Manchester

Saturday: We arrived in Manchester a little after 5 on and were met at the bus station by Davey's cousin Sharon. We were taken to our accommodation which was actually a convent - we had separate rooms which was different! We were free to come and go as we pleased as we were given a key - there was no 10:00pm curfew or anything like that! In Manchester, in an area called Rusholme there is a strip known as the Curry Mile which is nothing but Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan and Iranian restaurants and takeaways! We went to an Indian place called Shahenshah Restaurant which was really nice, then we headed out to a few different pubs for a few drinks. The wine was nice (mainly Australian) but will someone please tell the English that white wine is supposed to be served cold????

Sunday: First went to Wythenshawe Community Farm which is for abandoned animals, where there were pigs, ducks and chickens, among other things. Then went to look at some gardens in the same area before going to a restaurant for lunch which overlooked a lake where people did things like windsurfing. After that went to the Trafford Centre which is a big shopping centre and bought some new clothes at FCUK. Almost tempted to buy an England shirt as they were SOOOO cheap but, well, it was England after all, just couldn't bring myself to do it! Later in the evening we went to the local pub to watch the World Cup final. After that we went to another Indian restaurant for another curry - the food was great but the service was SLOW!

Monday: Went into the city from where we caught a tram to the Lowry Outlet Mall (bought a ticket this time, unlike in Munich!). Bought a few tops then thought about going to Old Trafford (8 minutes walk away) but decided instead to go back into town. Took some photos in Albert Square which has some cool buildings and statues, then headed back to the convent. The bus terminated earlier than we expected, leaving us to walk the rest of the way which took us about an hour as we didn't really know exactly where we were so we followed the bus route which wasn't exactly direct! Went to see Pirates Of The Caribbean 2 in the evening - not bad, even considering the fact that we had to sit in the 3rd row!