Bob and I have been getting acquainted with the greater Manchester area and have even taken a day trip out of town to the lovely city of York (more on that in separate blog). We have been doing this in all sorts of weather, though rain has been a constant. We’ve only had one rain-free day during our stay. The changing weather factors have been — 1) whether the sun will make an appearance, 2) if so, for how long and will it be in place of the rain or in conjunction with the rain, 3) how gusty will the wind be and from what direction, and (as of yesterday) will the rain come in the form of hail? Yes, no drought worries in this corner of the world.
We have found a lot to enjoy in the City Center as well as in some outlying boroughs. In Manchester itself, our favorite finds recently have been the Levenshulme Saturday market, Whitworth Art Gallery on the University of Manchester campus, the Printworks and Corn Exchange complexes, the National Football Museum, the Beetham tower, and the Museum of Science and Industry. In Stockport, we discovered a fun old city center and cathedral the other day and are returning today to tour a local brewery (Robinson’s Brewery) and Air Raid station. They have a hat museum as well that we are not planning to visit, though it sounds unique.
We have also been following the news here and the biggest story right now (apart from concern over a possible sell-off of a British steel company) is Brexit, the term used to describe the UK’s (Note: UK stands for United Kingdom of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.) possible exit from the European Union. There is a national referendum/vote on this scheduled for June. The latest polls indicate a near even split on the issue.
From a health perspective, there are strikes by junior doctors over the work requirements in the government’s latest contract offer and issues, as in the states, with rising costs around caring for an aging and sicker population. This is all further complicated by costs for treating recent immigrants as well as non-Brit EU residents who can access health care here. While care for EU members is apparently to be reimbursed by the home country while Britain reimburses other countries for health care provided to its residents, more non-Brits come to the UK for healthcare than Brits leave to seek care elsewhere.
Bob and I have gotten into the UK version of Master Chefs, and I must say that a reality show can survive and be entertaining while the contestants remain civil to each other. However, we have noted the frequency of the use of the term “gutted” in relation to how the contestants say they will feel if they are sent home. Hope this doesn’t find any of you gutted about anything! Also, in terms of truth in television (or a CYA technique) the home search shows always state the year when the quoted home price was valid.
In terms of money, we have had to flip flop how we do our cost calculations. In Canada, since the US dollar was higher whenever we saw a price listed, we new that our real cost in US dollars was actually less (about 75%) of the Canadian price by the time we left. In the UK the dollar is lower than the pound, so things seem cheaper than they actually are for us, so we have to remember to multiply the stated price in pounds by about 1.5.
Peckish Travels 