Newburgh, The Beatles and Les Mis

I spent part of the day in Newburgh. Not the Newburgh, Indiana, but the Newburgh, UK. Liverpool sits right between Manchester (the city I was at) and Newburgh so I stopped there. My mom had kept a newspaper clipping she’d read about months ago about our sister city Newburgh, UK and she contacted the chairman of the Newburgh Parish Council to say we would be visiting. But first I want to talk about Liverpool. Liverpool was home to the famous band, The Beatles. The Beatles were first famous in the middle 1960s. Their music is still played today. My favorite song is The Yellow Submarine. We spent a little time in Liverpool by the water. Then I was on my way again toward Newburgh. When we got there we were greeted by a local man who was glad to show us around. He was the chairman I told you about earlier. He would joke around and say things like, “This building is fairly new, only made in the 1700s.” I was thinking, the oldest things in the U.S. are usually only 200 years old. After walking the streets, our guide took us to a local tavern called The Lion and Lamb. A scoop of ice cream and a slice of apple pie later, we said our goodbyes and drove back to Manchester. The following day we drove to London. It took four hours. Then that night there was a highlight, Les Mis. Les Mis was first a book by Victor Hugo and was then made into musicals and there is also a movie. My mom read the book with us and then took us to the musical. When I walked in to the Queen’s Theatre (that is the name) you could feel the air of excitement. I sat down and enjoyed the music. After words I could not stop talking about how awesome it was. My favorite character is Jean Valjean. He was a criminal but became good. The antagonist is named Javert and he chases Jean Valjean throughout his life. Jean Valjean is also known as 24601 and I got a shirt that says “I am 24602, Jean Valjean’s cellmate.”