Again, a visual impression....

Just a wee look into Liverpool's greatest assets (to be completely honest, there are some bum-ugly buildings out there, and half of the suburb is boarded up because the houses are uninhabitable...but the centre is gorgeous at times:)

1. The Liverpool 'Piazza' - Walker Art Gallery, the fountain and some scousers
2. The students of John Moores get to stay in this little picture of a house...lucky buggers.

3. I think this was Liverpools Boyscout club or something....it's now the local YMCA (Though walking around the Pool in an Indian/Police/leather/or whatever those blokes where wearing- outfit will not be a very wise thing to do...)

4. This little park called 'Abercromby Square' (For the linguists under us: short cat-vowel, not long phase-vowel) is just around the corner from my humble abode. It's quite nice, and I can't believe there's still flowers out and about while the temp is gradually dropping below acceptable Myrthe levels)

So that's a little impression of the things see or walk by everyday. I will, in the near future, shoot and post some things from the other end of the scales; there's still a lot of decayishness and bad architectural ideas going on here. For instance my Faculty is basically a step down from my Leiden Arts Fac, and that's when I thought buildings couldn't go any lower on the ugly scale. Also some of the areas are still very 'Northeren town -trying to be a metropole but actually not grasping the thought behind it'-ish. In addition, as I said before, the suburbs, some of them, are a sad picture. Possibly comparable to the Amsterdam lowlife areas outside the citycentre; there's scum walking the streets, little bored children throwing bottlecaps at passing cars, and bums playing tiny broken off-key flutes asking passers-by for money to buy some 'food' -- unless booze and crack have suddenly become part of the five food group pyramid, I highly doubt they will...

But luckily, this is not the main feeling that Liverpool oozes, no, it's more a City on the rise. A city that wants to make a name for itself, a good name. As of January 2008, Liverpool will be the Capital of Culture, and everybody is trying very hard to get that message across. Intricate systems of scaffolding are dominating many of the lovely Liverpool facades and city counsel workers are tidying up many of the small parks and greens around town. I bet that in a few months time the city will come out of it's little extreme makeover as nothing less than a (be it in her Northeren moderation and still a bit akward on it's feet) beautiful swan...So, no reason not to come visit in the year 2008!