Hello Squirelbasket. There are cafes - quite a lot of small ones; some in shops which are selling other things (like sweets, or vinyl records) - which is probably sensible if the place is to be sustained all year round. There are outdoor cafes too though. On its opening day we were drawn to one which was selling lovely-smelling coffee and cake. There were lots of people at the tables so it seemed a success but the owner manager was going spare because he couldn't keep up with the crowd. He was going round apologising. I said we were quite happy to wait (half-an-hour!) because we weren't in a rush and it was a lovely day. Apparently the hold-up was because there was only one coffee machine. When I asked if he regretted not having more he said not really because he was really wanting to sell gin! (I can't remember if they have 20 or 40 kinds on sale.) I don't drink gin but if I did - would I want it mid-morning? Maybe some of the other shops will similarly find people stop for coffee and ignore the real merchandise. There were loads of people at his shop / bar that evening; many of them sitting at the tables outside. Maybe some of them were drinking gin?
Hello Kersi. You are right to pick up on the acoustics. Even when there were thousands of people there earlier in the day sound didn't travel so it wasn't overwhelmingly noisy. There's a problem with that though, in that you have to be very close to performers / speakers / bands in order to hear them. However, maybe this will mean there can be lots of buskers all in that big space with people moving between them without the different kinds of music interfering with each other. I didn't find it lonely that evening, just peaceful. There were still logs of people around even though it was dark.
Hello PerthDailyPhoto. (Never know what to call people in replies!) It's beautiful - and the restoration seems to have been carefully done and the building sound. The coast? Yes. I truly miss it. But as long as I don't think of the sea I am glad I am here.
Hello DesertskyQuilts. The beauty is real - not just in the photograph. It's had its ups and downs since it was built in 1779 so here's hope that now it's 'up' and everything is fresh and clean and exciting . . . that it takes many more years before it goes 'down' again!
Everyone - if you want to see The Piece Hall Site - here's the link
5 comments:
What a wonderful public space! It reminds me very much of some French cities. All you need is some outdoor cafe society to go with it :)
A great building for a wonderful sky and it's so lonely on youre photo - it must be silent - I love it.
Greetings from Germany
Kirsi
Looks like a fabulous restoration! How are you enjoying Halifax Lucy, are you missing the coast?
Wow, quite a pricey restoration! It is a beautiful building, as you've photographed it. Thanks for sharing.
Hello Squirelbasket. There are cafes - quite a lot of small ones; some in shops which are selling other things (like sweets, or vinyl records) - which is probably sensible if the place is to be sustained all year round. There are outdoor cafes too though. On its opening day we were drawn to one which was selling lovely-smelling coffee and cake. There were lots of people at the tables so it seemed a success but the owner manager was going spare because he couldn't keep up with the crowd. He was going round apologising. I said we were quite happy to wait (half-an-hour!) because we weren't in a rush and it was a lovely day. Apparently the hold-up was because there was only one coffee machine. When I asked if he regretted not having more he said not really because he was really wanting to sell gin! (I can't remember if they have 20 or 40 kinds on sale.) I don't drink gin but if I did - would I want it mid-morning? Maybe some of the other shops will similarly find people stop for coffee and ignore the real merchandise. There were loads of people at his shop / bar that evening; many of them sitting at the tables outside. Maybe some of them were drinking gin?
Hello Kersi. You are right to pick up on the acoustics. Even when there were thousands of people there earlier in the day sound didn't travel so it wasn't overwhelmingly noisy. There's a problem with that though, in that you have to be very close to performers / speakers / bands in order to hear them. However, maybe this will mean there can be lots of buskers all in that big space with people moving between them without the different kinds of music interfering with each other. I didn't find it lonely that evening, just peaceful. There were still logs of people around even though it was dark.
Hello PerthDailyPhoto. (Never know what to call people in replies!) It's beautiful - and the restoration seems to have been carefully done and the building sound. The coast? Yes. I truly miss it. But as long as I don't think of the sea I am glad I am here.
Hello DesertskyQuilts. The beauty is real - not just in the photograph. It's had its ups and downs since it was built in 1779 so here's hope that now it's 'up' and everything is fresh and clean and exciting . . . that it takes many more years before it goes 'down' again!
Everyone - if you want to see The Piece Hall Site - here's the link
http://www.thepiecehall.co.uk/
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