I was brought up in Rochdale, and to be honest, I never really ventured out of there to go shopping until I was perhaps 13 or 14. I started going to Manchester with my friends around then and enjoyed the wide range of shops and busy atmosphere. However, it has only been recently that I’ve appreciated Manchester for the architecturally beautiful city it is, and also that it’s nightlife is top notch if you know where to go.

The building that really inspired this post is the Palace Hotel on Oxford Street. Apparently, it was only converted to a hotel in 1996, and it was originally built for the Refuge Assurance Company. I have seen the interiror but only on a television programme not so long ago. But it is lovely and made up of tiles and arches and just stunning architecture. It is also one of the prime examples of why Manchester is known for it’s red brick buildings.

The city has been revamped a lot over the past decade. Mostly following the 1996 Manchester bombing. Obviously there is still building going on, but to be honest I don’t think the Manchester skyline would be quite the same without a couple of cranes.

As well as the older architecture there are some really good examples of modern architecture in Manchester. Most notably the new Hilton Hotel building and the Urbis.

To stop this turning into a boring post about buildings I’ll also talk about my experience of the famed Manchester nightlife. I’m not really a clubber but I like to go and dance to good music where there’s a nice atmosphere. recently I went to see iLiKETRAiNS at Roadhouse in Manchester and it was a really good venue. At the weekend I braved a night out in the city and we ended up there for a club night where they played classic and new rock. It was truly one of the best nights out I’ve had, and there was so much choice for this kind of music, Roadhouse was far from the only place offering this type of night out. It’s a shame that other towns and cities don’t realise that this is something the public want, but then I say this when I live in Stirling for University, and it is pretty dull at the best of times with around 4 nightclubs.

However, we did start out in a pub that was only playing The Smiths and Morrissey. Only in Manchester I suppose but it was full of blokes with NHS glasses and Smiths t-shirts, one saying ‘Je suis Morrissey’ highlighting the sheer pretentiousness of it all. But despite me not enjoying it, it does show that Manchester is a very diverse city and I really do miss it when I’m up in Scotland.