses turned out to be very interesting, particularly in view of the recent trips we have made to Saltaire and Port Sunlight. Here was a town centre example of an entrepeneur looking after his workforce. The houses were built for the employees of Brown's Department store (as was). Very nice too. There seemed to be more snickleways than in York. I'd love to write a book about them. Life's too short. I was really pleased to see that Waterstones was on the upper level of The Rows, as last time we came The Rows seemed to be quite run down. This time, not a bit of it. For ex-shopkeepers like us this was a great thing to behold........... Oddfellows Hall....we caught a glimpse of huge chandeliered rooms inside. Another deserted street in the city centre just waiting to be explored. A particularly pleasant snickleway...... and looking at shop windows is not without its own pleasures. We were both cheered by this display. An early dinner was booked at The Ship on the other side of the river. After that home. We were entertained on all of the journey home by a voluble and happy Irishman who was insisting we try his whiskey. As the News of The World reporters used to say 'we declined his offer'. This man had definitely kissed the Blarney Stone.......
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An amazing place, still investing in new machines in the 1970s, and a unique survivor by virtue of its steam engine. At the time of our visit the steam engine was awaiting a broken part being mended, so electricity powered what we saw working, but this in no way detracted from our experience. Before we even entered the mill I was surprised to learn that it had been founded as a workers' co-operative with £20,000 capital and became the largest mill in the area. According to Richard our guide co-operative manufacturing ventures were quite common...this warrants further investigation. Recently a brick had fallen from the chimney. A £200k bill was then involved what with Health and Safety etc etc. Expensive but I do hope Lancashire C C always value and continue to preserve the jewel they have here. Our guide was Richard, a man who had worked at nearly all the jobs in a mill early in his life, and what an excellent guide he was - patient, humorous, and crammed full of knowledge and stories. When 'Peterloo' was filmed here he was one of the extras. Richard started at square one, what they made here (I should say made and make because they still do) - calico or grey cloth. We then walked through the historical development of mills and the Lancashire cotton industry - here was the basic Lancashire loom before its development into a more sophisticated piece of machinery. Here Richard was demonstrating the laborious process involving working a loom by treadle and two operators throwing the shuttle from side to side. He was also showing the dexterity involved in mending the inevitable breaks, and dealing with other problems. As small improvements were made to the machines the more powerful they became and the greater the output and variety of goods that could be made easily. This machine shows the warp being held at tension by weights at the front of the machine which could be altered depending on conditions. Semi-automated machines enabled patterns to be made more easily.... But it was the development of the punched card system by Jacquard that really enabled the cotton industry to take off, and this itself led almost directly to Babbage's 'Analytical Engine', the world's first computer. Great ideas and progress nearly always develops incrementally in this way. Next, to the boiler room where we examined the temporarily broken steam engine 'Peace' that drove everything in the factory, over 1000 looms and much else. The flywheel is 16 tons. Here you can see the drive shafts high above from which the belts attached to each loom were driven. Here the yarn is being assembled on spindles, ready for insertion in the shuttles. Richard's colleague started up one of the power looms for us. Ear protectors were available. The noise was substantial. With 1000 looms going, one can only imagine....well, I do remember, having been born in the corner shop 10 yards from a mill. When the doors were open, which was nearly all the time, the noise was terrific. The engineer was important of course in keeping everthing working. But the factory couldn't stop for him, if a belt broke he had to mend it and throw it back on to the moving gears. Next, to the amazing sight of the 300 looms still preserved in working order. The weaving shed here was used in several films including BBC's 'A Christmas Carol', 'North and South', 'Life On Mars', 'The King's Speech', and more. Although this mill was a co-operative, the rules were no less harsh than anywhere else, and fines were frequent. I particularly loved this collection of spindles. I retrieved spindles from under the working machines sometimes at the Preston Mill. I didn't keep any from those days, so was glad to buy one here as a memento of childhood. Our last step was the boiler house....very impressive, and run by two engineers who are retiring soon, with no replacements on the horizon. At the front of the fire..........the 3 shovelfulls of coal and coke I was allowed to throw on. All in all, a wonderful visit. The mill was closed in 2016 by the Labour Council as part of cost-cutting. Re-started in 2018 and with extra funding one only has to hope and devoutly wish that it will be maintained as it is - a truly unique survivor. We bought several of the items that are still made here. I can't find them online, surely an opportunity missed?
Manchester has always been my favourite city. Now I am not alone, it being picked by Time Out in 2021 as 'Third Coolest City In The World'. - We had a good start as our hotel - the Hyatt Regency proved a gem. The view from the window shows just 2 or 3 cranes. Last time we came there were dozens. Yes Manchester is getting finished! The hotel was next door to the Business School, so salubrious surroundings. Wherever we went, and we did an awful lot of walking again, the juxtaposition of old and new buildings gave enormous pleasure. And we always looked up....there was some fascinating architecture to see. Here the venerable Midland Hotel.........meeting place for Rolls and Royce....... The Free Trade Hall (now a hotel)...the acoustics were never very good for the Halle...... The Quays.... The Imperial War Museum, unfortunately closed... The Central Library with its famous reading room.... and impressive embellishments...here the entrance hall ceiling....we were inside to look at the Local History and Family section...it was great but overwhelming. St Anne's Church, refined and Georgian.... Hundreds of bars, pubs, restaurants, many now with outside seating and eating... a huge range of shops.... atmospheric by night... interesting statues old and new and interesting street furniture....the busy bee now very much Manchester's emblem..... The second day saw us at the Lowry to see a new Lowry exhibition (with paintings from private collections including interestingly several from the PFA), and an exhibition on Lockdown. I was expecting the latter to be tiresome...it turned out to be rather good. But the Lowreys were fascinating because they showed a whole range of subjects and techniques...here a self-portrait turned madman.. crowds of course, here on a platform... his mother's bedroom which whilst honouring her memory must surely have been based somewhat on Van Gogh's painting... Lowry painted a lot of seascapes and water landscapes..... this football match (obviously one of the PFA paintings)...... any of his erotic paintings were not on show but some of his landscape tended that way.... .......here one I particularly liked, The Lowry's newest acquisition, a very simple potrayal of David Lloyd-George's birthplace the most famous Welshman without a doubt born in Manchester.....really a painting stripped back to bare essentials.....full of character (to me).... as part of the permanent exhibition there are very interesting notes about people who influenced Lowry or whom he knew....here Ginner..... The Lowry is full of unusual aspects and it would be good to visit for a play sometime.... but lunch awaited us and we could see the bronze-roofed 'The Alchemist' calling..... a good if not great meal including cocktail set on fire...... more architectural interest on our way to the bus.... and I loved this (a pic taken from the bus)....a reminder of the huge industrial estate of Trafford Park (the first purpose build industrial park in the world) which is where my Dad and Mum worked and which I knew very well in the Sixties still then churning out industrial goods of all kinds....goods trains running though the streets, lorries everywhere, smoke and smells of all kinds...particularly powerful was a firm I remember nicknamed 'Rubbery Jim's' which processed rubber.. Now Trafford Park is still, apparently, one of the largest and most successful business parks in Europe....... On the third day we visited Mrs Gaskell's House. This road used to be lined with big villas like this. Now this house and the one next door are virtually all that remain of those days..... Best known for writing 'Cranford', 'North and South' and 'The Life of Charlotte Bronte' she was described on her death as 'one of the greatest female novelists of all time'. The house was a delight from start to finish. I enjoyed 'North and South' and must get onto the others. The guides were very very welcoming and full of knowledge and enthusiasm, and you were invited to touch everything and sit wherever you wanted. Whilst the house contents were dispersed on her daughter's death in 1913 (despite attempts to save them along with the house), the house today has been reconstituted as near to how it would have been as makes few odds. A great job by the Manchester Historic Buildings Trust, and others. Her passport was fascinating, made out for her, her daughters and maid to travel. Husband William preferred to stay at home and walk in the Lakes if possible (rather like me). I sat in her working chair....why not? and I was astounded to learn, something I certainly didn't appreciate, that to keep postal costs down it was common for Victorians to write cross hatch, first one way and then at right angles. You would swear it would be impossible to read, but not so. The chair and desk had a view over her much-loved garden (then more extensive). One of the most enjoyable of such visits we have had. As in Liverpool I lost a lot of pics so here borrow from the net. But I couldn't not mention our visit to the Crown and Kettle pub, a real highlight for me. As well as being a real ale pub of some provenance, it is a Grade 2 listed building, closed for a large number of years after a fire but re-opened thankfully in 2010. What a place. Absolutely amazing. Everyone should visit. Really. The last of our highlights was afternoon tea at Cloud 23. We knew as soon as we stepped out of the lift that we were in for a treat. and because our tea was not served straight away, we were offered complimentary champange or a cocktail. These Vimto-based cocktails proved absolutely amazing. The tea was probably in terms of its quality the best I have had. and then of course the views. It reminded me most of standing by a model railway layout with continual movement of trains, trams, cars and lorries. Quite exceiting really. I do hope the cladding on this building is in order. The toilets were both stylish and playful, not something you can say very often.
We were looking forward to getting to know the city even better. The view from the hotel window was fine...............you can just see the Queen Elizabeth cruise ship in port and the Three Graces. The room itself was tired and shabby as so many chain hotels. But cheap. The staff by the way were terrific. The first day we had a good wander around seeing some marvellous buildings and a wonderful juxtaposition of old and new. Pity I deleted the 140 photos taken today to allow my phone to function again. (I thought they had already uploaded to Amazon....only about half a dozen had). We had to see the Phil (start of a few pub crawls in the 60's). On this occasion we didn't go inside. And we headed for......... .........the Georgian Quarter which was pretty well unbelievable - really extensive and full of charm. One of the streets was Rodney Street where I had attended a party in the 60's at which Roger McGough wrote a short poem addressed to my accompaniment for the night. I reminded him of this when he came to speak as a visiting author. He didn't remember. Mind you why would he (part of the group The Scaffold ('Lily The Pink' etc etc) along with Paul McCartney's brother) remember anything of the 60's?! Marvelling at the overwhelming number of Georgian houses, we found ourselves on Hope Street and decided this time to see the Catholic cathedral or Paddy's Wigwam as the locals call it (the monster CoE cathedral is at the other end of Hope Street). Although basically a concrete shell, the nearer you got the more impressed you became. And inside was spectacular enough, whether in terms of the building itself..... the stations of the cross....... the tapestry (this one 6 years in the making)....... or even the concrete detailing outside which was interesting. The only thing that let the cathedral down was the surrounds....there was a bit of an attempt at a monastery garden, but hey. That day we did more than 18,000 steps which in an urban environment is a lot. The next day, a Tuesday, the museums were open. So we strolled through the Albert Dock (where our hotel was situated.....one of its plus points). Sympathetic re-use of building everywhere, including the Pump House here (now a pub)....... and we went first to the Tate (part of the Albert Dock fabric). Basically we were totally unimpressed. Pretentiousness and childish simplicity pretending to sophistication is not my cup of tea. Good job there was just the odd thing to keep us interested...here a Lichenstein with, in the background, some art featuring Chillon Castle on Lake Geneva which brought back pleasant memories. Here a Picasso....... Very little to keep us, so outside we went.........past the Harbourmaster's house, and along the quay............. to the Museum of Liverpool a striking, dazzling white, futuristic building..... which was absolutely crammed with interest inside, and a model for all other museums.... full of audio, film, artefacts, interactive bits and pieces, and very very instructive on the history and culture of this great city....... Here was The Lion (aka 'The Titchfield Thunderbolt, ex Mersey Docks) a very early locomotive which was actually working under its own steam until the early 1990's but has now become a prize exhibit here as too much deterioration of original parts would otherwise have resulted... Poor Liverpool MP William Huskisson the first ever railway casualty featured.... and, having glimpsed a carriage from the well-known Overhead Railway... we moved to the next floor .where we learned all about it. What a wonder of its day and I suppose how Liverpool wished it had it now (demolished despite public protests in the fifties). We only saw a fraction of what the Museum had to offer, and could have spent a day there, but onwards and upwards......past more magnificent buildings in a host of classic and ecletic styles.... actually downwards as it happened - to St James Station which (an unremarkable plaque I could hardly see informed us) was the oldest deep-cutting underground station in the world. Quite something. The train took us to Port Sunlight, a beautiful model village built for the workers at the nearby Lever Brothers factory, and comparable to, but even more impressive than, Saltaire. The range of Edwardian styles was memorable, as was its setting...... ..................here the park we walked through just across the road from the station.... we came eventually to the astonishing war memorial, built by two of Lord Lever's own employees, which commemorates the 503 of his employees that died and the 4000 who served. Pevsner considered it very moving whilst avoiding sentimentality. the memorial stood at the centre point of four wonderful avenues, here replete with roses.. and at the end of one of them our destination - The Lady Lever art gallery. We had read good things about the gallery, but we weren't prepared for the sheer quantity and supreme quality of what lay inside. Virtually every piece of art was to be admired and savoured Here even Millais' Forever Blowing Bubbles, although sickly sentimental, was of interest because of the fascinating history behind Lever's use of it in advertising..... I particularly liked the Sculpture Hall which contained top-drawer seventeenth and eighteenth century copies as well as original Greek and Roman pieces. What a wonderful place Port Sunlight and the Lady Lever Art Gallery was. A real eye-opener. the best museum/art gallery outside of the V&A I should say. Having rested a while at our hotel (after another 16,000 steps) we ventured out into the soft romantic evening sun, which really made the buildings glow, looking for sustenance. We were heading to the far end of the Quay just over a mile away, to a fish restaurant. a purely sculptural fire escape (one hopes!)..... The Queen Elizabeth which we had seen yesterday at close quarters when we did the Mersey ferry cruise (pics deleted) had been replaced already by the huge cruise ship 'Virtuosa' which to our astonishment was manouvering out despite the low tide.... There were large crowds on shore and on deck, and music playing. I was filled with nostalgia for the cruises I had been on on the Reina Del Mar, starting sometimes from Liverpool. But this, the Virtuosa, was 181,000 tons and the Reina Del Mar was 21,000 tons. One small swimming pool as opposed to 5 large ones. Nevertheless we had a military band to play us off, and our ship was much prettier. Here you are - the beautiful and classic Reina Del Mar.......... We hadn't booked at 'The Italian Club Fish' but the staff were charming and soon had us seated at a 'no-show' table. Fantastic service and food. On the way back to our hotel we passed the Isle of Man ferry terminal. We must go some time. We passed The Beatles too. Next day we walked up through Liverpool One to the bus station where we caught a bus, with a friendly and chatty driver, to somewhere near (well quite far from actually) Sudley House. From our put-down stop the walk through Aigburth lanes and roads was pleasant if tiring.... Bought by a ship-owner George Holt in Victorian times, he transformed it with works of art by the best artists of the time. It now represents the only surviving intact collecion of art owned by a merchant family with virtually everything still in its original location..... What a 'modern' painting this is...... and how beautifully painted this scene by a female artist. There are works here by her brother, but not as good! Rosa Bonheur was an unusual character, she had short hair, smoked and wore maculine clothing. She also had a small menagerie, visited slaughterhouses and dissected animals. Quite the feminisit. The painting features in an LGBT+ trail apparently. We then walked to Sefton Park where we had intended to visit the splendid Palm House. However, having found an ice-cream cafe we sat by the lake and then caught the bus back. We lunched at Bacaro (we ate twice there), and very good it is too. The fennel jam with the frito misto is just amazing. You could be in Lisbon or Barcelona quite easily. In the afternoon we were to go 'over the water'.........to of all places Birkenhead. I had a friend at college who came from Birkenhead, and no-one ever asked him about it (as we all thought we knew it was a dump, and didn't want to embarrass him - that's how thoughtful we were). What an eye-opener again. Hamilton Square, just outside the bus station, is huge, pure Georgian with magnificent architecture and a rather nice garden in the middle. It has the most Grade 1 listed buildings together of anywhere outside London. And designed by the architect who laid out Edinburgh New Town. Stupendous. And the average price of property sold in the Square over the last year (mainly 1 and 2 bed flats) was just over £80k. Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Edinburgh! Having done just over 15,000 steps so far we were a little reluctant to walk to Birkenhead Park but extremely glad we did so. It is a huge public park, designed by Joseph Paxton, and in fact the very first publicly funded civic park in the world. As such it influenced the design of Central Park in New York and the afore-mentioned Sefton Park, neither quite matching it in my view . The large lake was full of ducks... and rather large carp........ and the boathouse had a lovely fishy floor What a magical surprise, and when we caught the bus outside the park the bus stop adjoined a rather tasty looking British East India Company building. Beauty and splendour wherever you looked. Liverpool we salute you.
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August 2023
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