The weather had continued to be kind, no rain big enough to halt exploring on any day so far. Here is the very neat looking Liverpool Lime Street station. I checked into my Airbnb space (which I was surprised to find offers a nice view of sunset) and just spent the rest of the evening settling down and firming up my plans for the next 2 days.
I came across an on-going exhibit at Walker Art Gallery online, 'Only In England'. The show is featuring works by photographers Tony Ray-Jones and Martin Parr. It was curated by the latter, who was very much inspired by Ray-Jones himself. Both shoot mostly street photography, focusing on the ordinary English people as their subject. Ray-Jones in particular enjoys taking photos that are humourous and sometimes, melancholic at the same time.
The exhibit immediately caught my attention when I read about it. Mostly because only very recently have I realised what I had been enjoying shooting seems to be random people I came across on the street. I spent quite some time looking at every photo on show.
After a major restoration, St George's Hall was re-opened by Prince Charles in 2007. From the gatherings of the death of John Lennon and George Harrison to the homecomings of both Everton and Liverpool football clubs after cup victories, the place has seen many significant moments in Liverpool's history. I was memerised by the details of the hall.
Call it cheap thrill, but I do get a kick out of visiting replica cafes. This Central Perk on Hatton Garden is one of the two in Liverpool. A total of three Central Perks are in the UK. The other one outside of Liverpool is located in Chester on Bridge Street.
I was slightly disappointed to find that it is less 'authentic' than the one I went to in Beijing. Hatton Garden's is definitely bigger with two rooms, offering prepacked sandwiches and drinks. Huge LED TVs playing episodes dominated one side of the walls in both rooms.
Though smaller, Beijing's counterpart seems to pay more attention to the details. The menu offers pastries and cakes mentioned by the cast in the show (it was even written down on the menu which character ordered it!) and more. The staff are named after characters in the show and even the wifi name and password ('iloverachel870') are relevant. And the cherry on top of the cake? Anyone can take a photo with Joey's Hugsy! Hugsy can be found on one of the big couch, when nobody is hogging him. Did I also mention they have a connecting room that is a replica of Chandler and Joey's apartment? Too good. I shall have to put up more photos in a separate post!