Well, not really that’s me. ‘Cause my name's not Claude. But I love that song. And I love this city. It’s so un-fucking-believably friendly. And pretty.
I know I’m not going to do it justice. I’ll try to hit the highlights and perhaps elaborate more, well elaborately, later.
The Southern hospitality style friendliness, but with the beauty of the English not Southern accent. You know how Southerners give directions? “You cain’t miss it, you’ll find it no worries dear, it’s just up that road by Bessie’s diner which has the best apple pie in the world.” Same thing ‘cept with an English accent and “it’s dead easy love, you’ll find it no problem, just head up there past the Peterloo and take a right.” Took us three days to find out what the Peterloo was. But we found our hotel alrighty.
First night, met up with some friends of friends that are now definitely friends. They’re Cam gamers who managed to get a 17th century church to host their game in. Is that not the fucking coolest or what? It’s the Sacred Trinity Salford, a pretty tiny church with a vicar that thinks gamers are cool. He lets them use the church for their game and for Tiff and Phil’s going away party. We arrived in Manchester just in time to wish them good bye as they’re returning to Portland, Oregon. Now that’s timing!
Saturday was fairly lax and lazy. We tried, based on a recommendation from someone the previous night, the Chinese restaurant just down the street from our hotel. It does banquet style where you just pick your price point and they bring you what they recommend. Spot on and absolutely yummy. Just next door was this wonderful Chinese bakery. We went there Sunday with Tiff and Phil for all kinds of yummy buns.
Speaking of yummy buns, we were one week away from Manchester’s Pride Parade which is apparently a huge deal with hundreds of thousands of GLBT folks arriving for the event. We weren’t going to be there for it, but the preparations were starting. There’s a gay radio station that is called Gaydio. Don’t really know how it’s different from a non-gay radio station, but the posters for it were cool.
Lots of kudos for our hotel, the Arora International and its basement bar, the Obsidian. Between the bartenders and Tiff and Phil, that’s the reason for the lag in the travel updates. We spent Saturday night with the man trying any drink the bartenders wanted to experiment (and they were good!) then Sunday walking all over the city with Tiff and Phil.
Sunday night was dinner than drinks at Tiff and Phil’s favourite hole in the wall, but a fairly early night. Monday the man and I wandered over the portion of the city we’d missed the day before then hanging out in the bar for the evening.
Tuesday was checkout and catch the train to Bristol to see Jules and Janna. They are doing fabulous and have been wonderful hosts. I’m about to get a proper English breakfast!
Will provide more Manchester details/discoveries as well as the Bristol update later. Photos from Manchester have been updated in my FB.
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