A Quick Detour for an Experience of a Lifetime

Next stop, England, for a little detour before we continue on (or back) to Slovenia. But there is a good reason for this stop. Lauren has been obsessed with Liverpool Football Club since high school. Her college dorm featured a poster of Michael Owen (former Liverpool and England great and a cutie). So, we added a bucket list stop onto our trip of a lifetime!

London

But first, London! We only spent a few days in London on our way to Liverpool. We hit the big spots on the first day – Buckingham Palace for a changing of the guard, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Parliament, and Trafalgar Square to name a few. No explanation necessary for these world famous spots. It is London so it was rainy. But it did not damper our spirits.

Theater in the West End

After seeing the traditional stops, we decided to focus the rest of our visit on drama. We caught two shows in the West End. The first was Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – an epic play presented in two full length parts. The play started in the afternoon and took a break for dinner to come back for the second. The production and sets created were incredible. Somehow they created “dementors” that flew all around the theater. The play has been in rotation in the West End for years. But unbeknownst to us, we saw the opening night of a new cast. So there was a special finale and some of the actors addressed the audience to talk about how special this opening night was. We felt so lucky to catch this show.

We also saw Six – a play featuring Henry VIII’s “Six” wives. It was a really fun, poppy, musical. The wives told their stories with humor, music and beautiful costumes. It was totally different from Harry Potter. We feel like we got a great theater experience.

The Old Bailey

We also saw live theater – part of a trial at the historic Old Bailey. The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales is held in a historic courthouse known as the Old Bailey. The Court is open to the public, but subject to strict security. We checked our phones and cameras into a secure storage and got in the queue for the public gallery.

Once inside, we asked the security guards if any proceedings were in session. After a few attempts, we came to a courtroom that was in the middle of a rape trial. Jackpot! We were warned to remain completely quiet and were ushered into balcony seating above the courtroom. The scene was straight out of a British TV drama – barristers in wigs and robes, the Judge (“My Lady” in the Old Bailey) in her red robes and wig.

As we entered, the barristers were arguing an evidentiary motion. The terminology was a little bit different, but the principles involving hearsay and rape shield rules of evidence were pretty similar. Just like in the US, the Judge was pretty sharp with the defense lawyer 😊 From there, we saw part of the defense barrister’s cross-examination. The styles were different (much more polite) but the strategy was the same. It was an enthralling 3 hours. Afterwards, we were able to access the docket to see that the trial proceeded for several more days, but there was nothing declaring the verdict. I like to think this means it was a Not Guilty! Usually there’s no press release for a defense verdict 😉

Liverpool

Next stop, Liverpool! Of course we were here to see the match. But we took some time to walk around the city and learn more about its history. Everyone knows about Liverpool because of the Beatles. There is a rich musical history, which is owed in part to the Mississippi Blues. No matter where we go, there is always a connection to home.

Like Mississippi, Liverpool also has a difficult past. The Port of Liverpool rose to prominence due to the slave trade and the importation of cotton from the American south. Because cotton was king, when the Civil War broke out, Liverpool took the side of the confederacy supplying money and ships. We learned that the last confederate surrender occurred in Liverpool in November 1865, when the confederate warship Shenandoah surrendered in Liverpool. As the story goes, those onboard the Shenandoah thought it would be better to surrender in Liverpool rather than face the music in the US. And the sailors were allowed to stay. The US later demanded compensation from England for Liverpool’s supplying ships and allowing the confederates to use their ports. As a result, the British government paid the US £3,000,000 in compensation! We were not aware of this bit of Civil War history.

Now, Liverpool is a vibrant city with a fun restaurant and night life scene. We ate good food, caught live music and drank good beer during our visit. Liverpool also has a vibrant film industry. It is “Gotham City” in Batman. Other notable productions filmed in Liverpool include Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Peaky Blinders, Captain America, Florence Foster Jenkins, and many more.

You’ll Never Walk Alone

Now, the main event. Liverpool v. Manchester United at Anfield (Liverpool’s stadium). When I started watching English Premier League soccer in high school, Manchester United was the biggest club around. They had players like David Beckham, Wayne Rooney, Gary Neville, Roy Keane, Ruud van Nistelrooy, the list goes on and on. And I despised them. My heart belonged to Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard, Robbie Fowler, and Jamie Carragher. And unsung heroes like Polish goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek. If you’re interested, John Green’s the Anthropocene Reviewed features a story about Dudek’s performance in the Champion’s League Final and the power of Liverpool’s anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” It’s worth a read!

The stadium is surrounded by terrace houses with beautiful murals painted throughout the neighborhood. The day before the match, we spent some time in the neighborhood around Anfield admiring the murals and walking around the stadium when it was less crowded. We also snuck in a traditional lunch of scouse pie and mash at the iconic Homebaked Bakery.

And finally, the main event! Kickoff was around 4:00 on a rainy afternoon. The stadium was packed full of home supporters, with one small area allowed for the away fans. Every home match begins with “You’ll Never Walk Alone”. The fans sing along at the top of their lungs while holding banners and scarves in the air. It was a truly magical moment that brought tears to my eyes.

The game started with a disaster. United scored just 63 seconds in. The roaring crowd went suddenly quiet. Liverpool fought back and had so many good chances that just missed. Liverpool finally scored in the 78th minute. I was so sure this was the comeback! And then United scored a second goal just 6 minutes later. Nooooo! United had not won at Anfield since January 2016. Our match ended in a 2-1 loss.

But the crowd sang and stayed with the team the entire game. Chants of “Champions!” or “Liverpool!” rang out every few minutes. Many of the players have a song created by the fans, some of which we knew and could sing along: “Mo Salah! Mo Salah! Mo Salah! Running down the wing. Mo Salah la-la-la la-ahh, The Egyptian King!” And the song honoring Virgil van Dijk: He’s our center-half, He’s our number four, Watch him defend, And we watch him score, He’ll pass the ball, Calm as you like, He’s Virgil van Dijk, He’s Virgil van Dijk!

In the 20th minute, the entire stadium sang to honor Diogo Jota. Jota and his brother tragically died in a car accident this summer. Since his death, the fans sing in the 20th minute of every match (he was No. 20). The song goes: Oh, he wears the number 20, He will take us to victory, And when he’s running down the left wing, He’ll cut inside and score for LFC. He’s a lad from Portugal, Better than Figo don’t you know, Oh, his name is Diogo! There are memorials to Jota around the stadium. The fans and the club really care about their players.

You’ll Never Walk Alone ❤️

Thank you for reading! Next up – Slovenia🏞️⛰️❄️🍃