11. Liverpool

My brief overnight stop in Liverpool packed a lot into 8-9 hours. On arrival into Liverpool Airport I got the 500 bus into the city centre. Payment was so easy using my phone. The journey into the city was very pleasant indeed, as the evening sun was descending over the Mersey. The route went all along the water before arriving in suburbs such as Aigburth that I had heard of before. Then the high-rise city centre appeared. It was certainly a lot more modern and higher than I remembered from my last visit in the late eighties. 

My hotel was a Travelodge beside Lime Street Station,  but to get there I had to walk for 15 minutes through the vast redeveloped Liverpool One shopping district. I was amazed at the throngs of people strolling around on a Monday evening at 7pm !

I was meeting up with a past pupil Derek Kirwan from CBS Sexton St, all of 31 years ago, who got in touch with me via social media during the summer. Derek is married and has been living 30 minutes from Liverpool for the past 12 years. 

He suggested meeting in The Bierkeller  a German themed bar in the Liverpool One district. 

We spent a few hours reminiscing about life in Limerick 30 years ago and he filled me in on what some of his classmates were doing and where they were  now living. 

I tried a superb local IPA beer on Derek's recommendation, but forgot to take a note of what it was called.

Dinner afterwards was in the GDK- German Doner Kebab, where despite the 30-minute wait, the food when it arrived was excellent.

I had a very comfortable sleep in the Travelodge, which was very quiet. I couldn't fault it. I was also able to store my luggage there the next morning while I explored the city.

I did not have breakfast in the hotel and instead went to Lovelocks on the ground floor of the same building. They had a very interesting menu full of vegetarian and vegan choices. I chose porridge with blueberries, spiced apple, banana, caramelised pecans and maple syrup, followed by an americano and sourdough toast. The excellent reviews on TripAdvisor were spot-on. 

The Sights

Set up for the day, I headed for Albert Dock. The redeveloped docklands area which houses several museums and numerous cafes and restaurants.  

The permanent exhibitions in the Tate were very impressive.  The standout works for me were Picasso's 'Girl in a Chemise' painted in 1905 and Richard Hamilton's 'The State' from 1993,  depicting a British soldier during The Troubles.

I then made my way across the city to the Walker Gallery, passing some great architecture on the way.

The Walker was holding a  major exhibition of the finalists in the 2023 John Moores Painting Prize which was amazing. 

I then visited the permanent exhibitions, which include a great collection of modern 20th century British painting. Choosing two favourites from among the works on display was difficult,  but I narrowed this down to 'The Fever Van' by JS Lowry from 1935 and 'Interior at Paddington' by Lucien Freud from 1951. 

There was also an interesting display of Art Deco Pottery from 1932  by Susie Cooper similar to a set we have at home. 

Then it was time for some liquid refreshment!  Derek had recommended The Ship and Mitre, which was really handy as it was a 5-minute walk from The Walker Gallery and just across from the Travelodge and my left luggage.

From the 51 craft beers on offer, the barman recommended an Oak Cream Looper IPA by The Full Circle Brewing Co. which tasted less strong than its 6.4% would suggest. It was delicious.

My overall impression of Liverpool was that it was a fun, lively city with lots to do and with a great vibrant buzz about the city centre. There seemed to be students everywhere which only added to the atmosphere. For anyone into shopping, the vast pedestrianised Liverpool One area has everything you could want from all of the British High Street stores to luxury boutiques. It was a very relaxed city to stroll around, and I would definitely like to spend longer there next time.