Liverpool

We went to Liverpool this weekend where a young John Lennon and I hung out outside The Cavern.

Check out our photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dave_n_gen/

I was blown away (again!) by the history of the place. This was not so unexpected as Liverpool is well known as the location of one of the world's most important ports...until the last 100 years or so. It has been absolutely devastated by various economic factors starting with WWI, being bombed in WWII and then being part of "the north" when Thatcher basically abandoned everything north of London in the 80's. Things have improved since Liverpool won the right to be "The European Capital of Culture" for 2008. This has led to a massive regeneration in the last 5 years or so.

It's the home of the "most mistrusted accent in Britain" - scouse. The term "Scouse" apparently comes from the name of a stew that sailors ate. It's a blend of English, Irish and Welsh. Why it's mistrusted is beyond me. No idea other than, maybe, after 100 years of poverty the cities of Liverpool and Manchester have produced a fair number of criminals. I was told by a local that 8 of the top 20 most deprived areas in England reside in Liverpool. I personally like the accent a lot more than the Essex accent which may be the second most mistrusted accent. (But then, I had a miserable time in Essex) The Beatles made the accent famous but they don't really sound like a lot of the scouse I've heard. The Beatles sound way more laid back and softer than the high pitched accents of the many Liverpudlians. As with everything though there's a huge range of accents in the city and, as is usual in this wacky country, some of them are almost incomprehensible.

Liverpool was a massive and incredibly important port which ruled the shipping industry for centuries and so the people of Liverpool became wealthy and prosperous. The darkest part of it's history involves the role of Liverpool in the slave trade. Millions of West Africans were kidnapped and brought to Liverpool where they were sold, traded, or shipped to America. The economic windfall from slavery obviously greatly increased the purses of the people of Liverpool. In one century alone (I believe it was 1600 - 1700) 9 MILLION Africans were stolen from their lands. Shocking stuff. I learned all about this at the Maritime Museum at Albert Dock which contains the Slavery Museum. It's a sobering and powerful display and I admire the government of Liverpool for allowing such a frank look at an unflattering piece of their history.

Here's something that will blow your mind. I had the best meal I've had in England at a place called The River Diner. And...it was fish and chips. This fish fell apart and melted in your mouth, the chips were fantastic and even the salad on the side was sublime. There's something here called "mushy peas" which I usually find disgusting. Basically it involves making pea puree and putting a dollop of it on you plate. I hate peas so I can't stand this stuff. THIS mushy pea contained mint - didn't really taste like peas and was fantastic. Gen had a tomato soup which was clearly made from real fresh tomatoes - the bread that came with it was incredible. I'm telling you! It was great!

Albert Dock (which I previously mentioned) was some sort of massive industrial dock has now been turned into a huge museum/restaurant/shopping area that's amazingly beautiful.

Most of all though - I dig the Scousers! They're laid back in attitude though also incredibly lively and yappy. They're passionate and very social. I had the good fortune of watching the last 10 minutes of a Liverpool/Chelsea football match in a pub and as I stood among the sea of shaved heads, moustaches, and burly men shouting at the TV I thought "This is great!"