I love Liverpool!!!

On Easter weekend, when we were in England, we drove north to Liverpool to see the city, the embroidery and, for my dear husband, the trains. One of my favourite things about England is a specific road sign you see driving north up the M1. Unlike road signs in the USA where they tell you the name of the town, the interstate, the exit or highway number, these signs give you only the most basic information.And every single time I see one I burst out laughing! Can you imagine, in the USA - which is HUGE - a sign that indicates only the direction in which one it driving? We'd all be lost! But the UK is a cozy country and it's enough to know the basic direction in which you are travelling.It wasn't a long drive to Liverpool and it was a beautiful day. We drove for a while on the motorway (interstate) and then took smaller roads which took us over rolling countryside and through some really pretty English villages. We inhaled the fresh air, gazed over the green fields and exclaimed about the millions of daffodils on the road side.We came into Liverpool, past the old factories and along the River Mersey and the docks. We stayed right on the docks in a Travelodge which has undergone their new program of refurbishment. The new beds are so comfortable, the rooms are large enough and always clean and best of all we were right on the docks.Outside our window was the famous Royal Liver Building, complete with the Liver Birds on top! (Pronounced with a long "i" unlike like the organ). The Liver Bird is Liverpool's icon and it was great to finally see these huge, famous birds that perch atop the building on the harbor, bringing good luck to all the sailors who came in and out of the docks in Liverpool.We could also see the Port of Liverpool Building (above) and the Albert Docks (below). As soon as we got settled, we went out for a walk. It was a sunny evening and we strolled around the dock area, soaking up the architecture and fresh air. Unfortunately, the next morning - when the photos were taken - it was cloudy and a bit rainy.There were two places I wanted to visit while we were there: the Anglican Cathedral and the Lady Lever Art Gallery. Those of you who read Mary Corbet's site know that she was sent a book about the collection of ecclesiastical embroideries in the Anglican Cathedral in the Elizabeth Hoare Embroidery Gallery. Until I read her article I had no idea there was any collection of embroidery in Liverpool! That went to the top of my list right after I read her article.So, Friday afternoon after my trip to the Lady Lever Art Gallery - more about that soon! - I set off to catch the bus to the cathedral. I had a general idea of where I was going but I wasn't 100% sure where to get off so I would have the least distance to walk in the rain.Now, it isn't often that an Iowa accent gets noticed, but in Liverpool it was! As soon as I asked the bus driver where to leave the bus, he told me to "sit right here, luv, and I'll take you as close as I can". Which he did!  He let me off just down the hill from the Cathedral - not at the official bus stop, which I KNOW he wasn't supposed to do, but it was so nice of him and I got there without getting lost or even too wet.After standing in awe in the middle of the the building for a few minutes, I walked confidently up to the desk to get a ticket to go up to the Elizabeth Hoare Gallery. No one came. I walked around and looked for someone. No one was there, except other people like me visiting the Cathedral, but no guides. Then I noticed the shop was closed. And the entrance to the Gallery was closed. I found a volunteer who was directing people into a chapel and asked her if the the Embroidery Gallery was open. She explained that it was Good Friday so, of course, no one was working  and therefore it was closed.I was crushed.I walked around the Cathedral bit more to soak up the beauty and thought about how I could have made such a mistake about their opening hours. I'd checked the web site for the cathedral before we left Bristol. It had specifically said it was open on Good Friday. It hadn't said anywhere that the Embroidery Gallery was closed. An unclear web site, I decided. Unclear and liable to cause disappointment to many, since the Gallery is in the Tower - a separate attraction of the Cathedral -  which loads of people want to see. Hurumph, I thought. I need to let someone know that the web site needs to be more clear so I wasn't the only disappointed visitor. (I can be like this sometimes - 'looking out for the good of all' - a bit of a 'mother to the world' - I think it's the teacher in me!).So I walked around bit more and saw a man walking with purpose, I caught his eye. He slowed his walked and I asked if he could help me. I explained about my trip specifically to see the Embroidery Gallery, about the web site saying things were open today, about how I was studying embroidery - I probably explained more than he may have wanted to know. But he listened and then - miracle of miracles (which should happen in a cathedral if it happens anywhere) he asked me if he could show me the embroideries.Well, yes! Thank you, thank you! This wonderful, generous man's name is Simon Macaulay and he is the Liturgy Manager at Liverpool Cathedral. He knows all the history of the vestments, of the building, of the windows, of the ...  everything!We did NOT begin by going upstairs to the Gallery in the Tower to see the Elizabeth Hoare Collection. We began by him showing me the vestments they use today. He explained which ones are used when and for which services. He explains who does the embroidery work, where the fabrics come from, how old different vestments are, which vestments they will wear this evening - for Good Friday services - and which ones they will wear on Easter SundayThen we go up to the Embroidery Gallery and he tells me all about the pieces of embroidery there. I have lots of time to take photos, but honestly I'm so busy listening and asking questions I forget and only snap a few. (With great apologies dear readers. I'll go back, I promise, and take photos!)He tells me about the windows in the cathedral, takes me into the Lady Chapel, tells me all about the organ, gives me a short history lesson on the Church of England (thank goodness I've read enough English history to understand what he's talking about and ask intelligent questions!). And, as the shop was closed on Good Friday, he goes into his office and gets his own copy of the book about the Embroideries and one about the Lady Chapel windows and gives them to me.Now, this alone may seem like quite a wonderful, amazing thing. But he's the manager of the Liturgy Department and it's Good Friday. Good Friday! Just about the most important service of the entire Christian year! I won't even talk about all the Easter lilies I saw in the back hallways waiting for Easter Sunday. This is the BIG weekend for him! I kept asking him if he needed to go. If he had time to continue. He kept saying yes, this was a great break form his day. He didn't have to begin to prepare for the service for a few hours so he was fine for time.We finally said goodbye and I went back to the hotel floating about 2 feet off the ground, my mind reeling with everything I'd learned and seen and my heart overflowing with the generosity of Simon Macaulay.Now you know one of the many reasons I love Liverpool!