#01-22 "Anne Lister Birthday WeeK" Arrival Day

March 30 - Apr 1, 2022

I first heard of the BBC/HBO series “Gentleman Jack” (known as GJ onwards), a series about brilliant Anne Lister from early 1800’s Halifax, England in December 2020 but didn’t watch it until February 2021. I was hooked within minutes - the costumes, scenery, cinematography, acting and the formidable Anne Lister & Suranne Jones who brings her to life! I soon joined GJ and Anne Lister Facebook groups and started chatting with other fans. In March 2021, I connected with Julia from Ontario and we hit it off from day one, chatting online every day since then. We had a 2 day visit when I did a family trip to Ontario in September 2021 which was fun.

Julia & I both decided to attend “Anne Lister Birthday Week” (known as ALBW onwards) taking place in April 2022. After hours of chatting, we chose the tickets for events & what we wanted to see & do.

In January while browsing Google Maps for things to see & do near our hotel, I was horrified to read that the hotel was closing for months due to urgent renovations!@ After some tense hours and chat, we found the Travelodge at Dean Clough could accommodate our travel dates and it was a short walk into town. Whew!

We were devastated in late February to hear that Pat Esgate, the ALBW organizer had received a devastating & rare cancer diagnosis and would not be able to attend. Lots of tears were shed by me and I’m sure everyone else.

FINALLY, my fly date arrived and I was off to Vancouver airport for my flight to Heathrow airport in London. When Julia arrived the next day, we took a comfortable train to Halifax to begin our adventure.

We went right to The Piece Hall in the town centre where ALBW headquarters was located. It was SO amazing & I got emotional seeing the Anne Lister statue that was unveiled in September 2021. We met up with Michelle from Liverpool who kindly allowed me to have a Sea Soul and Snow hoodie (Live Kindly) sent to her. A fun thing to see at The Piece Hall was the "Dancing Hares" exhibit by artist Sophie Ryder.

On our arrival night, I met Cynthia from Florida who I shared a fun couple of hours with, browsing a grocery store perusing the strange & wonderful food items and we spent 20 minutes in the yogurt aisle alone! I also met Kathy from Gosport in the South of England who walked into the lobby carrying her Brompton folding bike (I had just put a deposit on one in Vancouver)!

Walked: 59,928 steps (40.35 kms)

NOTE: Click photos to enlarge (press back arrow to return to blog).