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This is near the city center of Manchester. I live in the suburbs, in Eccles; and if you look close, you
can see the tram rails, which is how I get into the city. I either use the city bus system or the tram, which
is quicker. In the foreground you can see the background you can see the more traditional Edwardian or
Victorian archictecutre, which is a result of the flourishing economy of the area during 19th century cotton
production. In the background you can see the tallest building in Manchester at 55 stories. The bottom
half is owned by the Hilton Hotel, while the upper half is apartments. No other buidling in the greater
Manchester area comes close to the height of this skyscraper.

I don't know the name of the building on the left, but is another example of Victorian architecture.

This is the true center of town: Piccadily Gardens. There is a large open square where there is a large
garden, fountains, and park benches. On this night, a Thursday, the area was very calm, almost quiet,
which is not the case on the weekend, when thousands pass through from the shopping centers to
restaurants and from the theatres to the pubs.

Here is the view from my bedroom window. Lower left is the my back(yard?) Every home in the UK is
made of brick, and they all look similar in this scene because I live in suburbia (or the eqivalent of such in
England). Everyone's yards are fenced in, and everyone has a security system in their homes. My
students even have asked many on many occasions why Americans build their homes out of wood since
it doesn't seem to last as long. I jsut tell them it is easier to make changes to our buidlings, we're not
"stuck" with more permanent brick buildings which cannot effectively be torn down.

St. Patrick's, the school l teach at, has a distinct look to it in comparison to the style of schools built in
America at the same time. It has a more "open" design concept than those in Wisconsin because the
climate in Manchester is quite mild, and allows for students to pass from class to class, building to
building without freezing in the middle of January.

Most of the time the car park in the front is full and often cars double park, blocking others from a simple
exit. Often teachers will go around school asking if you have parked them in. There is also a fence that runs
completely around the school so that "strangers cannot get in," but we all know it is really there so students
can't get out. There is also a rail track behind the school so we often see trains going by all day.