ALMOST Cruising around the UK – Day ‘Minus 1’

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Friday, September 11 2026

Morning all! We’re on our second day in Liverpool (‘Day Minus 1’ if you like). Arriving yesterday, we’re exploring parts of Liverpool, that we’ve not seen before. Tomorrow, around lunchtime, we pick up our Cruise Ship for a 10-day adventure around the UK.

Well, at least the weather looked a little kinder today!

With our cultural heads on (well, we weren’t here for the sunshine!), top of our list today is the nearby Western Approaches Museum. It’s an old WWII secret bunker that has been frozen in time around 1945, where visitors in later years once had to sign the Official Secrets Act to get in and look around! These days, it’s all a lot more relaxed, and has reinvented itself as a Museum and time capsule of the era, where the self-guided tour takes between 1 and 2 hours.

But before all that WWII history, there’s BREAKFAST here in the Hotel – and we’ve heard that it’s good!

Yes, that ticked all the boxes, apart from the ‘vegetarian sausage’ (that we tried, by way of experimentation). It tasted like the lovechild of a potato croquette and a bowl of porridge 😮😮. What a creation!!! 😝

Western Approaches Museum

With our VSE* still leaving a bad taste in the mouth – literally, we headed out into the couldn’t-make-its-mind-up weather and the Western Approaches Museum, just a short ten-minute walk away. This was the highlight of the day for us, as we’ve had it on our list since the last time we were here.

*Vegetarian Sausage Experiment

The rather unassuming frontage betrayed what was behind the scenes (but, given its historical function, maybe that was the idea!) 🤔. Reasonably priced for admission, the passes tickets also had the facility to apply embossed ‘stamps’ to them during our visit. I’m not quite sure what the reward was for doing this. but it ensured you paid attention as you wandered around, attempting to find the embossing device!

Our tickets were a copy of the original passes required to get into and around the bunker.

After an initial steep staircase down, we were immediately immersed in WWII memorabilia. And there was plenty of it, with each room clearly labelled as to its function. Impressive stuff that ‘kept on giving’, room after room and reconstructed to a very high level of detail.

If you’re as interested in WWII history as much as we are, this is a real find! Some of the rooms were so realistic, it was like travelling back in time (or visiting a film set!) 👍

Probably the most unusual exhibit was Churchill’s PERSONAL projector. These days, it would fit in your pocket, but back then, it (almost) needed its own room!

The whole Museum was more than impressive, but if one area stood out, it was the multiple exhibits dedicated to WRNS (the ‘Wrens’) aka The Women’s Royal Naval Service. Display after display recounted their tremendous contribution to the war effort – and some! Unveiled in 2023, by Princess Anne, this was surely the definitive history of the service. Better still, it was brought right up to date and explained how, gradually, the role has expanded and has become part of the Royal Navy.

We tend to ‘do’ these places at pace, and we’d covered it all in an hour-or-so, and therefore the advertised a 1 to 2 hour estimate for seeing everything is probably realistic. There’s no coffee shop, but if you’re into the obligatory fridge magnets and more, there’s a tasteful gift shop adjacent to the admissions desk.

After a quick look around the main shopping area – Liverpool One – picking up a few bits and bobs, we took the slow 20-minute meander back to the Hotel – just as we felt some light rain beginning to fall. Perfect timing then, as we headed for our room and began to think about packing and the much more important decision about… what cocktail to have tonight!

Cocktail Hour

It would have been rude not to! (especially as we had vouchers! 👌👌

For Madam, sporting a burgundy colour exterior: ‘The Bramble’ – Tanqueray Gin, Briottet Crème de Mure Liqueur, Lemon and Blackberry Juice.

For Sir, in the orange corner: ‘The Rhubarb Triangle’ – Rhubarb & Bramley Apple Gin, Briottet Liqueur de Rhubarbe, Lemon, Honey, Apple, Bitters, Rosemary and Mediterranean Tonic.

Both delicious and both went down far too quickly! 😵‍💫😋😋. As we supped the last sip, our Uber arrived bang on time.

Catch up with Oli

With nephew Oli, now joining the world of work for his very first time here in Liverpool, this was the perfect opportunity for a catch-up. We’d pre-booked a table at Papillon in Hope Street where we last ate in May 2025 with Roger, Jane… and Oli!

This is becoming a familiar haunt of ours during our all-too-brief visits here in Liverpool. It was already busy when we arrived just after 7.15 and enjoying a buzzy atmosphere

They seated us on the opposite side of the buzz (did they know something we didn’t) and we were soon chatting away, comparing notes about ‘first time employers’ and how it had felt during our first week at work. It sounded like Oli had settled in really quickly and the induction week had been busy, but most of all, helpful in orientating him towards a bright future in his role.

Papillon’s service was as swift and friendly as ever, and we were soon tucking into our respective choices. No surprises at all as I opted for their House Cheeseburger (a mega-meaty – and cheesy – affair that came with its own carving knife). Oli pursued the pasta option whilst Ann cracked on with their Curry! 😋😋🤔

The obligatory Cappuccinos ended the evening, and we then headed for Oli’s place.

For a first-time place, Oli has done really well. It was a well-equipped, modern, secure and spacious apartment! And being located in a quieter part of the city was an added bonus. Impressed? Oh, yes! Well done Oli!! With the guided tour over, we grabbed an Uber back to the Hotel, arriving just after 10pm. Yes, I know: “Dirty Stop-outs!”. Friday night/10pm/knackered – we’re living the dream!! 😁😁

Bye-bye Liverpool

Wow! It has been a busy day for this couple of retirees, where we seem to have spent most of our time today learning, wandering, eating and drinking (then, rinsing and repeating!) 😁. We shall be very sorry to be leaving Liverpool tomorrow as it’s been a great stay (again!), and with our cultural heads on, we’re still finding new places to enjoy. The city has a buzz about it and the natives are VERY friendly! (Apart from our ‘ex-Monk’ taxi driver yesterday! 🤔). It’s been good to see that there is still plenty of building expansion going on here, with the city skyline in a constant state of change, as shiny new, gleaming towers rub along nicely with some of the more traditional, older architecture. City breaks aren’t everyone’s idea of a good time, but it has ticked all the boxes for us. The standout feature (maybe slightly surprisingly) has been how clean and litter-free the city is – how do they achieve that??? 👍

Tomorrow…

It’s a relaxed morning tomorrow, before we take the short walk to the Cruise Terminal and stepping aboard the good ship ‘Bolette’ around lunchtime.

Night night ship-mates! See you tomorrow, on board at eight bells! 🦜🏴‍☠️