Eh oop

Manchester. A busy frantic town at 4.30pm of a Friday afternoon. As we took to the streets after an hour long train trip from Liverpool it felt like the whole population of Dunedin was walking around with us and at times we were swimming against the tide. The photo doesn't do it justice at all.

Saw an obligatory episode of Coro St, had to really. As we rode in on the train you could look down onto rows and rows and rows and rows and rows of houses and backyards exactly the same as the legendary opening shots of Weatherfield. And although the town may be fictitious, everything else around us - the accents, the kids, the chain smoking - everything is just 'like on' tele!' And I loathe to give away spoilers but let's just say it had Deirdre back on the witness stand hyperventilating again. Her glasses seem larger over here and Ken is of course, perpetually perplexed.

It's odd really, we were walking around the Tate Gallery, Liverpool looking at an exhibition of photos of Liverpool from the war through to the late sixties and even though we're little kiwis from the other side of the world, it was kind of strange how easily everything came back...as if this were our childhood and history as well. We really were colonial kids back then although I doubt that the OC will carry that sort of recognition through to her adulthood, which clearly is a Good Thing. We really are a different country to England, although we share so much in common. We're finding our nationhood and leaving Mother England behind.



On our walk yesterday we found a little oasis of ye olde atmosphere in the middle of wide screen teles blaring out the latest news (Bladerunner eat your heart out). I couldn't resist posting this for Miss Sinclair - is Molly any relation to you?:

I think we'll hunt down 'Molly' again when I can get a break away from the conference. The Cook found a restaurant close by serving a large range of fish and I think Rick Stein would approve if we had a little taster.

Unfortunately for the kids we're staying at a University of Manchester hotel and it doesn't have the CBeebies...a lovely little children's channel we've enjoyed since landing in England a week ago. It may be a long day for The Cook (although he'll make the children endure BBC1 even when we can get CBeebies - because, well, in a small hotel room one can only take so much of squeaky voices and sock puppets).

My NATE conference starts at 9.30 this morn. I've signed up for some internetty things and it promises to be entertaining. Do you think they'll notice a cuckoo in the nest? Kiwi reticence might be the best form of valour in this instance.I hope I can understand the presenters, both their accents and their content ;-)