5 Free Things to do in Liverpool - Part II - The Cultured Edit
The person writing this blog isn't some born and bred Scouser, who out of identity and loyalty proclaims that, 'Liverpool is the best city in the world'. I'm not even from the North West of England, but Hampshire, but I love Liverpool. Liverpool has the best architecture outside of London. Its architecture is routed in his history as a trading port. There are over 2500 listed buildings in the city and 27 of these are Grade 1. It's a city full of potential, enthusiasm, wanting to put itself forward and say hey, come and visit us. Peoples’ perceptions of the city are very different to the reality; people are always amazed, by the history, culture, the architecture and the sheer amount that they can do, the restaurants, bars, galleries and theatres. If you've read 5 Free Things to do in Liverpool - Part I - The Uncultured edit you will know that I have chosen to write about: Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, The Albert Dock, The Walker Art Gallery, The World Museum. My first place to visit, is located in St James Mount.
Liverpool Anglican Cathedral stands tall and proud over looking Liverpool. The foundation stone was laid in 1904 and after 74 years of construction it was finally completed in 1978. This shocked me, assuming it had been built within the 19th Century, possibly earlier. It has survived two World Wars and is the largest cathedral in the UK and fifth largest in the world. It is a beautiful, stunning edifice to the city of Liverpool. Made of sandstone in the beautiful rich colour is stands out not just in its size, but the colour too. The Cathedral boosts some amazing statistics: It's 619ft in length; measures an area of 104,275sq.ft with the tower reaching 331ft into the air. As soon as you walk into the Cathedral you can clearly appreciate the vastness of the Cathedral. It like most churches and cathedrals up and down the land and across the world has a very calming, peace to it. The Cathedral has some eminent artists pieces including: Craigie Aitchison; Tracey Emin; Elisabeth Frink; Christopher Le Brun and Adrian Wiszniewski. Hungry after your tour around the Cathedral, well you can grab a bite to eat and then go on to visit the gift shop.
The Albert Dock - I suppose one of the first places that comes to people's minds when they think about what to do in Liverpool is the Albert Dock and so you should, not only is it steeped in history, but it has a little of something for everybody. Personally it's a place I love; different parts of the Dock have a different feel. The Albert Dock is part of the historic Liverpool waterfront and is recognised by UNESCO. The main area which you will recognise from images posted on the Internet is The Colonnades; this houses: The Beatles Story; Tate Liverpool; The Mersey Maritime Museum and the International Slavery Museum gives a great opportunity to stroll around the various bars, shops and restaurants/bistros. If you walk around the top end of the dock, it provides a grassed area, places to sit and chill out and also a Ferris wheel, if you fancy a bit of a spin and to et those great views. Personally I love this part of the Dock, purely because it's so 'scenic' and reminds me of downtown New York City. The cobbled roadway which is pedestrianised takes you along by the River Mersey, this is where you really get a sense of the history, one side you have the backdrop of the Mersey, the other the huge warehouses that once were, now very smart apartments. One interesting thing you'll notice are the hundreds and hundreds of padlocks with messages of love hanging from the railings, I didn't know these even existed, until I took my first walk along there, it's well worth going to see; don't forget to take yours!!!
The Walker Art Gallery is housed in an impressive building to start with. The building itself was started in 1874 with the laying of the foundation stone, opening to the public in 1877. The Gallery has been the National Gallery of the North for over 130 years; showing appreciation of the arts over fifteen rooms. The first room contains major painting and special exhibitions; other rooms are dedicated to specific centuries and the artists who were significant at their time, up to Room 15 which holds modern and contemporary art. The diverse range of art on display is incredible, some of it going back as far as the 13th Century, and then right up to the modern day with pieces by Hockney. Also within the Walker Art Gallery is housed one of the best collections of Pre-Raphaelite works.
One of the nicest things about the Walker Art Gallery is that it encourages children to become interested in art, on the ground floor of the gallery children can get involved with events and activities. The Gallery has made a great deal of effort to encourage young people to develop an appreciation by provide activities that introduce some of the most famous works to young people, it also has drawing competitions and tries to be as interactive as possible.
The Walker Art Gallery has something for everybody and all the joking aside, has to be visited to appreciate the sheer scale and exhibitions that the Gallery has to offer. There is an online shop where you can buy some gorgeous mementos and gifts. Better still it is housed in an exceptional building.
The World Museum This is a fantastic museum, that doesn't just house relics from the past, but also houses live exhibitions. The kids will love it. Go straight to Floor 1 and visit the aquarium, where you'll be able to see live fish from Australia to the UK. There's also a theatre in there that presents live shows, films and demonstrations.
If you like bugs, go to Floor 2 - you'll get to see again, live spiders and insects. Also housed on this floor is the Clore Natural History Centre, which contains exhibits on plants animals and rocks. As you go up the floors the exhibitions just get better and better. Floor 3 contains the exhibitions on world cultures, ancient Egypt and the Weston Discovery centre, where you can actually get to handle objects from around the world.
I would guess one of the most popular floors of the museum has to be Floor 4 - this is where the dinosaurs are housed and the natural world exhibition, where you get to explore the canopy of a steamy jungle. An then finally you get to Floor five, where you get to discover about space, and time, make sure you set aside enough time to go to the planetarium.