Manchester City Centre

You may or may not recall that, along with a 'few' photos of Charlotte, I promised to share the sights of Manchester.  When we got back I was asking my friend Lucy if she'd ever been to Manchester.  Not surprisingly, her answer was "No.  When you live in the South of England, Manchester just isn't anywhere on the list of places you think to visit." Truth be known, if you live in the South of England, the whole of the North isn't on that list.  But that's fine; it makes it less crowded for those of us who know about it.

I think Helen was feeling a bit housebound as she was keen to get out and about.  There was a library I was hoping to see and Bill liked Helen's suggestion of visiting the Museum of Science and Industry.   We took the car and then walked around the city, snapping photos as we went.  Helen hasn't toured her home town properly since she took a job and moved there, so it was all new to her as well.

As we passed Manchester Cathedral (I got it confused with Winchester - the silly song, you know), Helen said it wasn't very big for a cathedral. 

Turns out it dates back to the 13th century and is also called Christs Church.  

This area is called the Medieval section. Manchester didn't really blossom until the industrial revolution fueled the enormous textile industry in that area.

I was intrigued by this very skinny building with the multi-story conservatory at the back.  So far as I can tell, it may be the Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants. Apparently there was a bridge built across this ditch and parts of it can be seen if one tours the Cathedral.  The Middle Ages must have been such a charming time to live, don't you think?  Me, neither!

Bill and I both took photos of this lovely Art Deco building.  Turns out it has an interesting history as well, with a pub license dating back to 1730.

Manchester has shopping opportunities such as a Harvey Nicks and Armani; don't you know I'd been hanging out there  were it in Newcastle (That's a joke, son).  

There is an All Saints in Newcastle and funny enough, the crafting ladies were just talking about how all those antique sewing machines they had in their window had disappeared.  Maybe they all went to Manchester?

I just loved this little building.  Apparently other people do as well, as it is a Grade II listed building.   St Matthew's Sunday School building used to be part of this grand structure, now gone.

We stopped for a coffee and saw other grandparents about.  That was kind of fun.  Maybe like ticking the next age category box, that experience felt like I moved into a new demographic category.

The category that has no desire to visit the Cloud 23 Bar that hangs on the side of Beetham Tower, to look down from the tallest building in Manchester.