A Message to All Those "Professionals" Out There!

Hi Out There!

 

My apologies for being so quiet around here during the past few weeks, so much happens and you sort of loose track of time and then realise "oh! I haven't updated my blog in a while". These things happens I suppose but hopefully I'll have plenty more posts in the near future to make up for the quiet period-I'll give it my best shot anyway!

Anyway, today's post is a little bit of rant which I apologise for in advance. However, it's good to vent your frustration somewhere and hopefully if I do it here on my blog, the right eyes will read it and somewhere down the line it'll contribute to making things easier for someone else in a similar situation to myself. One can only hope it will have a positive impact at some point but in the meantime I'll use this platform for my own benefit. So here it goes.......

Because of my health I have had ALOT of "professionals" involved in my life ever since I was little. If I'm being completely honest with you; I absolutely hate it! When I was younger it didn't bother me too much, I just got on with it, attended the medical appointments and I suppose didn't think too much more about it. Now is unfortunately, a different story. I suppose having attended so many meetings and medical appointments over the years eventually takes it's toll.

I'm a little sick and tired of listening to the bright ideas that "professionals" who barely know me think are the right way forward for me. Well, I'm sorry but they're not! Not everyone is the same and just because something works for one person doesn't mean it'll be the right thing for another! I'm sure these "professionals" are used to walking into a room and repeating the same old script that they say to everyone they meet each and every day. What they always fail to remember is that they're speaking to someone with feelings and hearing them talk about me and my life in a particular way is pretty painful sometimes. They make you look at yourself in a completely different light and make your life seem alien in many respects. Quite often after the many appointments I attend due to my health, I get home and end up in floods of tears after hearing what was said to me which in turn makes my pain levels worse as my nervous system doesn't react well to stress and upset.

When I was younger I'd walk into a room full of medical professionals who would talk in what often felt like a foreign language. Making decisions about my treatment wasn't as much of a concern to me back then however, as you grow older you're suddenly flung in the deep end and Doctors want you to make the decisions. I often scroll through Facebook and see other people of my age discussing their worries and talking about the decisions they have to make regarding school/college which of course are important and have a major impact in the life. However, if I'm being completely honest I often envy their stress and concerns and wish I was making their decisions instead of decisions regarding the likes of medications and what steps to take next in my treatment. In many respects I feel like an old soul stuck in a teen's body, I struggle to relate to people of my age which might sound a little odd. Growing up so quickly at such a young age and trying to explain the emotions and how it affects you as person to people is difficult. One minute you're wanted to sit in a meeting and discuss extremely personal subjects with a bunch of strangers and then the next minute another "professional" thinks you're just like any other teenager and treat you as if you're clueless which REALLY irritates me! Like I said, I have nothing against others of my age but I find it difficult to be someone I'm not. At this point in my life I've been through a lot, experienced a lot of things that very few of my age already have and yet some "professionals" just presume I'm like any other teenager and should be acting and participating in things that others of my age do. Perhaps had they suggested some of their ideas a few years earlier it would have been different. But it's too late now I'm afraid, I can't be an "adult" and have to make mature decisions one minute and then put my "teenage" brain on the second I step out of the hospital. It unfortunately doesn't work that way; I'm either one way or the other. I am who I am and everything that I've been through has shaped the person I've become, I've matured and learned a lot over the past few years. I'm extremely proud of how much I achieved in the past year in particular and want to focus on making life as good as it possibly can be and more importantly standing up and speaking out about the issues that I alongside many other people are facing on a daily basis!

To be honest, I am now at the stage that I'm about to snap at the next "professional" who thinks they can suggest their useless ideas when A) I have already empathised of numerous occasions that my answer is 'NO!' and B) they haven't taken the time to really get to know me and see that I'm not the "typical" teenager. I am seriously considering handing them a piece of paper with the link to this post and telling them to go read it. Perhaps it would make them stop and think? Perhaps they might realise that before making presumptions they need to instead, look at the situation and at each individual as a person. 

As you'll now probably have gathered I am sick and tired of people trying to class me as something I'm not and just presuming that because something suits one person it'll suit and appeal to everyone. Well hello!-It won't! We are all unique (in a good way of course!) and when someone says 'NO', it should taken as 'NO' providing that the outcome's not going to cause harm to anyone. I hope that one day the point I'm trying to make will be taken seriously and perhaps those who need to take notice will do just that. I'm just one person sitting here in my room, on my laptop writing about my frustrations here on this minute space on the internet, if I'm lucky a few people might even sit down and read it. Through just even one person stumbling across this, I sincerely hope I can change perceptions and perhaps even gain the support of others to spread this message further. I can only imagine that I'm not the only person out there who feels this way and hope that through what I write I can find those that feel the same way and together, I hope we can get the message out there!

 

On that thought, I shall leave you with that thought and bid you farewell for now!

 

Sending you lots of love, peace and best wishes,

 

Rob xx

Life Update: Dreams Do Come True

Hello Lovely People!

How are you all doing? I hope that wherever you live has been blessed with some much needed sunshine. Certainly, where I live we've had a decent amount of sunshine however, it is Scotland after all and unfortunately the rain is never too far away but any sunshine is better than none I suppose! If you've been keeping up to date with my blog posts over the past four or five weeks you'll know it's been a pretty crazy but exciting few weeks for me! So much has happened and to be honest it's went by like a whirlwind! How is it that all the good things in life go by within a blink of an eye?
In just the space of a few weeks some of my biggest dreams have come true. Some of which I've waited years for to actually happen. If I were to go back in time to this time last year and tell myself what the up and coming year would hold; I don't think I'd actually believe it. The strange thing was that I was out and about today when I came across a framed picture of a dream catcher with the words "If you really want to catch you dreams you have to chase them" underneath. It was really appropriate considering everything that's happened during the past little while so of course it came home with me. So from now on, every time I look at that picture up on my bedroom wall, I'll fondly remember all of those precious memories and more importantly that dreams really do come true!
Like I said above, all my dreams that came true during the past couple of months have taken a long time to happen! I've had to overcome a lot of diversity and challenges throughout my entire life but the past four years since my knee surgery has been the toughest of them all. I'm sure at some point I'll write in more depth about all that has happened perhaps in a book (if I can actually make that dream a reality!) or even in this blog and explain in more detail just how difficult it's been. I feel really proud of everything I've overcome and the dreams I've achieved by doing just that. More now than ever, I feel extremely inspired to go out there and make every single one of my dreams come true.
As you'll know my radio dream has become a reality and I owe a lot of thanks every single person that helped me get there! I honestly mean this when I say that I love every single second I spend at the station, live on air hosting my very own show! I get such a buzz from it; I love learning new things, improving my skills and techniques and meeting such lovely people in the process. Having this amazing opportunity means the world to me and I'm cannot begin to express just how grateful I am for being given a chance.
Another of my biggest dreams was to meet Stevie Nicks from the legendary rock band Fleetwood Mac and thanks to an amazing charity named Rays of Sunshine my dream finally came true! I don't think I've ever met anyone quite like Stevie, she is truly a wonderful woman and a huge inspiration to me. Everything she said to me that night; the advice and the encouragement really meant a lot and will inspire me for the rest of my life. A short time after my wish was granted, Rays of Sunshine sent out a press release about my wish to some of the newspapers and the story was published in my town's local newspaper which was pretty exciting! We received the news that it had been printed whilst I was on air at the radio station so Mum and I popped into the supermarket on route home to pick up a copy. I quickly flicked through the pages in the shop to find the article but didn't properly read it until we got back into the car. I remember scanning through the article and having to double take when I noticed that Stevie herself had made a comment! Never in a million years did I expect to read the words "It was truly a pleasure to spend time with Robyn. She is definitely a girl with a plan, and she is not letting this get her down. She may actually save the world. I wrote her story in my journal where it will live on. Rock on Robyn! Love, Stevie Nicks." I was completely and utterly shocked but incredibly touched that Stevie had taken the time out of her day to contribute to the article and say such sweet things about me. Those words mean the absolute world to me and I can't thank Stevie enough for her words of wisdom and encouragement!
I sincerely hope that one day in the not so distant future I will find a way to help Rays of Sunshine for making my dream come true. That evening made such a big impact in my life and without Rays of Sunshine it would never have happened. I am going to have a good brainstorm about what I can do to say Thank-you them for granting my wish and hopefully find a way to help them make other young people's greatest wishes come true!
No doubt, you'll have come across my previous blog posts about my trip to Liverpool and seeing Sir Paul McCartney in concert. I've wanted to visit Liverpool for such a long time anyway, but combining it with another of my greatest wishes to see Paul McCartney in concert was something I'd never have even expected to happen! Liverpool is such a beautiful city and the people who live there couldn't have been friendlier! I instantly felt at home there and cannot wait to go back! Seeing Paul McCartney was for me one of those "pinch me" moments. I'd missed out on seeing him live on a couple occasions so this was as you can imagine an extremely special experience! I know some people would argue otherwise but in my opinion alongside so many others Paul's still go it! To see a gentlemen of his age play for as long as he did and not once show an sign of exhaustion was incredible! The music of course, speaks for itself and to actually hear those legendary songs performed right there in front of me was mind-blowing! I still can't believe I saw Paul live and have promised myself it certainly won't be the last time!
I could quite literally go on forever about the amazing few weeks I've but getting to the long and the short of it is that dreams do come true so never give up trying! If they don't work out for you the first time there's a good reason why it wasn't meant to be. Please just don't give up hope because when it finally does happen it'll be extremely special and completely worth it-I can assure you of that!
I shall love you and leave you for now, so if you haven't already make sure to catch up on all my latest blog posts here at www.thehathippie.blogspot.co.uk and also on my music blog www.jukeboxrhapsody.blogspot.co.uk! I'm planning on compiling a list of ideas for future blog posts to keep me busy over the coming weeks and months so if any of you would like to see me write about something in particular make sure to leave a comment below, on one of my social media accounts or by email through the contact form. Any ideas will of course be greatly appreciated and I'll do my absolute upmost to write about them here on my blog.

Thank-you so much for stopping by! I really appreciate all your love and support! It means the absolute world to me!

Lots of Love & Best Wishes,

Rob (The Hat Hippie) xx

Louise LIVE in Edinburgh

 

I haven't had the opportunity to write about this until now as the past few weeks for me, have been extremely crazy! Thankfully, I've finally had the chance to sit down and write about Louise's event so I do hope you enjoy!

A couple of weeks ago, Saturday 13th June 2015 to be exact I accompanied my younger sister to see Louise LIVE in Edinburgh. As I'm sure you already know, Youtube is an extremely popular platform that young people in particular use on a daily basis. Louise Pentland, known as Sprinkles of Glitter on Youtube has grown to fame by filming beauty, fashion and lifestyle videos and posting them on the internet. Youtubers like Louise are a major influence in the lives of literally thousands of young people all over the world. Being a blogger myself, I find their stories extremely inspiring and encouraging within my own work that I produce for you my lovely readers to enjoy. Seeing just how successful they've become inspires me to work hard as it evidently pays off.

Anyway, a number of weeks ago Louise posted a video on Youtube to announce that she would be going on tour with a show that she has created in order to meet and interact with her fans. My sister was absolutely ecstatic to discover Louise would be visiting Edinburgh during her tour and was absolutely desperate to get hold of tickets. Tickets went on sale literally the very second that the events were announced and we just so happened to be in the car at that very second so guess who had to endure the famous ticket buying stress? That's right, Me! Not only that but I'm pretty sure phone Wi-Fi decides to slow down in urgent situations such as this. Nevertheless I managed to secure to tickets much to my sister's excitement and my relief!

So we arrived at the venue to find a huge queue of teenage girls, all whom were there to see the lovely Louise Pentland. We edged our way into the end of the continuously growing line before being approached by a member of staff who noticed that I was in my wheelchair and said we could wait at the front to avoid people bumping into me once the doors were opened. Stopping for my sister to purchase one of the signed posters they had one sale, we followed the lady to the front of the line and were quickly approached by another member of staff who escorted us through to our seats before the doors were officially opened. Sitting on each seat was an autographed photograph/postcard of Louise for each ticketholder to take home with them, it was such a lovely idea and of course a nice memento of the event.

 

At either side of the stage were big pink metallic balloons with the word "Louise" on the left hand side and "Live" on the adjacent. Above the stage was a screen with a photo of Louise showing. A soundtrack of some today's biggest hits filled the room as everyone settled into their seats and waited for the show to soon begin.

Before long the lights dimmed and Louise's entrance theme which if I remember right was "Sugar" by Maroon 5. Shrieks of excitement filled the room as the lady who inspires so many young people out there, including everyone in that very room walked on stage. And of course it just wouldn't be Louise without her signature catch phrase "Aloha Sprinklerinos!" much to everyone's delight to finally hear in person.

Apparently, last year Louise ran a few trial shows of "The Glitter Experience", now know as "Louise LIVE" in a handful of venues to see if this sort of event would attract her fans. From what I've heard her plan was to make the "Louise LIVE" experience a more intimate and personal one for her fans compared to Amity Fest which she'd also been involved in alongside a number of other Youtube personalities.

The first half of the show which if I remember right was around a hour and consisted of a "Glitter Quiz" and some hilarious stories about Louise's life which quite literally were brought to life thanks to Louise's bubbly personality. Louise divided the room into four or five teams and named each group after an aspect of her life. For example one group was named "The Chummies", after the nickname Zoe Sugg (Zoella) and her (Louise) call each other. Another group was called "The Baby Glitters" in honour of Louise's nickname for her adorable daughter Darcy. From every group Louise picked two volunteers to come up on stage to participate in the "Glitter Quiz". The two volunteers from each team were given an item that makes a noise such as a horn or a triangle (I think) so that every time they thought they had the right answer they could catch Louise's attention. The quiz had a very similar concept to a game show where each team would compete against each other to correctly answer as many questions as they possibly could. All of the questions had some sort of relation to Louise's life, surprisingly I managed to answer a lot of the questions correctly (too bad I wasn't competing in the actual contest!).

After a rather amusing story about Louise's recent experience of suffering from toothache which had everyone in heaps of laughter, (as funny as it happened to be, I'm sure it wasn't a fun experience for Louise at the time!) there was a short intermission to allow everyone to stretch their legs and nip to the bathroom if necessary. During the break a video that Louise made especially for her tour was shown on the screen above the stage to keep us entertained as we patiently waited for the next part of the show to begin.

 

A little while later, the lights once again dimmed and "Uptown Funk" began to play as Louise entered the stage for a second time. In the second half Louise held a Question and Answer session where again, she picked two volunteers from each of the groups to join her on stage and ask her a question. My sister happened to be one of the lucky girls that Louise picked from the audience. I was so excited for my sister as I know just how much the Youtubers inspire her and I know she's been waiting a very long time to actually meet one of them. So Louise, if you ever read this post which I doubt (but you never know!) I just want to say a huge thank-you for making my sister's dream come true! It really meant a lot to her and I know she'll treasure the memories for the rest of her life!

One by one, Louise worked her way down the line of fans that she invited on stage for the Q&A answering each question as she went. I must admit I spent the entire Q&A snapping photos on my Mum's camera to get a decent photo of my sister on stage with Louise. My lovely sister was the last person to ask Louise a question which happened to be "what was your favourite subject at school?". Louise answered with a great story about how English was her favourite subject, although she didn't receive much encouragement or positivity from her teacher. She told the audience about how she'd like to send a copy of her new book "Life With a Sprinkle of Glitter" to her old English teacher to show her that she'd successfully written a book despite her negativity.

I can't remember if it was during the first part of the show or the second as I'm writing this almost two weeks later, but Louise pulled out her phone to film a short video of the audience wishing her friend Marie (Bits n Clips on Youtube) a Happy Birthday. What a sweet idea and of course very exciting that we all got to be a part of it!

 

Next, Louise with the help of yet more members of the audience told us about an imaginary land she'd created to pass time whilst travelling on trains and planes. One of her stage hands lifted a large white board onto the stage which looked rather heavy-poor guy! The audience members who were invited on stage were each handed an envelope with a word printed on a piece of paper hidden inside. The remainder of the audience then picked one of the words which lead Louise to describe it's significance in her imaginary world and where it would be situated on the map that she drew for us on the whiteboard. Even Zoe, Alfie and Joe Sugg as well as a few of the other Youtubers live in her world which made it all the more interesting! It was most definitely a fun idea and reminded me a lot of the imaginary worlds I used to draw pictures of when I was little.

Louise Land

As the show came towards the end, Louise announced that she would hang around in the main entrance area of The Exchange to meet everyone after the show. Literally the second she mentioned this my sister and I gathered all our things together so we could quickly slip out at the end and make our way to the front of the queue to avoid the mad dash. It's pretty scary when theirs an influx of people pushing and shoving above me and I'm sitting below in my wheelchair and they can't see me. Once Louise said her final few words, left stage and the lights came back on, my sister and I made quickly left the room and joined the queue to meet Louise. Much to our delight we were pretty close to the front. Unfortunately, when Louise came out a bunch of girls pushed their way in front us and my wheelchair and followed her down the queue, pushing and shoving  their way through the crowd which was pretty rude. Had I been standing with my crutches I potentially could have been knocked over as my balance isn't so reliable and that would have been disastrous and anyway I'm extremely short so would never even have caught a glimpse. Thankfully, the gentlemen escorting Louise noticed us and asked Louise to come speak to my sister and I which I was so grateful to him for. We didn't want to keep Louise back for very long as she had a VERY long queue of people waiting but we quickly chatted with her and my sister even managed to take a sneaky selfie with Louise. The funny thing for me was that Louise recognised me from somewhere which to be honest was the last thing I expected her to say to me. To my knowledge I've never met her before, well certainly not since she's been famous on Youtube. Perhaps I've maybe crossed paths with her during one of my many visits to London as some point. I must admit I was a little excited about it though!

Louise LIVE was a fun and girly event which I'm so glad I was able to share with my sister. She's been extremely desperate to meet one of her YouTube inspirations for such a long time and I am so pleased it finally happened! Louise is such a lovely lady who evidently is very grateful to her fans for the success they've helped her achieve. I think Louise's idea of making her live events intimate and personal is the perfect avenue to go down, as the time Louise was able to spend conversing with her fans was invaluable. From what I've heard Louise is already planning Louise LIVE events for next year and if she decides to bring her show back to Scotland I know two girls who would definitely try and get hold of tickets!

Liverpool Day 3: Fab 4 Taxi Tour

Strawberry Fields Forever

I woke up that morning feeling a little star struck, well after all I had seen Paul McCartney just a few hours before! I'm so pleased that we decided to stay an extra day in Liverpool instead of a long day travelling home. Due to the major buzz I was experiencing from the night before, I seriously don't think I could have contained myself in as small a space for a long period of time considering how hyper I was.

We got up out of bed and packed our bags up as we were moving hotels for our final evening in Liverpool. We ate breakfast in a place named "What's Cooking Bar & Grill" which was directly underneath the premiere Inn. The décor was so cool, although I've probably said that about every restaurant/café I visited during my time in Liverpool but they all were unique and exciting in their own special way! I loved how this particular café incorporated the original features within the building creating a similar feel to the Premier Inn. I decided to order the "full monty" breakfast as I enjoy a cooked breakfast every now and then. You should however, have seen the look of shock on my face when the plate was sat down in front of me. I couldn't quite believe just how it big it was! Needless to say I couldn't finish it but what I did manage to eat was of course, rather delicious!

After breakfast we packed up the car with our bags and Dad took it over to the Crowne Plaza hotel where we'd booked to stay for our final evening. Mum, my sister and I made our way to the Pumphouse restaurant which was our designated meeting point for the Fab 4 Taxi Tour we'd booked a few weeks in advance of our trip. Just a short while after Dad joined us we were approached by a gentleman named Graeme who turned out to be our driver/guide. We followed him to the taxi and settled into our seats. We drove through the streets of Liverpool until we arrived outside a pub which we soon discovered was the pub on the front of Ringo Starr's first solo album "Sentimental Journey". Graeme was fairly new to the company, so it was here at this very location where we met John who would be take on the role of the main guide for us and another party of tourists.

The pub on the cover of Ringo Starr's first solo album Sentimental Journey

John told us the story of Richard Starkey's (more famously known as Ringo Starr) life standing in the exact location where it all took place. Just around the corner was the house that Ringo and his mother lived in until he became famous as the drummer of The Beatles. A couple of streets down the road was the very house Ringo where was born, almost directly across the road was his Dad's house and just a little further down the path was the home of his Grandparents. All of the houses in that particular street are currently empty and apparently were intended to be knocked down by the council. The plans have since changed and apparently, Ringo's birthplace is now set to become a museum at some point in future. The remaining empty properties in the street will be sold cheaply with the condition that all buyers promise to spend a certain sum of money on the renovation and maintenance of their property.

The next stop on our tour was the famous Penny Lane which served as the inspiration for the Beatles classic written by Paul McCartney. We had our photos taken next to the street sign, which they've now painted on the wall due to the fact that the street sign had been stolen on numerous occasions, which I find a little weird to be honest. I mean what would you do with a street sign?

Penny Lane Barber Shop

Further along the road was the famous "shelter in the middle of the roundabout" as well as the Penny Lane Barber Shop mentioned in the lyrics of the song. John, one our tour guides told us how Paul was inspired by childhood memories of Penny Lane and how these related to the lyrics of the song. Being such a big fan of The Beatles, I found it particularly interesting to see the exact locations I'd heard mentioned in the lyrics on so many occasions right there in front of me. It's extremely interesting to see how everyday life can create such amazing art loved by so many. Standing outside, we were shown a photograph of The Beatles taken inside the famous barber shop. In the photo was all four Beatles, with Paul seated in the barber chair having his hair cut into the famous Beatles mop top. Believe it or not the barber shop is still open to the public and much to our amusement they sell merchandise such as Penny Lane Barber Shop t-shirts!

Paul McCartney's childhood home

Next in the tour itinery was a visit to 20 Forthlin Road where Paul McCartney lived with his father, James and brother, Michael until he became famous. I'd seen many pictures of his childhood home so it was pretty surreal to find myself standing right in front of it! We were all told the story of Paul's life and how both him and John would skip school, (and art college in John's case) catch the bus back to Paul's house and spent the afternoon writing songs together unbeknown to both Paul's father and John's Aunt Mimi. The strange thing was I could actually visualise them strolling along the path together and sneaking into the house trying to avoid being caught by the neighbours.

Our next stop was Strawberry Fields, the very place that inspired John Lennon to write yet another legendary song in The Beatles catalogue of hits. Strawberry Fields for me, felt rather magical. Literally, the second we arrived there I instantly fell in love with it. I could hear the sound of leaves rustling in the crisp breeze in the trees towering high above us and the sweet sound of little birds singing songs filled the air-pure bliss in my opinion! From what I've heard John Lennon felt a connection with Strawberry Fields and after visiting there myself, (although, I'm sure it's changed a lot over the years) I can definitely see why he loved it so much.

Aunt Mimi's house

Mendips, 251 Melrose Avenue was where John Lennon lived for most of childhood with Aunt Mimi and just so happened to be our next port of call. Just like at the previous homes of The Beatles, we'd visited that day, we were told the incredible story of John Lennon. His story was absolutely heart-breaking to hear and I think standing in front his home made it seem all the more real. John had a really tough childhood and I really admire how he made something of himself and how he became a legend.

We also visited George Harrison's childhood home which looks almost identical to how it looked during the time that George and his family lived there. Apparently, this was the house where George celebrated his 21st birthday and the entire band celebrated it there with him. Our guides also showed us a photo of the local postmen delivering I don't know how many crates filled to the brim with birthday cards from his fans to the house. It was unbelievable, I have seriously seen nothing like it! It must have taken him years to open and read each and everyone of them!

The final stop of the tour was the church hall where John and Paul met for the very first time at a summer fete that the Quarrymen (John's band) performed at. Across the road was the graveyard where the tombstone that inspired yet another legendary Beatles track written by Paul. I'm sure you'll already have guessed that the song I'm referring to is Eleanor Rigby. Seeing the place where the world's best song writing duo met and of course, history was made was quite emotional for me as a fan. I often wonder what would have happened if perhaps one of them had taken ill and never attended the fete that day. Would they ever have actually met? Would The Beatles ever have actually existed? I suppose that's a question I'll never know the answer to which is most definitely a good thing! So it was here where we finished our tour and ironically we finished quite literally where it all began.

We bid farewell to John the tour guide and his party before getting back into our taxi and just a short time later we were dropped off by our guide/driver Graeme outside the world famous Mathew Street. What an incredible tour! Both guides Graeme and John couldn't have been nicer and both gentlemen were extremely knowledge about the Beatles and Liverpool itself. We'd booked a 2 hour tour which in fact actually lasted almost 4 hours which for just £45 was absolutely amazing! Next time I visit Liverpool I'd love to go on one of the longer tours with the Fab Four Taxi Tours and learn more about how Liverpool shaped The Beatles. Seriously, if you ever visit Liverpool and are keen to do a Beatles tours I'd completely recommend booking with them! You'll definitely not regret it! To find out more make sure to visit http://fab4tours.co.uk/

We made our way along Mathew Street before stopping to take a photo outside the Cavern Club and another beside the John Lennon statue situated a little further along the cobbled path. I couldn't visit Liverpool and not have my photo taken there! It had to be done!

A quick photo with the John Lennon statue

Afterwards, we made our way back to the Liverpool One shopping centre and popped into Ed's Diner for a milkshake. My sister has wanted to visit one of their branches for quite a while so we decided to pop in and see what it was like. I have to say I was rather impressed with it. It was like stepping back into the 50s, the décor was so cool and reminded me of the sets I'd seen in the Grease and Back to the Future films. The only problem was I felt like I should have come dressed in a poodle skirt or one of those cute 50s dresses covered in polka-dots, that you find in vintage shops or Camden Market in London. 

After a yummy refreshment, we took the opportunity to do a spot of shopping. I seriously don't think I've ever seen as many amazing shops in my entire life. There was a shop that catered to the taste and needs of almost everyone that stepped foot in Liverpool. Let's just put it this way, if there isn't you're just too fussy! No offence intended by the way!

As it was getting late we decided that it was probably a good time to have a spot of dinner and decided to take a visit to Pizza Hut. We don't visit Pizza Hut very often at home here in Scotland so it's always a nice treat to go there once every blue moon! I must confess I am not a huge fan of pizza, I'm not so keen on cheese (yes, I'm a little weird!) but I have to say that they make some absolutely delicious pizzas!

The Pizza Hut branch situated in the Liverpool One centre was what I would describe as mobbed (extremely busy). Presumably, it was as busy due to the fact that it happened to be half term in England and of course it was a Friday evening. Despite the quickly growing queue, the Pizza Hut staff were able to seat each party within the matter of minutes. The food tasted great and I think I enjoyed it all the more because I hadn't eaten pizza in such a long time!

After dinner we made our way to the Crowne Plaza Hotel, passing my beloved Albert Dock and the Liver Building on route to check in for our final night in the city. The thought of leaving the city didn't sound so appealing I must admit. The Crowne Plaza was very different compared to the Premiere Inn, it was rather fancy which was nice but I definitely have to say the Premiere Inn was my favourite out of the two! The Premiere Inn was very quirky which was right up my street!

I couldn't quite believe that my long awaited Liverpool trip had come to an end the following day. We grabbed the most amazing breakfast at a very cute and chic café/restaurant named "Bills" in the city centre of Liverpool and popped into a few shops to purchase a few bits n' bobs before making our way back to the car and bidding Liverpool farewell for now. I had such an amazing trip and enjoyed every single second of it! Without a doubt you'll already have guessed that my highlight of the trip was seeing Paul McCartney! Never in a million years did I ever imagine I'd see him in his hometown but as I've recently discovered dreams really do come true!

My Dream of Meeting Stevie Nicks Came True!

 

 As some of you already know one of my biggest dreams was to meet Stevie Nicks from Fleetwood Mac, one of my all-time favourite bands. Around six months ago my Mum applied to a charity named Rays of Sunshine to see if I fitted into one of their categories to have a wish granted. We soon discovered that I was in fact entitled to a wish so my Mum began the process of filling in the paperwork in hope that my wish might actually come true. Once all of the paperwork was submitted we quickly received a response from Rays of Sunshine to say that they would do their upmost to make my dream of meeting Stevie Nicks come true.

Last week, Mum received a phone call from Rays of Sunshine to tell us that they had successfully managed to arrange for me to meet Stevie at the first Fleetwood Mac concert in Glasgow. As you can probably imagine I was beyond excited and time always seems to go slower when you're excited.

Thankfully, Tuesday finally arrived and I was absolutely hyper as well as a little nervous I must admit-this was such a big deal for me! I'd dreamt of meeting Stevie for years and couldn't believe that finally it was going to happen!

We were contacted by a member of Stevie's team that morning to finalise the smaller details and we were told that we could park our car in the backstage car park where the band's private cars would pick them up and drop them off. The tour buses filled with equipment were all parked there too which was pretty cool! A member of the band's security met us there with our backstage passes and escorted in through the backstage door. Directly in front of us was the door leading directly behind the stage and on our left was the staircase to the dressing rooms. There was a door to the kitchens where I could see the caterers busy cooking what I'm sure would be some delicious food!

A member of the Hydro's staff was asked to escort us through to where all the food and merchandise stalls were situated to wait on the doors to the actual arena being opened. As we were making our way through the seated area in the arena we caught a glimpse of Mick Fleetwood hosting his meet n' greet. It was quite unbelievable to see Mick just a few steps away from us as we walked on by, it all felt rather surreal. 

Eventually, everyone was allowed inside to find their seats for the evening. At around quarter past eight the lights dimmed and the band walked on stage to receive a warm reception from the Glasgow crowd. Throughout the duration of the show we (the audience) were treated to a setlist of back to back hits all of which sounded absolutely amazing. I'd have to say my favourite song of the night was "Gold Dust Woman" which was both magical and simply mesmerising. I will hopefully write a review of the show itself for my music blog so keep an eye out for that!

The view from the side of the stage

During the second last song the gentleman who met us on arrival at the venue came and found us with a member of the Hydro's staff. They escorted us right round the arena, zipping in and out of the crowds of people dancing in the isles. It sort of felt like I was a celebrity! Before we knew it we were being ushered behind the barrier to watch the final couple of songs from the side of the stage which was completely unexpected. If you've read any of my concert reviews on my other blog you may have noticed that on a few occasions that I often find myself wondering what it's like from the bands point of view looking out towards the audience. Although I wasn't directly on the stage, my question was finally answered. It was quite a breath-taking sight; a sight that I never thought I'd see for myself. I don't think I realised just how big the Hydro is until I saw it from that exact angle.

At this stage I was beginning to become extremely excited and very nervous, I think being in as close proximity to the band as we were hit home and made realise what was about to happen. The show soon came to an end and the band gathered together at the centre of the stage to take a bow and bid their fans farewell. Before long the stage was empty, the house lights were turned on and quickly, the arena began to empty. We watched as the roadies carefully covered Mick's beautiful drum kit for its performance the following evening here in Glasgow.

It wasn't long before we were met by another member of the band's team who we followed behind the stage, through a door and round a small corner to the elevator. We clambered into the elevator as we chatted with the gentleman who had been appointed to take us upstairs. Seconds later the elevator doors opened to reveal a narrow corridor. On my left I could see a bunch of doors with familiar names printed on signs outside each one. Yes, those were the names of each member of Fleetwood Mac which was pretty cool! On the adjacent wall were framed posters of bands such as Eric Clapton and Prince who have performed in the Hydro since it's opening back in 2013.



A sneaky backstage photo

We waited with a member of staff in the hallway until we got the go-ahead to enter Stevie's dressing room. As we waited a bunch of people came and went from all angles, one of which just so happened to be Mr John McVie, Fleetwood Mac's bass player!

Just a little while later we were called down the corridor to Stevie's dressing room. As they fiddled around with the doors to open them up so I could enter the room in my wheelchair, I caught my first glimpse of Stevie Nicks sitting at her dressing table. I couldn't believe just how close I actually was to her-my heart was absolutely pounding!

Once the doors were opened, we were introduced to Stevie who pulled her chair right up to me so she could talk face to face with me. I have to admit I was a little tongue-tied for the first few minutes or so but thankfully, Stevie was very good at calming me down and quickly made me feel at ease. I'd brought her a little gift and card to say thank-you for taking time out of what I'm sure is a crazy schedule to meet with me. She opened the card right there and then before realising I'd written a rather long letter to which she asked me if I minded she took it back to her hotel as she loved reading letters before going to bed. She then opened the gift we'd given her which was a flower brooch/clip that Mum had handmade for her. She took it over to her dressing table and clipped the flower onto one of the stunning shawls she had hung over mirror. Apparently, she keeps things that are special to her on her dressing table as they bring back memories. So I feel pretty honoured she put it there!

We spent a while quite literally chatting about everything and anything, it seriously didn't feel like I was talking to a world famous singer instead it felt more like I was talking to a friend which was pretty special. Stevie was so genuine and extremely caring towards me which really meant a lot. I really felt like she "got me" in a way that very few people ever has and I'm not just saying that because of who she is; I genuinely mean it! To be honest I sort of forgot who I was talking to, it seriously felt like I'd known her all my life.

After a while, the door opened and I was so engrossed in conversation with Stevie I never even noticed until she said "Mick come in, this is Robyn, I'm making her wish come true" (words to that affect). As I turned round, standing in the door was Mick Fleetwood himself and oh my goodness was he was extremely tall! He shook hands with both my parents and I before pulling a chair over to sit next to Stevie. He spent quite a while chatting to my Dad as Mum and I continued to speak with Stevie.

Stevie's eyes fell upon the tour programme that I'd been clutching in my hands the entire time. "Would you like us to sign that for you?" she asked me motioning towards it. And of course I said yes! I began rummaging through the bag I'd brought to find the CDs and tambourine I'd brought in hope that Stevie would sign it for me. Kindly, they both signed every single item I'd brought with me. To be honest, I'd have been happy to have Stevie sign just one item but she happily worked her through my pile handing each item to Mick who also signed them for me.

Next, one of Stevie's team (I think it might have been her assistant but I'm not 100% sure) asked us if we'd like her to take a photo of us all with Mick and Stevie which of course was an offer we really couldn't refuse! After having a group photo Mick bid us all farewell shaking our hands as he did. Stevie and I had a couple of photo taken together where Stevie wrapped her arms right round me giving me what felt like the world's biggest hug. It was such a sweet moment! One of her best friends, Mary who I'd seen in photographs with Stevie when they were younger had been hanging about in the background so we asked her to come over and pose for a photo of her, Stevie and I together. It was such a cute photograph by the way! 

It was getting close to midnight and Stevie's car was waiting on her-although it seemed like she'd happily have chatted with me for a while longer, so we decided it would probably be a good time to make our way back home. We gathered up our stuff and said goodbye to Stevie who gave me a hug and blew me a kiss as we left with security leading the way to the elevator. We walked past Stevie's fancy car which was waiting to take her to her hotel and made our way to ours after thanking everyone for taking such good care of us. I was absolutely hyper the entire journey home and didn't get much sleep as I was far too excited!

It was an incredible night and I still can't quite believe it actually happened! A huge thank-you to the amazing charity Rays of Sunshine who worked tirelessly to make my dream come true! I can't begin describe just how much this meant to me! If you want to find out more about the amazing wishes Rays of Sunshine have granted in past or you'd like to make a donation to help make another young persons dream come true please click here.

I also want to say a huge thank-you to my Mum for taking the time and nominating me to have my wish granted. Thank-you so much to my best friend, Heather who is like a big sister to me for kindly signing some of the paperwork in order to make this happen. Finally, a big thank-you to Stevie and her team for being so sweet and making my night so special! I will cherish the memories you gave me for the rest of my life!

 

 

Liverpool Day 2: Macca Mania

 

The big day had finally arrived, the one I'd dreamt of for years. It was the day I'd finally see Paul McCartney live in concert-eeeeeek! (That's probably not the most literate thing to write but I think we can make an exception on this occasion!)

 The concert wasn't until the Thursday evening meaning that we had the entire day to spend exploring the city. But before we went anywhere we had a light breakfast in the Costa Coffee branch beneath our hotel (yes, Costa not Starbucks!). Having a light breakfast seemed like a sensible idea as we'd planned to have an early dinner before the concert that evening.

Sneaky photo of Costa

After breakfast we decided that first on our agenda would be a visit to The Beatles Story museum which again, was right next door to where we were staying. It was a pretty cool museum; they'd created scenes such as the inside of the Cavern Club and EMI Studios which is now famously known as Abbey Road Studios. All visitors are allowed to take photographs which is unheard of these days. Not many museums grant you permission to do that, so of course we took full of advantage of the situation and took plenty of photos (Thanks Mum for doing the honour!).

At the very end of the exhibition was a stunning tribute to John Lennon inspired by probably his most famous song as a solo artist, Imagine. There was a small hallway covered with some fabulous black and white photographs of John that expanded into a large room. To the left of the room was a white grand piano with a cream coloured guitar sitting proudly beside it. On top of the piano was a photograph of John and replica of his famous glasses. The lyrics of Imagine gently filled the room as everyone admired the simple, stunning and emotional tribute.

After leaving the room you then entered a Beatles inspired café which looked pretty cool. We didn't actually eat there so I can't say whether it's worth visiting or not though. I'll leave that up to you guys if you ever decide to stop by!

At the end of the café on the left hand side was a staircase and a lift for people like me who have mobility issues, use a wheelchair or have a child in a pram or pushchair. Both the lift and stairs take visitors to the gift shop and exit which are both situated on the second floor. If you're a huge Beatles fan like me you'll love the gift shop! It has by far the best selection of Beatles merchandise I've ever seen and cost me an absolute fortune! I'd previously visited a Beatles gift store in London which I wasn't impressed with to be completely honest. This on the other hand had so much to choose from and something to suit every price range.

After what was a lengthy shopping experience we decided to visit the Liverpool Wheel which is a much smaller version of the London Eye. The view from it was great but I will warn you that if you ever visit Liverpool do NOT ride the wheel on a windy day. It's not fun being so high in the sky and your pod rocking back and forth in the wind!

The view from the Liverpool wheel

The nest stop on our agenda was the Tate Art Gallery, which is also situated on the dock beneath our hotel (The Premiere Inn). It's such a pretty walk down by the docks, I could happily have sat there all day enjoying the stunning view and relaxed atmosphere. There is a nice selection of quirky, independent shops and cafes on either side. You could easily have spent most of your day strolling along enjoying all that the docks has to offer without visiting the main thoroughfare.

We had a brief walk round the Tate Art Gallery and realised that it wasn't quite for us. I'm sorry, but I find it difficult to understand how a pile of folded linen is seen as a work of art. Even I could fold a pile of material but I highly doubt it would make it's way into an art gallery. I'm sure everyone would laugh at me if I even attempted that. Personally speaking, I find modern art mind boggling. What's even more confusing was seeing people in deep discussion over the exhibits. 

As we left the gallery we noticed that it was getting pretty close to the time we'd booked our reservation for an early dinner at Jamie's Italian restaurant situated at the Liverpool One shopping centre. So it seemed like a pretty good idea to head in that direction and get a much needed bite to eat.

We took a leisurely stroll into the main shopping district admiring our amazing surroundings. As we passed the Waterstones book store we noticed a huge queue spanning up one of the side streets consisting mostly of teenage girls. We could help but wonder what exactly was going on so we went my sister to find out. It turns out that Joey Essex was visiting the store to sign copies of his book. That's all the information I really needed-curiosity killed!

Just a few steps along the path we spotted Jamie's restaurant, we were a little early for our reservation but decided to go inside and hope they'd seat us ahead of our designated time. Thankfully, they was plenty of room so we shown to our table straight away. Jamie's restaurant has a very relaxed and modern feel to it's interior which I quite liked. The staff were very friendly and evidently enjoyed working there. It's not every day you see the waiters dancing to the music playing in the background (Yes, I notice everything!)

On this occasion I didn't have a starter, instead my family ordered a bread basket as well as some stuffed mushroom dish from the specials menu. The bread selection was absolutely delicious, there was a nice variety of actual bread, breadsticks etc which were served with dipping oils-mmm! I didn't try the mushrooms as they were stuffed with melted cheese which I'm not so keen on, however my parents seemed to enjoy it. For my main course I ordered something called "Italian steak frites" which consisted of the most delicious featherblade stake, skinny fries as well as a pickle and crunchy kale slaw. If you ever visit one of Jamie's restaurants, it's definitely worth ordering. You won't be disappointed!

Following such a great dinner we took a leisurely stroll back to the hotel so that we could freshen up and charge our phones before the gig. After double checking we had our tickets and packed our camera safely in Mum's handbag (there was no way we could forget that!) we then made our way back downstairs, across the road and joined the queue outside the arena. The arena sits right by the waterfront so it was pretty windy and rather chilly. Thank goodness I'd decided to wear my winter coat, I'd have turned into a snowman if I hadn't!

The queue was filled with fans of all ages and nationalities which was so cool to see! I was so surprised to hear just how far people had travelled to attend this particular gig-it was unbelievable! In fact when Paul himself asked if anyone had come from outside the UK for the concert, possibly more then half of the room erupted in roars.

Eventually, the doors to the arena were opened and before long the building was heaving with people. Each fan was handed a sign from a steward which on one side read "Welcome Home Paul" and a heart with the British flag was printed on the other side. It must have been really special for Paul to walk on stage and see all these signs waving in the air.

Welcome Home Paul!

Seconds after entering the arena I found myself in front of the merch stall in great deliberation over what t-shirt I should purchase. I'd waited such a long time to attend one of Paul's gigs and promised myself that I would not leave the building without a t-shirt as a memory of the show. In the end I decided upon a limited edition t-shirt created specifically for the Liverpool concert. I also purchased a copy of the tour book/programme which came with a pair of 3D glasses so that you can view a bunch of photographs in 3D. I was extremely surprised when I tried them out for the first and realised just how well they actually worked.

I am currently working on a review about the concert itself for my music blog which will be posted very soon so I won't give too much away about it on this post. What I will say is that Paul McCartney was beyond incredible and did not disappoint! For a man of his age, he had so much energy and not once did he look tired. He certainly knows how to put on a good show; it was like one big party in that room and I'm so lucky to have been part of it!

The man himself

I still can't believe I actually saw Paul in concert and I know for a fact that this will not be the last time I see him in concert! My next big mission is to actually meet him, I don't quite know how I'll do it; but it'll happen one day!

It was such an exciting and amazing night and I'm so glad I got to spend it in Liverpool! So on that note I will bring this post to an end. Make sure to pop back soon to read the next post in my Liverpool series and make sure to pop over to my other blog www.jukeboxrhapsody.blogspot.com to read my upcoming posts including my review on Paul's concert, The Beatles Story museum and much more!

To read to read the first post in my Liverpool series click here.

Liverpool Day 1: Rock n' Roll Road Trip

 

 

Statues of The Beatles

If you're a follower of one of my social media accounts you'll probably have noticed that last week I went on what was for me an extremely exciting trip! Last Wednesday my family and I went on what I like to call a "Rock n' Roll Road Trip". Yes, it may sound rather geeky but I associate road trips with music and America for whatever reason.

No doubt you'll already have guessed (thanks to my blog title!) that the road trip was to the city of Liverpool. I've wanted to visit Liverpool for such a long time but the main reason I actually went there in the first place was to see Sir Paul McCartney! I'm a HUGE fan of Paul McCartney, Wings and of course the legends that are The Beatles! Seeing Paul live in concert has been one of my biggest dreams for I don't know how long. There has been a couple of occasions in years gone by that I've missed out on seeing Paul so I was beyond ecstatic to actually have managed to get tickets for the Liverpool. Ever since my Mum put the phone down after purchasing our tickets I've been counting down each second until the exact moment Paul walked on stage.  

"Welcome to England" sign

 Anyway, I better start writing about the trip itself and not bore you all with my excitable rants about Paul McCartney! So we set off on our journey last Wednesday from our home here in Scotland to the city of Liverpool. Surprisingly, the car journey went by pretty quickly which is always a good thing! I must admit that I did however, spend most of the journey searching for a service station with a Starbucks coffee shop. Can you believe that between Glasgow and Liverpool there was just two Starbucks coffee shops!? I mean there's nothing wrong with Costa but I do love a Starbucks frappucino! Who doesn't?! Thankfully, we did find a Starbucks branch eventually and I was able to get one of my all time favourite drinks; a strawberries and cream frappucino-mmmm!

I finally got a Starbucks frappucino!

Before long we'd arrived in the outskirts of Liverpool and as you can probably imagine I was on a complete and utter high. It really hit me that one of my biggest dreams, the one I'd waited such a long time to actually happen was about to come true!

There was something really special about driving in to the city; there was a complete and utter buzz! Even in the in the outskirts there was some sort of tribute to The Beatles everywhere I looked.

I fell in love with Albert Dock literally the second we drove into the area. Everywhere I looked there were people coming and going, there was a cute merry go round for children, barge boats, swan boats and I even spotted a yellow submarine apartment floating on the water-how cool! The buildings themselves were stunning, the architecture was absolutely breath-taking!

For the first two nights of our trip we stayed at the Premiere Inn, Albert Dock which is situated directly across from the Echo Arena and next door to both The Beatles Story museum and a Costa Coffee branch (Seriously! Why can't it be Starbucks?!). So our hotel was pretty central from everywhere we'd planned to visit over our trip.

It was extremely busy down at the docks and parking was a little hard to come by. Fortunately, a car pulled out of a space right there in front of us so guess where we parked? The gentlemen who pulled out of the car parking space kindly gave us his parking voucher which meant we could park there for free for a few hours which was so kind! Over our entire trip we were overwhelmed by just how kind the people of Liverpool are. They'd do anything to help you out.

We unloaded our car and made our way to the hotel, into the reception, checked in and took the rather small lift to the third floor where our room was. All of the original features such as the brickwork and the old doors had been incorporated in the building creating an atmospheric and quirky feel within the building.

 

The roof in our hotel room

 The view from our room's window was amazing! Our window looked out onto one of the docks where at least a dozen boats were docked at any given time. There was lots of independent shops, restaurants and the Tate art gallery situated around the docklands which meant people were constantly coming and going. I claimed a little armchair which sat by the windowsill and spent a lot of time sitting there watching the world below going by. I really wish I could have taken the window and armchair home with me!

The view from our room onto the docks

We left the hotel to be met by a heavy rain shower, I thought that only happened back home in Scotland! Due to the downpour we decided to take the car to the Liverpool One shopping centre and get a bite to eat as we were all pretty hungry after such a long journey. This meant that our next mission was to find a nice restaurant which wasn't too hard to come by. There was so many different restaurants to choose from but in the end we decided upon dining in a thai restuarant named Chaophraya. Both my parents and sister have been to it's sister restaurant in Glasgow at different times. For whatever reason I haven't dined there as of yet so it was a new experience for me.

For dinner I ordered chicken satay as a starter which came with a delicious peanut sauce follow by my favourite noodle dish, pad thai as a main course. Both courses were absolutely delicious!

The décor inside the restaurant was pretty fancy, they had these huge sparkly, chandelier lights hanging from the ceiling above us. There was even glass windows round the kitchen area so that diners could watch the chefs cooking their meals. I loved watching everything that went on inside the kitchen particularly when huge flames came shooting out the pans (I'm such a big kid sometimes!). When leaving the restaurant one of us looked up and noticed that above our head was a fish tank in the entrance doorway. I don't think I ever seen anything like that before!

chicken satay 

It was becoming rather cold and windy as we left the restaurant and although there wasn't any rain at that point, the sky looked grey and heavy meaning that evidently a rain shower wasn't too far away. With this in mind we decided that it was probably time to make our way back to the the car and head back to our hotel to get some rest before the extremely exciting day that would soon follow!