Sunday, April 22, 2012

On the road to Southport

Last weekend I felt the urge to walk. And not just from my residence to the school. So I decided to take the train to a village called Ainsdale which is situated on the coast north of Liverpool and walk to Southport from there. I love going to the beach just to soak in the atmosphere and also to get away from the noisy city. It's amazing how close the beach is. It's just a short train journey away and you feel like you're miles away from Liverpool.

I didn't really know the route from Ainsdale to Southport so I just walked along the beach. It was low tide when I got there. Loads of sand and the sea was far away. It took me quite some time to get to Southport because I really had no idea in which direction I really had to head and I realized after some time that I was actually heading for the wrong city. Luckily I realized it early enough.  After all it was a really nice walk, windy, cold, yet sunny.

In Southport I met up with some friends to stroll through the city before heading back to Liverpool.
If you ever go to Liverpool you should definitely take the trip to the beach it's an amazing place.



Saturday, April 21, 2012

Baking Zopf in Liverpool and other stuff

I've been here for one month now and a part of me can almost not believe that the first month is already over. Time really does fly like an arrow. I've met new people, saw new places and discovered new differences between the English and the Swiss culture. I love watching other people. How they move, talk and dress differently. I still don't understand how the English are able to walk around with so little clothes on. It's still freezing here and the wind doesn't make it any warmer for sure. I might be from a Northern country but sometimes I feel like someone from South America who has been dumped off near the North pole. They walk around with a short-sleeve shirt while I wear my warm raincoat. Little dresses with no tights underneath, shorts, flip-flops and no coats on. Crazy!

On the other hand I enjoy the vibe of a big city. Liverpool is surely not the biggest city but it is really something different than my hometown. A lot of people walking around all day long, always someone who's playing music and lots to do. Lots of different stores, and even though you can find all the big brands, you can also find little and a bit quirky stores.

I'm really enjoying my time here but I do miss something: the Swiss bread! I know such a cliche but come on! You go into a shop that is called Gregg's Bakery and even though it's supposed to be a bakery the bread is still too soft and has nothing to do with real bread. So I decide to bake a Zopf. I had no kitchen scale nor a measuring cup but somehow I was actually able to make one. And I'm quite happy with the result.