Arriving in Liverpool in the north west of England we were surprised to find so few people out and about in the city. To be fair, we were only in the city on Monday and Tuesday, probably not the busiest days of the week. We asked a local cafe owner where all the people were, and she replied, "Liverpool is 'slow and sleepy". Regardless, we still found a city that has some wonderful contrasts between the old and the new.
The world famous 'Ferry 'cross the Mersey' is one of the finest Liverpool attractions. Tours leave every hour on the hour from 10:00am to 4:00pm. Take the 50 minute tour to find out a whole range of interesting local facts and history about Liverpool. Also visit the Merseyside Maritime Museum and in the same building see the Museum of Slavery. Both exhibitions are fascinating and don't take very long to complete and entry to both is free of charge.
The Midland Hotel, is an iconic Manchester hotel where Mr Rolls and Mr Royce signed their deal to form the iconic Rolls Royce company. It is also the hotel where David Beckham took Victoria on their first dinner date. We had lunch there which was excellent but you could just have a delicious drink (or two) if you don't want to dine. Shopping is great with some upmarket stores like Harvey Nicks and Selfridges and mid-range H&M. Try Market Street for a wide range of fashion shops.
Manchester, England's third largest city has an active and very vibrant gay scene. Canal Street is the centre of the gay village and it is where it all happens. The Gay Village is home to many annual events, such as Sparkle the Trans Festival, the Bears Bash and The Skins Weekend. Manchester Pride is one of the top Pride events in Europe and Canal St plays host to tens of thousands of people in late August each year.
We had a very positive experience flying Vueling, the budget Spanish airline, from Barcelona to Malaga. Torremolinos is a 20€ taxi ride from Malaga airport to the centre of town. Early September is a great time to visit Torremolinos but the water is cool to cold. Arrive earlier and the weather and water will be hotter but the beaches will be much more crowded.
Holidays are all about making memories. In Torremolinos, on the Costa Del Sol in southern Spain, our memories are now about sunny, warm days, gay beaches and bars, hot Spanish men, good food and casual Spanish beachside towns. We arrived in mid September. Almost perfect timing with most gay venues operating and the beaches not too crowded.