Yes, northern Wales has been the recent theme but I’m based in Liverpool and I’m not likely to ignore that fact. Besides, there’s much still to see so it would be silly not to squeeze in as much as possible. Tomorrow is Snowdon Mountain and Friday I relocate to Leeds to spend the weekend with family. If Liverpool is going to happen then today’s the day.
Much like Cardiff, Liverpool is packed with things to see and do. Previously I had focused on the Beatles, Albert Dock museums, and famous buildings. This time I packaged together many top sites into a walking tour which I started only after a boat ride around the River Mersey. Knowing that most everything opens at 10:00 and closes at 5:00 I planned to fill every minute with activity … and this I did!
The Mersey Ferry ride was very rewarding. I finally got out of the core city and in to an expanded context. Liverpool has always been a major port where goods and people flowed to destinations across the Atlantic. The ferry ride took me to the mouth of the river which really drove this point home. Furthermore, I was able to see the cityscape from the river and become familiar with Wirral, the neighboring community across the river. On the Wirral shore I disembarked at one ferry stop and walked the two miles to the next ferry stop where I toured theU-Boat Story before boarded the ferry anew for my return to Liverpool.
Back in Liverpool, I stared out in earnest visiting the places on my list:
• Western Approaches – WWII command center for the Atlantic stage
• World Museum Liverpool – natural history museum featuring Plantactic!
• Walker Art Gallery – sculptures and a painting parade through history
• Bluecoat – Liverpool’s oldest structure, orphan school turned art gallery
• National Conservation Center – visited Lewis’s Fifth Floor, a special exhibit
• International Slavery Museum – the world’s first comprehensive overview
• Merseyside Maritime Museum – exhibits of emigration & Shackleton
The last museum listed above I’ve visited twice before but just can’t get enough of it. I expect that before I catch my train on Friday I’ll return again. The Albert Dock area where it is located is truly an important cultural center for the city. There are many things I didn’t visit, of course, and I could have spent more time everywhere. However I do feel good about the “loose ends” I tied up today.
If there was one theme I feel wasn’t insufficiently explored by me then it would be the history of Liverpool. After making such an effort to cover the primary museums in Liverpool I was surprised to realize I’d learned little about the city’s heritage. I mentioned this to an employee of the Merseyside Museum and he explained my dilemma. Seems I was in town at the wrong time. The Museum of Liverpool Life had been torn down two years ago to make way for the Liverpool Museum due to open in 2011. Guess I’ll have to return to satisfy my curiosity!
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