Manchester sunshine

We have had another excellent day in Manchester. We met Davie and Chanel at Salford Quays for a coffee sitting outside The Alchemist. Our table overlooked the canal and it was rather idyllic sitting in the sunshine. We had booked some tickets for a musical boat trip as part of a celebratory event called “We invented the Weekend.” (Apparently the two day weekend was indeed first established in Manchester.) However the event was cancelled due to the Queen’s death. This reminded me of a story my Mum told; she and her mother and younger siblings had saved up for a special weekend at the Slieve Donard Hotel in Newcastle, County Down in February 1952. It was their favourite hotel and their first visit there since her father had died in 1946. However King George VI died on the Wednesday before they went. As a result the hotel was draped in black, the atmosphere was sombre, and the dinner dance, to which they had been looking forward, was cancelled. They were so disappointed. 

Our cancellation today was much less serious, although it must have been very disappointing for the organisers. And in fact the Sunday Roast lunch that we had booked was not cancelled because the food had already been purchased. Also its aim was to raise money for Manchester’s Eat Well organisation, who provide meals for people who are living in poverty, so they didn’t want to let them down. So at 12 noon we strolled across to Media City Open Centre and had a huge and delicious roast with all the trimmings. James, Davie and Chanel had roast beef and I had nut roast. Then we all had sticky toffee pudding; we felt so full! 

The only solution was to go for a walk, so we switched from the Ship Canal to the Bridgewater Canal and walked along the towpath all the way to Castlefield, about five-and-a-half km. Castlefield is another very smart example of Manchester’s urban regeneration, with some lovely flats with balconies overlooking the canal, and nice bars and restaurants. We had drinks outside a pub called The Wharf, busy on this sunny Sunday afternoon, and then took a tram back to Salford. What an excellent day!