Unrelated: do you think it fair to say the most pungent of smells on this Earth can be attributed to things either very natural (like durian or farts) or very unnatural (like paints full of synthetic chemicals)? Not a very solid argument, I'll admit, since the term "natural" is so debatable and definitely not black and white and there probably isn't a quantitative measured scale of pungency... yet. I'm sure someone will pour precious research dollars into creating such an incredibly useful and necessary tool. Onto the post...
Glasgow (map)
November 29, 2008
As usual when the ISC does a trip to a city, we walked as a group to a main attraction. This time, it was Glasgow Cathedral. I think the exposure to so many tremendously old buildings has ruined some of that romantic sense of awe for me. The cathedral is massive and beautiful but, without knowing any of the history or hearing any stories, it felt like just another ancient pile of bricks. This would explain my new appreciation for tour guides who add that beautiful extra dimension and bring these sites and attractions to life. One neat thing I'll mention is the crazy contrast between this little white chapel inside the cathedral and the dull grey-brown hues of the rest of the building. The white paint looked very fresh, but I imagine it must have been originally whitewashed.
After the cathedral, Christophe, Armando, and I decided to walk along the River Clyde to take a peek at the Armadillo (about a mile west of the city centre), passing the Arc Bridge on the way and getting a glimpse of the BBC Scotland building and the Glasgow Science Centre. The Rough Guide to Scotland says that Glasgow has failed to take advantage of their river coursing through the city and I would agree. The walk, past piles of concrete and very few trees, was not as pleasant as it could have been and was decidedly anticlimactic.
Armando in front of the Armadillo Concert Hall
Lupper was had at a pub called Waxy O'Connors which is brilliantly set up like a little labyrinth, several different rooms/bars linked by winding halls and wee staircases. The food was good for a pub and the place had a nice atmosphere - pretty cozy and not too noisy.
Glasgow is the self-proclaimed second largest shopping centre of the UK and it fits the bill, though it often felt like every shopping centre or street featured the exact same stores. We saw some excellent buskers on Buchanan Street - a great group of improvising drummers that kept going and going and sounded fantastic! Also nice was the prettily-decorated Argyll Street Christmas market with stalls selling fun woollen hats and useless trinkets and giant sausages and Belgian waffles and mini pancakes (delicious when topped with nutella, cream, and cinnamon!).There are some things we didn't get to see like the Glasgow School of Art (designed by the famous Charles Rennie Mackintosh), but the city is so close that it could easily be another daytrip were I so inclined. I've heard that Glasgow is a city that's nicer to live in than to visit, which I can definitely imagine (especially with all the musicians that go to Glasgow but not Edinburgh), so perhaps it'll be worth giving it another chance in the future.
Though I didn't take a ton of photos, you can find a few more at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2180187&l=cd86e&id=90402206
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