| Location: |
Glasgow, Scotland |
| Date: | February, 2004 |
| Housing: | Euro Hostel, Clyde St |
| Housing Info: | Wow! Party hostel! Though the staff were unfriendly, and may have stolen something from my roommate, the hostel was pretty modern. It was once a larger hotel (9 floors, maybe 600 person capacity) and they have a very modern brand-new bar called Osmosis on the first floor. Osmosis closes its doors to the public at about 2am, but stays open to hostelers as long as there's a crowd, so expect a major party atmosphere. The free breakfast is a good size but closes at 10am sharp! There is an elevator, so don't worry about being on the 9th floor - in fact, request it (the views are great)! They have pay internet terminals (with crap keyboards...), a kitchen, a common area with a TV and couches, and a cafeteria sized dining/common area combo with a TV. It is definitely in a great location on the river Clyde and Jamaica Street, 1 block from a super market, and the bottom of Buchanan pedestrian street. Closest public transit ("SPT" otherwise known as "subway," "underground," and -- in reference to its bright orange fleet -- "clockwork orange") is only 1 block away at the St Enoch station. |
| Summary: | Glasgow'smilesbetter! |
| Making a last minute decision to got to Scotland for a few days with "me mum" turned into a great start to my travels. Seven years ago I was in Glasgow while traveling extensively through Scotland. This time around I stayed in Glasgow exclusively (except for a short visit to Edinburgh). The city is world-renound for being a tough working class city that fell on many years of hard times after the ship building industry caved in. Even in 1996, when I was there last, it was a poor, dirty city with a high unemployment rate which affected my enjoyment of it immensely. This time around, however, I found it to have turned around 100%. I fell in love with the people, and city, and would recommend it highly to anyone. The city has lived "the best of times" as well as "the worst of times," and has come out to be one of the most amazing culturally important cities in Europe. The people are warm, the food is good, and the museums are free! Among top 5 cities I've been to in Europe! | |
| Tourist Areas to See: | Peoples Palace, Glasgow University, Glasgow Cathedral, Charles McIntosh, Museum of International Religion, Museum of Transportation, Hunterian Museum, Pollack Museum, Museum of Modern Art, Edinburgh (Edinburgh Castle, Royal Mile, Scottish Museum, Royal Museum, Arthur's Seat, Holyrood) |
| Tourist Areas to Avoid: | Burrell Collection |
| Surprises: | SPT rail service to Edinburgh, Celtic Connection, Royal Music Hall, Shipbank Lane, Shooglenifty |
| Food: | Restaurant tipping is always 10%-15%. Fish & chips, haggis, beer, and whiskey are musts. When searching a Chippie (fish & chips shop), the golden rule is to find the worst looking dive you can. Never bother with the nice, clean places. They just don't get it right, and they're at least a pound or 2 more expensive. No matter what you've heard about haggis, you have to try it. It's a Scotish sausage dish made with oats instead of just ground meat. Served with mashed potatoes, mashed turnips (or squash at some pubs), and whiskey gravy, this national dish is sure to please. Everyone loves it! Obviously their whiskey (Scotch) is varied and delicious, but you'll find some fantastic beers as well. 3 Judges Pub, University Club Restaurant, Babbity Bowster, Uisge Beatha, |
| Getting Around: | The worlds third oldest metro system runs in a loop. You can either go on the inner loop (clockwise), or the outer loop (counter-clockwise). The busses are far more extensive. The prices are 90p for one subway use, or £ 1.70 for an all-day pass. The subway will get you close enough to most parts of the city, but expect to walk a few minutes sometimes. On the other hand, there's no need to fret about complicated subway maps - there's one route, and it's a loop! |
| Locals: | Can I say anough about Glaswegians?! These are some of the kindest, friendliest people you'll ever meet. Always willing to go the extra mile to meet you, or help you, it's no wonder the city's slogan is "Glasgow-smiles-better". Don't bother to hide your street map - it won't make you a target of pickpocketing - but will make you some new Glaswegian friends. |
| Climate: | I was there in late February, and the temperature was a mild 50-60 degrees (F). As I was told, this was a warm winter, so expect a usual temperature range of 40-55 (F). Though I didn't see too much rain, it is a rainy country. Summers get up to the 80's. |
| My Experience: | |
| So I was going to see my mom at Logan Airport when it occured to me that I there was nothing stopping me from going to Scotland myself. Aer Lingus took pity on me beacuse I wanted to hang out with my mom, so they gave me a RT ticket for $284 complete with a stop off in Dublin. Dublin was interesting. We were only there for 6 hours, so couldn't get a great feel for it, but it seemed as though the older, and more interesting area was on the Trinity side of the canal. If you look hard enough, you'll find a maze of cobble-stone back streets near Temple Bar with cafes, designer clothing shops, and architect studios. The pedestrian mall over there isn't worth spending time on though, as it is mostly lined with international shopping chains. Stay in the Temple Bar area if you're sticking downtown for a day. We also walked through Moore Street, Dublins most famous outdoor market. The market is actually pretty dirty, and has no charm whatsoever, but is obviously an institution. In the photo you'll notice a horse, which has been a fixture there for years. The meat markets on either side of the road had windows filled with amazing foreign meats, and animal parts. Each store had its speciality - meat, poultry, flowers, sweets, and of course, the ubiquitous bookie (for placing your bets on the horse races). The streets were lined with litter, and crushed food, and much of the outdoor market products were limp, bruised, and all together sad looking. ...But it was great to see of course, and I'd recommend a walk-through of it. Well, Dublin was short-lived, but with only a few days in Glasgow, we had to press on. After a short flight to Scotland we were in Glasgow and checking into the Euro Hostel. As mentioned above, the hostel was a fine place to hang our hats for the days we were there, and aside from the somewhat unfriendly service, and the accidental fire alarm it was alright. No really. Over the next few days we were able to see all the free museums we could stand, gorge on haggis, fish & chips, and local beer, sneak in a trip to Edinburgh, catch more than a few celtic music performances, celebrate Burns Night with some die-hard fans, and meet some crazy locals. It was a great beginning to my trip! The tourist spots I'd recommend can be found in any tour guide, but here are the reasons I'd recommend the "Surprises", and why I didn't like the "Avoids." Shipbank Lane - Doubt this is in ANY tour guide. This unpleasant, dangerous-looking lane was filled with theives the day we walked through. You might expect this to be on the "Avoid" list, but it's no mistake that you see it on the "Surprise" list. As far as we could guess we were looking at items for sale that were pick-pocketed and robbed from peoples houses, and in stick-ups. All we saw were makeshift tables with a few used items such as 3 cell phones, 8 watches, a few wallets, some mis-matched earings and other crap jewelry, and 15 pairs of shoes. As we walked through the crowd we were offered a beaten-up bicycle by a desperate drug addict: "Bicycle? 500 for 30." ...as in 500 pound bike for 30 pounds. Not likely, as this looked like a 10 year old Huffy. The people pretty much all looked very desperate, with various scars, and black eyes, and ripped clothes. When you go, obviously watch your pockets, or you may see YOUR cell phone on a table. A true Glasgow experience you'll NEVER find in a tour guide. Burrell Collection - This is a much touted museum started by Sir William Burrell, who as you might guess, was an accomplished art collector. The museum is new, and clean, and spacious, with 2 or 3 fully re-created rooms, but I found it to be filled with artifacts that were not unique, or even interesting. If you've been to a museum before this may bore you. If on the other hand one of your friends brought you to his garage which was filled with these artifacts from around the world, you'd be mighty impressed. This is my problem with the museum. I'm sure this collection earned Sir William Burrell much acclaim while he lived, but the collection is far to varied, and small to merrit the rather large, and surely expensive museum that currently houses it. Also, do not expect Scottish art. This collection was gathered from places that were exotic to Scotland. SPT Train ride - Yes, the SPT is their subway system, as well as longer commuter system, so don't get confused. The ride between Glasgow and Edinburgh is inexpensive, beautiful, and it even gets you somewhere! On the North side of the train view the Scottish Highlands. Closer, you'll see old villages as the train wisks you between the two cities at about 80mph in 50 minutes flat. Celtic Connections - This celebration of celtic music is held at a number of venues around Glasgow every January. though started in 1993, the locals I talked to said it was still "wee" until 1998-99 when it just flew up on the international stage. Since then it's become "fdriggin huge", and attracts the absolute best acts in the biz. But the "wee" guy hasn't been pushed out. Drop into any of the local pubs when there's a "session" to see locals play their hearts out in an intimate atmosphere. Royal Music Hall - Though this large venue is framed perfectly by the pedestrian Buchanan St, it can be easily overlooked. When in Glasgow, see what kind of entertainment they have coming up. If it's possible, take in a show while you're there. Shooglenifty - First off, this is a musical group, not a place. So though you may not be able to see them in Glasgow, you may be able to see them in your own town if they're touring through. This is one of the most high energy groups I've seen, and there isn't even any electric guitar-smashing, or speaker-arsin! Just high octane tunes, and a growing fan base. Watch out for whirling-dirvish-like fans in front of the stage!
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