Leeds is a former mill town a few hour train ride north of London. Having lunch in a pub, we (1) asked the parka-clad server (2) what there was to do in Leeds on a cold rainy day. "Nothing, maybe go shopping? We have a covered market in the city center." We opted for the Thackary Museum of Medicine.
The main exhibits at the museum present the working and living conditions in Leeds in the mid-1850s, the town's mill heyday. The virtual guide is Lizzy, representing a real 11 year-old mill worker who, despite her 5 years of work experience, got her leg caught in one of the looms. When the injury became infected, her leg was amputated (3). Unfortunately, the Infection had already spread and Lizzy did not survive (4) (5).
We then walked over to the concert arena for the Worlds Collide tour, headlined by two female-fronted bands: Within Temptation and Evanesence, with Rividia, another female-led band, as the opening act. We stood a few yards from the edge of stage right (6). The show was awesome.
After a walk back, we encountered a woman in the hotel lobby who had driven 7 hours from Plymouth for the concert. She told us she had a seat in the balcony and had been scolded by those nearby for her exuberance during the show. She soon began to spout conspiracy theory about the US elections and Mexican immigrants, so we wandered off.
(1) My daughter had flown directly to Leeds.
(2) The heat was not functioning in the pub. Hence, the parka.
(3) Before anesthetics, the surgeon needed to be quick about the amputation. Before antiseptics, you wanted a surgeon with more blood on his white coat, they had more experience
(4) The museum is mainly set up for school kids. The curators must have confidence in the resilience of English youth to handle the bad news.
(5) Three important innovations since the mid-1850s make me glad to live today: antiseptics, anesthesia, and antibiotics.
(5) Between the bands, the security guards (a) passed out cups of water to the crowd (b); very civilized.
(a) One of whom was about 5'2" and looked to weigh about 125 lbs. I guess the UK fans are better behaved than those in the US, judging by the burly security folks at most US venues.
(b) They understood that fans don't want to leave a good standing spot between bands.
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