After what had been a really hectic June. In contrast, July, with only one house sit, in a city we know well, that covered the whole month, was a very quiet month indeed.

House sitting for friends

We often get asked by friends and friends of friends, if we can go to house-sit for them. Usually, the answer, unfortunately, has to be no. Either the house sit offered isn’t a long enough time period for us, we are already booked, or the location is not somewhere that we want, or need to be at that specific time.

However, on this particular occasion, when we were contacted by two very good friends of ours, Michael and Simon who asked if we could house-sit for them we were delighted to be able to say yes!

They were going on holiday for three weeks and wanted us to care for their home and two dogs, Freddy and Luca whilst they were away.

It was a three-week stay, we were available, and we had not been to Manchester for almost two years so a visit was well overdue. Win-Win-Win!

The Home

We have known Michael and Simon for many years. For most of that time, they lived, as we did, in an apartment in the city centre. A few years ago they decided they had had enough of city centre living so sold their apartment and moved just a few miles down the road into a new house and a new city!

Their house is lovely and modern, over three floors with an attached conservatory looking out onto a beautiful, secluded garden. Great for those sunny, summer-July days.

In the end, the conservatory proved itself to be very useful. July 2023 came and went bringing plenty of rainfall but not a single sunny day. Quickly thwarting any plans we had of spending a relaxing month enjoying the garden from dawn till dusk!

The Pets

Freddy, an eleven-year-old schnauzer. We have cared for Freddy before, back in 2021 when we were last in Manchester. We loved his company then, and we loved it just as much this time around. He is starting to show his age and is slowing down a little but is a real comedy character who gave us plenty of laughs with his individual idiosyncrasies

Luca is a six-year-old Jackapoo. We have known him since he was a puppy. However, the last time we stayed he was being cared for by other friends so this was the first time we had spent any quality time with him.

What a cutie he is! He is a real lapdog and followed us everywhere. He is everyone’s friend and is living his best life when cuddled up on the settee with any human that happens to be available at that particular time.

Freddy and Luca are obviously best friends. We loved our time with them and are already booked and looking forward to a return visit in May 2024

The Area

Explaining Salford to strangers to the area can be difficult.

Salford is to the west of Manchester and is a city in its own right. It is a metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester.

Manchester and Salford both have a cathedral. The distance from one to the other is approximately three kilometers. Making them the two closest cathedrals from two different cities in the world!

Back in the early 90s, A new tram network was introduced in Manchester signalling the start of a major redevelopment of the city.

On Saturday the 15th of June 1996 the IRA detonated a large bomb in Manchester city centre. This caused devastating damage to the city. Miraculously, no one was killed in the attack and ironically, the awful incident led to a speed-up of the already well-underway redevelopment.

This was all great news for Manchester but Salford had been left behind and was now looking very neglected and inferior in relation to its newly regenerated next-door neighbour

However, Salford was next in line for a makeover.

Over the last thirty years, Salford too has undergone significant regeneration and development. With lots of places that make a visit well worthwhile. Including The Lowry, Imperial War Museum, MediaCityUK, the University of Salford, Salford Quays, five-star hotels, art galleries, theatres, bars, cafes, restaurants and a choice of over sixty parks and open spaces!

Salford is now a vibrant and diverse city with a rich history and many cultural and educational opportunities.  Walking from Manchester, you would be hard-pressed to know when you had left Manchester and entered Salford, the two cities seamlessly morph into one.

‘SEED’

Near the home we stayed in is a reminder of how far Salford has progressed.

This is in the form of a giant cast iron public sculpture of a sycamore seed.

The sculpture is by Andrew Mckeown and is symbolic of the past and future potential this area of Salford has to continue to grow and prosper.

lt was installed as part of the 2002 regeneration strategy and represents new life and growth emerging from the decline of the traditional engineering and manufacturing industries.

Anything else?

To be honest, not much at all. As Karyo is now back working we are more restricted with midweek time and, unfortunately for us, the weather was really awful throughout our stay which put a damper (literally) on any weekend plans we had of heading out further afield.

We did manage a rare big night out dancing with friends Brad, Paul and Duncan. I forgot to take any photos to prove this actually happened but as it took us a week to get over, in hindsight, that’s probably for the best!

Other than that, the month of July turned out to be a welcome and much-needed time to recharge our batteries ready for August when we were due to head down south again.

Next Stop – Brighton.

More on that next time. Until then, thanks for reading,

Hugs, Colin & Karyo xx