More UK roadtrip! (This is the penultimate post and then I have a backlog of one million other things that have happened since we got back. :)) We went to Huddersfield to visit Rosie & Marshal and their family (which has grown!).
We arrived in the early afternoon and spent the day playing with Georgia and Molly ...
... inspecting all of Georgia's toys :) ...
... and holding baby Toby (five weeks old!). It was such a joy to have this chill day together.
We went out for a walk and Georgia found an excellent puddle. :)
And in the evening after Georgia had gone to bed, Liam made us hot chocolate and we got to sit and just chat for a while. So lovely.
Good morning!
In the morning I finally managed to get a photo of Marshal. <3
Look at this little pumpkin!
In the late morning we made our way back to Manchester. It was so great that we got to hang out with the whole family, and so nice to be able to do things like "offer to hold baby while parent showers" which was literally no cost at all to us, but made the parent in question look like we'd offered to bring her the moon and sun - so a win-win all around. :)
Stopped on the way back for some photos. Obviously. :)
It's a pretty country, you know.
That afternoon we taught a bal class at Swing North which was SO fun. There are still a bunch of familiar faces around from when we lived in Manchester - always lovely to see them. And being able to come back and help out with the teaching, even if it's just for one class, is so nice - I'll never not want to give back to the Manchester and Liverpool lindy scenes, they've given me so much.
After social dancing we went to the pub. Obviously. :)
Kevin! <3
There was dark beer and good company ...
... pickled eggs (a strong no for me) ...
... and dessert eggs. :) Apparently the rule is that if you want a dessert egg, you have to have a pickled egg first. But I was excluded from this rule since I was a guest and all. Phew! :)
The day after we went to Liverpool for the day. We started with brunch at Three Piggies ...
... with Liam's old friend, Antony. I hadn't seen him since his wedding several years ago and it was so fun to get to know him better.
Brunch was gooood
These two though! Liam's accent turned more and more scouse (and FASTER, oh my god) the longer they talked. <3
Then we went for a drive around Liverpool to see all the places Liam has lived. So many places, and some of them so grotty. (Remembering my own student years and the places I lived, I feel very privileged.) I took photos of some of the places but they feel too personal, so here's Leaf instead - the café where we sat down for a snack and a recharge after the tour.
I left Liam there to run some errands. I always get my canvas shoes for dancing at Primark (which is weird since Primark isn't exactly known for high quality items - but I love dancing lindy in their canvas shoes).
We had dinner at the Egg, as is our tradition.
Bathroom window at the Egg <3
And then dancing! Local dancing was at the Pen Factory this evening.
The lovely Alice! <3
I didn't take any more photos until it was time to head back to Manchester from Liverpool. Did you know that sinking into the passenger seat next to Liam after a night of dancing, listening to music or the BBC (a lot of news this trip since it was close to the UK election), driving home on dark quiet roads in the UK, is one of my favourite things in the world? To be so safe next to someone; what a gift.
Lara Somogyi | Haven
