Southport, United Kingdom

It was nice to have another day without an alarm to wake us up or a plane or connection to catch. The hotel we are at is very good for an ‘airport cheapie’ which is more considered for overnight stays for early flights rather than a 4 night stay like we have chosen. We chose it due to our time lines and frequent use of the airport with early starts for our few days in the area and I am really pleased with its quality. When we first checked in we had an accessibility room which I do not like – remind me of a hospital, so we asked for another and if possible one with a bath, rather than just a shower. The lovely staff were accommodating and changed us to a room with a bath which we are really enjoying. The breakfasts are not bad either for a hotel and come free with the £50 room rate. They just cover the basics, cereals, juice, toast, spreads, pastries, fruit and eggs, beans, sausages, hash browns and bacon.

The day was another warm sparkler like yesterday – even a bit warmer probably hitting 22-24 degrees without any cooling breezes like the Isle of Man. Across the road at the airport bus stand they have a service person who walks around asking you where you are heading and then offers you advice – all free of charge. We got a day ticket for £4.40 and it wasn’t long at all until the number 500 came and whisked us expressly into town to Albert Dock.

The docklands area is an historical site for Liverpool which has long ben a major shipping center. Its port played a key role in several centuries of world history – as a point in the ‘triangle of trade’ of African slaves, a gateway for millions of New World – bound European emigrants, and a staging ground for the British Navy’s Battle of the Atlantic against the Nazi’s U-Boat fleet. Liverpool was devastated by bombing in the war, and then economically by the advent of container shipping in the 1960’s. It had troubled times in the 70’s and 80’s but things started looking up after than and when the city gained status as the 2008 European Capital of Culture spurred major gentrification, (buying and renovation of run down buildings by wealthy) EU funding and a cultural renaissance. It is no longer a depressed industrial center, but a clean and neat upbeat city of around half a million.

Albert Dock was opened in 1852 by Prince Albert. It encloses 7 acres of water, and is surrounded by 5 storey brick warehouses. A lot of money has been spent on tidying it up and it now has trendy cafes, restaurants, and museums including one for the fab four – Beatles. We had a little look around and grabbed a quick lunch, before going on our “Magic Beatles Bus Tour”. Lunch was our first “cod and chips” served with mushy peas. It was a two for one deal totalling £11 all up. It was very nice and I am sure it will not be our last sampling of this classic British cuisine!

Our tour guide on the bus was called Jay Johnson and his brother is Holly Johnson, lead singer in the group Frankie goes to Hollywood. Its actually very interesting to note just how many famous singers and bands came out of Liverpool. I think its about 52 and more than anywhere else in the world. The tour was really enjoyable and the commentary not limited to the band as we were taken around the city to see key sites relating to the Beatles, their upbringing and their music.

I personally was amazed at how pretty the city is. Granted it was a perfect summers day and that makes a huge difference to ones impressions but it is very green with tree lined streets, abundance of flowers, huge picturesque parks, Victorian terraced houses, some domineering historical buildings in particular the Anglican Cathedral which is the largest cathedral in Great Britain.

The tour ended dropping us off near the “Cavern Club” famous for the Beatles performing there in their early days. You go down to a cellar and they have live music all day and night with cover bands and artists. It was cool to experience that and then we looked for a shop to buy a UK SIM card for our iPad to help us when we are out and about. We got 3GB for £20 – which is not bad. Vern then suggested we had time for a mission to Southport to visit the home his Poppa grew up in at 10 Lytham Road.

Southport is about 1hr by train, with a few stops. The train was quite busy at about 4pm and we even got to experience some local young Irish semi traveller type mums. LOL just like the TV programs we have seen. We arrived at Southport a seaside town at around 5, and topped up on caffeine before easily finding a bus to take us out to the family home (public transport is easy here, especially with internet connectivity of iPad). The bus went really close to Lytham road as well – like Erylmore is a street of a main bus line route. Vern did not have the same experience as me – even though I gave him permission to get emotional LOL – but he was very pleased to have visited.

In the interests of time, we hailed a cab from there to take us to the pier to have a look at the seaside. It is rather grand with Victorian? (1700-1800) buildings, promenade and has a estuary running between the land and the sea where where you can swim. It looked inviting and clean and lots of families and couples were enjoying the summers evening. There is a long pier that extends along the wide coastline towards the sea which we walked up but we couldn’t go to the end as it was gated part the way down and closed. Vern was feeling a warm connection to the town (small city 92,000) and suggested we have a traditional dinner there at a diner we past – cod and chips and steak and kidney pud an chips. Who was I to turn down such a romantic offer? Complete with cup of tea:-)

It is a lovely, slightly kitsch town and the warm evening added to the relaxed English holiday resort feel. There were lots of old photos lining the cafe/diner showing ladies in long dresses and others enjoying the seaside a hundred odd years ago – it was a busy and popular place then! Interesting to note it has 7 golf courses and is a popular destination for this pastime, claiming the title of “golf course capital of England”. We could even see Blackpool tower and wheel up the coast in the distance. We got a train and then bus back home feeling happy and connected to this surprising and charming city and surrounds.