Look up at this skyline because this is Liverpool showing off, and it knows it. Three great buildings line the waterfront here, and locals call them the Three Graces, borrowing the name of the three Greek goddesses of charm and beauty. Whether these stone giants count as charming is up to you, but they were absolutely built to impress anyone arriving by sea. Each one is a boast in stone about a different sort of money. Right in front of you is the Cunard Building, the one that looks like an Italian palace that took a wrong turn and ended up on the Mersey. This was the headquarters of the Cunard Line, the great transatlantic shipping company that carried passengers and post across the ocean to America. Then, to your right is the Port of Liverpool Building, with its green copper dome, home of the men who ran the docks and the harbour. And to your left is the star of the show, the Royal Liver Building. If you look to the very top of its towers, you'll see two enormous copper birds, each taller than a person, perched up there keeping watch. These are the Liver Birds, the mythical creatures that have been the symbol of Liverpool for as long as anyone can remember, and they have names. The one gazing out to sea is Bella, watching for the ships to come safely home. The one facing back over the city is Bertie, keeping an eye on the people, or, as Scousers will cheerfully tell you, checking that the pubs are open. If you look closely, you’ll see that these birds are chained in place and there’s a whole legend about it. The story goes that this is done on purpose, because if they ever flew away, Liverpool itself would cease to exist. Some say the river would rise and drown the city. So far the birds have stayed put, the pubs remain open, and Liverpool is still very much here, which I choose to take as a good sign. There is a quieter story up there too. The man who designed those birds was a sculptor named Carl Bartels, who was born in Germany and had lived as a proud British citizen for twenty-seven years. When the First World War came, he was interned as an enemy alien and later sent back to Germany, and for decades his name was scrubbed from the story of the emblem he gave the city. The birds he made watched over Liverpool long before Liverpool was willing to remember who made them. Take your time admiring these Three Graces, and when you're ready, walk to a tall stone column near the water. Follow the map to get there.