It's amazing how much of Liverpool you can see in ten hours if you put your mind to it. As well as the sixvignettes I've posted below I also made it to the following (and took far more photos than you could ever be interested in viewing).
• Liverpool Cathedral: The longest cathedral in the world, and dominating the skyline, this Giles Gilbert Scott masterpiece took most of the 20th century to build. It's both lofty and gorgeous, and somewhat surprising throughout, from the Tracey Eminpink neon by the entrance to the sunken Lady Chapel at the far end. Alas I visited on the day of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary ParasitologyGala Dinner, so the nave was packed with immaculately-laid tables and many of the transepts were sealed off for catering purposes. But, still, magnificent. [5 photos]
• Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral: In complete contrast, but also completed in the 1960s, the Roman Catholic cathedral stands at the top of Hope Street like an upturned concrete funnel. I arrived after closing time, so only got to stalk the exterior, but the early evening light was suitably dazzling. [5 photos]
• William Brown Street: ...whereas I was too early to get into the Walker Art Gallery, one of the dense concentration of historic listed publicbuildings up a short hill in the Cultural Quarter. Also close by are the imminently-doomedFuturist cinema, the mouth of the Birkenhead Tunnel, and Lime Street station. Have you seen the diddy Ken Dodd statue in the latter, by the way? [8 photos]
• Liverpool 1: The saviour of Merseyside retail, these 42 acres of redeveloped land (opened 2009) attract the majority of the city's leisurebound travellers. Other shopping facilities are available, though I found the St John's centre rather drab, and forgot to go up the Radio City Tower to enjoy the view.
