Trips & Adventures – 18 January 2018

After a meal at Nando’s in the Printworks, we made our way to the The Robots exhibition at the Museum of Science & Industry.

We think of robots as a modern invention, but we’ve been harnessing the power of robotics for more than 500 years.

We got close to a unique collection of over 100 robots, from an animatronic baby to a news-reading android from Japan.

We particularly enjoyed interacting with Pepper who started with a fist bump and shared a secret! (Honestly, we are sworn to secrecy – we cannot say any more.)

Just to add:

“Whether the weather be cold, or whether the weather be hot,
we’ll weather the weather, whatever the weather, whether we like it or not.”

 

12 December 2017 – Christmas Meal

Following drinks at Yates Manchester on Portland Street, we walked to the Double Tree Hilton for Christmas lunch. We dined in the exclusive library room and the food, the setting and the service were excellent.

Since the Christmas meal there have been outings to the Seven Stars Pub at the Printworks and for pizzas at Dough on High Street.

7 December 2017 – Trip to Chesterfield

Chesterfield is a market town in Derbyshire which has traced its beginnings to the 1st century AD and the construction of a Roman fort, which became redundant and was abandoned once peace was achieved.

Later an Anglo-Saxon village grew up on the site. The name Chesterfield derives from the Anglo-Saxon words caester (a Roman fort) and feld (grazing land).

The town’s best known landmark is the Church of St Mary and All Saints, popularly known for its “crooked spire”, which was originally constructed in the 14th century. It is a mystery why the spire is crooked but it is probably the weight of the lead tiles.

We discovered a rainbow bench donated by the trade union “Unison” in the church gardens.

     

We also found an old fashioned outdoor market – we searched for treasures on the bric-a-brac stall (50p an item or 3 for £1) but without success. It was bitterly cold and we even had hailstones briefly so we sheltered in the indoor market hall where we had a warm drink and a snack.

30 November 2017 – Trip to Smithills Hall, Bolton

Smithills Hall is a Grade I listed manor house, and a scheduled monument in Bolton. The oldest part of the structure is the Great Hall in the north range which was probably built in the early-14th century and once was surrounded by a moat,

There are also a consecrated chapel and Victorian extensions including The Poppin Tea Rooms, where we enjoyed a relaxing tea and coffee.

Later we enjoyed fish and chips at the Olympus in Bolton town centre.

24 November 2017 – Pitch to Enrich

The AXM Foundation held an event – Pitch to Enrich (a bit like Dragon’s Den) – in the New York, New York pub and Out In The City was awarded the top prize of £500.00 following a vote by the audience.

     

The AXM Foundation was set up to help LGBTQ+ groups and individuals in Greater Manchester in the areas of Health, Poverty, People, Community and Entrepreneurialism.

The Foundations’ aim is to raise over £10,000 each year from various fund raising activities such as sporting events, club nights, a village calendar and AXM Foundation nights.

To find out more go to http://www.axmfoundation.org/ or the Facebook page.

The large cheque was presented to Out In The City on the night but was shown to group members at the following meeting:

We are very appreciative of the support from AXM Foundation as the money will help with running costs for the group including trips out.