I feel like I have lived my whole life in ignorance. Prior to visiting Liverpool, I knew that it was a city and that The Beatles came from there. That’s it. Having only recently found a love for The Beatles, I found myself particularly excited to visit the city. Since asking for landmarks on Threads and reading online, I have learned so much more about this wonderful city.
The trip wasn’t particularly long, with only five hours to explore, as we chose to visit via a coach trip day excursion, but it was a great way to introduce myself to the city. We didn’t have high hopes for our trip, as the weather forecast looked bleak in the days leading up to it, but thankfully, when we arrived, the weather turned out gorgeous. There were a few moments when conditions became overcast and a very short and light spell of rain, which made for some lovely photos, but overall, it was lovely.
We arrived at Albert Dock, which, as a fan of waterfronts, was a great place to start. We met a very friendly baby seagull and loved the tradition of attaching padlocks to the chains surrounding the seawall. We continued, as most do, towards Graving Dock to see the Edmund Gardner. We didn’t enter the docked vessel, but I really wanted to. I wanted to visit the statue of The Beatles, but there were a lot of people in groups waiting to have their pictures taken with the bronzed stars, so I passed it by.
We made our way towards the Liver Building and then headed towards the heart of the city. On our way for food, I took some of my favourite photos from the trip, including the featured image for this article.
While we were on our way to get food, we decided to visit the Christmas Market at Saint George’s Hall. Along the way, I couldn’t help but make a B-line up Hood Street to take what I like to call a pre-arranged photo. You see, a few days before visiting, I decided to check out Google Maps Street View to see if there were any interesting shots that I could snap. I found what I believe to be an awesome spot that had two sets of street lights with the City Radio Tower in between them. When I saw it on Google Maps, I just knew that I had to take this photo, so I went on my way and was overwhelmed with joy when I took the photo.
Because it was a Sunday, only real shops were open, so we decided to start finding somewhere to eat. This was a major point of controversy among the members of our party, as no one could decide where they wanted to eat. We ended up with Subway at Saint John’s Shopping Centre, a far cry from a proper restaurant meal that we planned.
Continuing our journey, we strolled through Saint John’s towards the high street, capturing moments along the way. While the others indulged in some shopping, I took a detour down some lesser-known roads, eager to explore. It was during this exploration that I stumbled upon the old Poundland, a hidden gem with its amusing leftover signage, just waiting to be captured.
We finished the trip with a stroll around the Liverpool One shopping centre before heading back to Albert Dock to head home.
While I had a wonderful time in Liverpool, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of regret for not being able to visit all the recommended sights. I’ve already started planning my next trip, likely in the spring, to ensure I don’t miss out on these experiences again.
Here is a list, in no particular order, of places that I was recommended by the kind folks on Threads.
Georgian Quarter + Hope Street (Used for filming)
St. George’s Library
Albert Dock
Bluecoat Centre
The Waterfront
Anglican Church (St. Luke’s)
Queens Avenue
Sefton Park
Castle Street (behind Town Hall)
Speke Hall
Royal Liver
St James Graveyard
I’m going to have to keep my eyes out for any deals on hotels so that I can spend a few days in the city. There is so much to see and learn about Liverpool that I have fallen in love with it, and I simply can’t wait to visit again. After visiting Manchester last year and Liverpool this year, my mum has made it a personal goal to visit every city in the UK, and I think I will be pursuing a similar dream of photographing not only every city but every coastal town and village, documenting as they change and evolve over the years.
Liverpool has inspired me to see and learn as much as possible about our wonderful country. Since I started cycling in 2021, I’ve had a renewed love for the UK, which has been further cemented since I picked up my camera again.
I’m just saddened that I have lived over 30 years without knowing much about Liverpool, let alone visiting. I feel that the education system needs to include more information and history about UK cities, a way to introduce children to new places outside of where they live. I was taught about London and other countries, but there wasn’t much memorable information taught about anywhere else. But, this is a conversation for another time, maybe.
Thanks for reading. I can totally understand why video is a much better medium than text, as it’s difficult to explain and show how great my experience was in Liverpool. I always feel like I ramble in text, but in video, I suppose it’s easier to talk?
Anyway, enjoy the gallery!
SB.P 