Tuesday 28 January 2014

A weekend in the North West

 
This year, we decided that, instead of Christmas presents, we would take a couple of short trips away together.  The Boy chose a few days in the Cotswolds for his trip (you can read about it here), while I made the admittedly strange choice of the North West for mine.  Strange, because my dad has lived in Manchester for the past twenty years, so I visit often.  Stranger, because I also briefly lived in the city in 2001, before coming back to Leicester to finish my degree.  But I've always felt like it's a place I want to spend more time in, and what better city to be a tourist than one you already know your way around?  I'd also found an exhibition at Tate Liverpool that I really wanted to see and when we realised how frequent and fast the trains between the two cities were, my choice of weekend away was cemented.

The broad theme of the weekend was alternative and left wing culture; we spent most of our time in Manchester hanging out in the Northern Quarter, epicentre of the city's indie and alternative scene, while in Liverpool we went off the beaten track to find a great veggie cafe/bar/'creative hub' (Mello Mello on Slater Street - much recommended for tasty food and lots of boardgames to while away a Sunday afternoon).  Meanwhile, we visited the Art Turning Left exhibition at Tate Liverpool, which examines how art has been influenced and shaped by left wing values, and The People's History Museum in Manchester, immersing ourselves in the history of socialist movements and trade unions in the UK.

In the Northern Quarter we discovered craft superstore Fred Aldous; truly, my life was not complete until I found this place.  I could have bought half the store, but limited myself to just a couple of things.  Top of the list to buy from their online shop is this collection of redesigned modernist rock posters by Mike Joyce. 


The Boy also delighted in the discovery of V Revolution, a vegan diner/food shop and punk record store at the end of Oldham Street, where he feasted on fast food.  I couldn't quite stomach a burger-based breakfast, so we also visited Blue Daisy Cafe, which has a wide range of veggie and vegan options, for amazing French toast (me) and fruit (him: I think he was trying to mitigate the burger). 



I enjoyed introducing The Boy to my old haunts in Manchester, like the Night & Day Cafe (a fab place to grab a drink and see both local and national up-and-coming musicians - please sign their Change.org petition as they are currently threatened with closure) and the four storey indoor market Afflecks Palace.  As a weirdo hippy indie chick in the 90s, Afflecks was a haven for me; a place to buy knock-off band t-shirts and rainbow tie-dye laces for my Doc Marten boots.  I was heartened to see that it hasn't changed all that much in the past twenty years, and I was much taken with the loos (see below), because I favour juvenile humour.


  


12 comments:

  1. Looks like you had a lovely weekend and you both look so cute in the passport pics!

    Also, I wish that I never clicked on the link for the prints, as I want them all!

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    1. Aw thanks. You can tell how much I hate being in photos by the fact I'm clinging to T's arm for dear life!

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  2. Yey, good old Afflecks Palace! Didn't realise it had a photobooth, we found the one in Fred Aldous when we were in Manchester last year. Glad you found that place as well, I also wanted to buy the entire store when we were there!

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    1. It's such an amazing place, I could have stayed there all day. Definitely came away with a big list of 'wants'.

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  3. Ha ha, love the toilets! And the prints are awesome. Sounds like you had a great time. I'd love to visit Manchester some time - infact the only place I've ever been to in England is London, so anywhere in the north of England would be cool, but this post is really selling Manchester!

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    1. Manchester it definitely worth a visit, and combining it with Liverpool is really easy too - it only takes 50 minutes on the train, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the latter.

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  4. Aw wow glad u had fun in Manchester. I live quite near - just over an hour away on the train but i dont go often enough.Discovered Fred Aldous on a trip there too. Not sure if i'd find it again! Love Afflecks too.Nice passpirt style piccies.:)

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    1. We always say we'll use photobooths more often, it's such a nice thing to do, and black & white photos definitely win as it hides a multitude of sins!!

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  5. This looks just perfect. I love those posters too!

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  6. I haven't been in Afflecks since it re-opened as I was too scared they'd have made it rubbish but I obviously need to get back in there again next time I'm over!

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    1. It IS a bit rubbish, but only in the way it's always been rubbish (if you know what I mean). T bought a great vintage flannel shirt but I came away empty handed, despite being very tempted by some vintage polka dot loveliness.

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  7. Love love love Manchester! I still consider it my second home, so enjoyed reading this post immensely. :D Afflecks Palace actually nearly closed down a few years ago (OK, after a quick Google it's more like 7 years ago!) but I think there was a petition and as you can see, it stayed! So glad it did. And NQ is just great; I usually pop in Fred Aldous when I'm back.

    I now feel very Manchester-sick.

    Jen | gingerellaj.blogspot.co.uk

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