My name is Lianna, but you can call me Ringo.

Lianna Salva is an API student contributor to our Tumblr blog, and will regularly report on her adventures in Leeds, England.

In ways more than one, I am a nerd. I love Harry Potter, Star Trek, and know all the lines by heart to Monty Python and the Holy Grail.  I’m a theater groupie and a movie freak.  By some definitions, I guess I’m a little bit of a hipster too. 

Although I live and study in Leeds, I am using this opportunity to see more of England and Europe.  Don’t worry, I’ll fill you in on all the exciting stuff at Leeds Uni, but since I’m in Liverpool at this very moment, I thought I’d inform you of one of my other nerdy obsessions.  I am a Beatles fan.

When I was little, I was very stubborn (ok, I still am).  I would never watch a black and white movie because I thought they were only for people like my parents.  I did like to watch music videos though, like Michael Jackson.  So when I saw my dad watching the Beatles movie, Hard Days Night, I thought it was just a really long music video.  Even though it was in black and white, I instantly fell in love. From there, my friends introduced me to their music.  And the rest, as they say, is history.

When I was 10, I also started to play the drums so, of course, my favorite Beatle was and remains to this day, Ringo Starr.  In high school, my friends got Beatles Rockband and sometimes at two in the morning I would get a call, “Hey Ringo! Come play drums!

Liverpool is a little over 2 hours away from Leeds by train.  Leeds is in the geographical center of the UK, so it is a great place to live if you like to travel.  Sounds a bit ironic doesn’t it? Liverpool is also where The Beatles started.  Many inspirations for the songs are in Liverpool, like Strawberry Fields, which used to be a children’s home, and Penny Lane.

Today, I visited John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s childhood homes.  I secured a tour with the National Trust, a non-profit organization that restores historical places.  Both houses have been restored to what they would have looked like in the time that Lennon and McCartney lived there. John’s skiffle band, the Quarreymen, practiced in the living room.  Paul and John wrote lyrics together in Paul’s living room while Paul’s dad gave his criticism, as he was a musician too when he was young.

The story of how the Beatles started can be seen in the recent movie Nowhere Boy.  It was not filmed in the real house, but they did a very good job with the look and the casting especially.

I also visited The Beatles Story, which is a museum dedicated to the Beatles at Albert Dock.  It was pretty cool and I liked seeing original pictures and hearing interviews with different important people on the Beatle trail.  I also went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Ohio this past November, and honestly, they have a much larger Beatles exhibit.  Still, this museum was worth the trip.

There’s a huge football game for Liverpool tonight, I think the finals….or something (I’m not too familiar but I hope to change that while I’m here) so instead joining the masses of crazy football fans I think I’m just going to stick around my hostel.  Hatters Hostel, by the way, is one of the coolest places I’ve ever stayed in.  And the reception gives free cookies

Till next time,

Lianna Rose