Saturday, June 25th, Dublin was celebrating Pride Day, and we had a ferry to catch. Travel Director Darren wanted us out of that city before streets started to be closed, so our itinerary was:
- 6am: Bags out of the rooms, and a quick breakfast
- 6:45am: On the bus
- 7am: we were rolling down the street towards the ferry, which was just a couple of miles away
We were on time to arrive at the port, but something got messed up with the cargo on the ferry, and we were delayed sailing by almost an hour. Due to this, the tide was coming in and it was a very rocky trip going over. N and I were both *very* ill on this trip, and generally miserable. Between putting our heads down, we had a lovely chat with the Irish family sitting next to us, who wanted to visit the Philadelphia/New York area next summer. We almost arranged a house swap, except the thought of cleaning my place for strangers to live in made me anxious, so I stopped just short of giving them my number! It was a nice way to opass the time, and after almost 4 hours on the rocky waters, we were so glad to see solid ground again.
Due to the delay in sailing, Darren had to make the decision to cut a stop out of our tour. We were supposed to visit Chester, but did not get the chance. Our "stretch your legs" break was in a town in Wales that claims to have the longest name in the world: "Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch".
I remember a video about this town going around Facebook several years ago, so it was kinda neat to be "in a meme"! It also had a lovely little shop where Darren offered to get everyone's Passports stamped with the town's name. We declined, not certain if this was entirely legal, and we didn't want to risk getting questioned at the next border crossing.
After a few pictures and some snacks, we made our way to Liverpool. This was the one place that S had asked to see when we booked this tour almost 2 years ago, and she and N were both so excited to see the birthplace of the Beatles. Almost immediately upon arrival, we met our Local Specialist who took us on a Fab 4 Tour around the city (another optional activity).
This was a combination of seeing things from the bus, and getting off to walk around certain locations. It was a great tour with lots of interesting facts about the Beatles and the city itself.
We saw all of their schools, with detailed stories of who went where and what years they were in. We stopped at Penny Lane for "tourist pictures".
The bus continued down Penny Lane and the guide pointed out and told stories about the places in the song; the barber shop, the police station, and the bus stop in the center of the town. We made our way through the city to the beach, and along the way we passed the Liverpool Cathedral, the largest cathedral in Britain...and believe it, this building is HUGE!
Our guide took us to the Beatles statue and explained all of the hidden features. We made sure to find them all!
One highlight was getting to see the inside of the Cavern Club, where the Beatles first played as a band, for free. Our tour guide is the only one that the club will allow to do this. N's review: "It was flipping AMAZING! Walking in the same steps as the Beatles, as well as Bowie, Queen, the Monkeys, the Kinks, the Rolling Stones... so many famous men sweat on that stage."
At the end of the tour, our guide dropped us off at the restaurant where we met the rest of the group for dinner, called "Browns". There was a live piano player, and the rest of the patrons were dressed far fancier than we! N called it a "schwanky joint", and we all figured that's why we - the tour group in tshirts and jeans - were seated on the hidden upstairs balcony. 🤣The food was great, and S learned that she likes fried calamari.
After dinner, we walked around town for a little distance near our hotel, and noticed another carousel. Sadly it was closed for the day already, so we didn't get to ride it. Between the hotel and the carousel were a row of parked boat houses, and for some reason, a one-armed pirate statue. We decided he represented the elusive fifth Beatle.
In writing, this sounds like a short day, but with the early wake-up and the sea-sickness, we were all very happy and completely wiped out by the end of it!
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