Have failed to look after the physical this week, with the conference in the middle of the week and I have been away for the weekend. For some crazy reason, I chose to go to Liverpool for a weekend break. It was a gamble and I was not sure the wife would approve and we both have been pleasantly surprised. Liverpool, like Birmingham, have had a bad rap. Maybe they deserved the reputation years ago – I remember arriving in Birmingham some 18 years ago. It wasn’t impressive then but it is very pleasant now as is Liverpool.

I suppose I had to visit Liverpool, after all, as a kid growing up in the Seychelles, I wanted to be a sailor. I have been on all sorts of ships - frigates, destroyers, a submarine (Australian) and a helicopter carrier – mainly from the British, American and French navies (incl the helicopter carrier) but I have been on a Russian one as well. I read lots about the sea and famous ships etc and Liverpool has always been one of those places to visit. Not much happening on the docks now but the highlight of our visit was watching the QEII leave Liverpool for the last time. After a few more British port visits ending in her Southampton home port, she is to make her final journey to become a hotel in Dubai. We also made a visit to the Slavery Museum which is a impressive national resource.

I liked Liverpool and hope to spend a few more days there in the future but for now I have to slip back into my routines and get back to the gym. At least, the weekend was good for my karma!

[First published on my Talking2Myself blog on specified date]