Victoria Park

This weekend, Liam was busy with a meeting and a Celtics vs. Rangers football game.

And wanting to keep my kids separated from their video games, streaming TV, and Facebook chatting, I decided to explore Glasgow's parks.  If you've been reading the blog, you know that we spend a lot of time at our closest parks, the Botanics (here) and Kelvingrove (here) and frequent the neighborhood playgrounds (here), so we needed to venture a little further afield.  After checking out parks on-line, I found there were two within walking distance of our flat.  On Sunday, we headed out to Victoria Park.

This park is small, but clean and well-maintained.  There is a large pond where many swans and ducks were hanging out.  The requisite statue -- every park has at least one.

The boys appreciated the mini-trampoline and the inflatable slide.

I enjoyed the variety of rhododendrons.

Finally, there is the Fossil Grove, which contained stumps of trees about 330 million years old.  Inside a building are some of the fossilized trees preserved in stone.  At one time, Glasgow's climate was similar to southern Florida, so these trees would have been part of a giant swamp.

A good outing including some new playground elements, but this park is not as expansive or interesting as the two closer to our flat.

Exercise vs Indulgence

In case you're wondering why I haven't been talking about my running (usually all I talk about), well the reason is that I have not been running since January.

For those who haven't heard, my knee has been hurting me since last fall.  I had an MRI before I left the states with inconclusive results, so my primary doc told me to not run until an orthopedist looked at the knee.  Since I put off going to see her until right before I left (what a surprise!) that meant no running for six months.  The true irony is that I now have the time to run as much as I want, but I can't.  Needless to say, I am sad about not being able to run and plan to see the orthopedist the day after I return to Bangor.  My other usual mode of exercise back home was going to the gym, but here I couldn't find a gym to join because the ones close to our flat were either not taking new members or tiny and expensive.

So, none of my usual exercise combined with lots of delicious food to indulge in.  Something about new treats to try makes me just want to eat more and more.  Plus, I always convince myself that I can't have this back home, so I should have it now.

Our flat came equipped with an espresso machine, which I thought was a waste of counter space until I made a decaf cappuccino!  Yum!!

Biscuit (cookie) varieties -- double yum!!  Not to digress, but Dark Chocolate Hobnobs (like a more oaty digestive biscuit) are the best ever.  But everyone else's favorites are Declan -- Jammy Dodgers (cream filled cookies with jam), Liam -- shortbread fingers, Cormac -- Marylands (chocolate chip).

Jammy Dodgers, Butter Crinkles, Shortbread fingers, Marylands

Add in scones, wholemeal breads, chips, crisps (I used to avoid most carbs).  Never mind, candy (more posts coming soon).  And all the meals in restaurants.  You can see the problem looming -- too much indulgence, not enough exercise.

To counter the indulgences, I have been riding a borrowed bike.  We're lucky to have bike trails near our house, so I don't have to ride on the city roads.  I do some hill work (run up, walk down) despite the knee pain.  And, I've tried to do some weight work using my body weight and these heavy books (with limited results).

But the term has ended at the university, so I joined their gym that has real weights, a pool, and cardio machines.  Hopefully, this will make sure my jeans still fit by the time we depart Glasgow.  And, back in the states an orthopedist will tell me, "We can rebuild you.  We have the technology.  We can make you better...stronger...faster."  (points to you if you remember what those lines are from; hint, I would love a bionic knee)  Then, I will be back baby!!

Spring Glaswegian Fashion

About a month ago, we had some gorgeous weather here in Glasgow -- sunny skies, warm temperatures,  all you could want for a precursor of summer.  Of course, as a maintenance guy in the park warned me that might be all the good weather for the whole summer.  Complaining about the weather is a common point between Scots and Mainers, maybe it's living in the northern climes, but I always wonder what people in southern parts talk about in casual conversations.  When I first lived in San Francisco, I would try to talk about the weather but quickly realized no-one was interested because there was nothing to discuss, and this was northern California where there is slight variety in the weather.

Anyway, the nice days here allowed me to check out the warm weather fashions, which included lots of dresses, cropped leggings and flats.

Despite the higher temperatures, people held onto their scarves, though no wooly ones, just fashion ones.

Tight jeans still ubiquitous

Some people kept the boots going, but traded out their heavy coats for blazers

Some people didn't leave enough to the imagination

So, warm weather fashions:
scarves
blazers or long sweaters
flats or Chuck Taylor trainers (sneakers, both low and high-tops)
belted dresses
cropped leggings
skinny jeans


Of course, the weather has turned again, so we're back to coats and sweaters, but one thing I found is the weather is completely unpredictable here (checking the weather forecast is basically useless).  I'll keep you posted if any new trends emerge.

Our Neighborhood -- Hyndland Architecture

Our neighborhood in Glasgow is called the West End for obvious reasons (west side of the city).  It was built as a suburb, so then and now it has a high-end reputation, but since the University of Glasgow is in the center, it also has a vibrant, bohemian feel.  So imagine a combination of funky shops and restaurants with Victorian mansions and gardens -- that's what makes the West End a great place to live.

While my mom was here, she and I walked around Hyndland, which is the neighborhood right behind our flat.  Using a West End Heritage Trail map we explored the architecture in the area roughly bordered by Great Western Road, Hyndland Road, Dumbarton Road and the railway line.

First, some architectural terminology that I found to be unique to Glasgow:

terrace

terrace = row of identical houses (not a garden)

tenement = multi-unit building (not a slum

The first spot is one I walked through a bunch of times because it's between our flat and Old Station Playground (described here).  It's a triangle of terraces surrounding a residents' only park (lots of these in the West End).  On the west side of the triangle, I love the columns on either side of the doors with face sculptures flanking the side windows.  Some have broken or eroded down to blobs, but a few hold their detail.

 Most interesting is the northern section where the terrace (designed by Alexander "Greek" Thomson) had been bombed during an air raid in 1941.  You can see how part of the terrace remains and the rest is an add-on from the 1960s.

Notice the Greek columns

On to Clarence Drive, where this row of shops (from 1911) is very typical of this area.  I love the idea of development that includes neighborhood stores, rather than easy access to highways just so you can reach super-stores more easily.  This row of shops includes the original site of Peckham's (described here), a bakery, a post office and news shop, pizza cafe, etc.

Partickhill Road is a curved road that once must have afforded wonderful views over the countryside, now in a gap between buildings you can see across the city.  This street has wonderful villas on one side and a mix of villas and small terraces on the other.  The oldest house in the West End is on this street, as is the house first constructed of red sandstone (which is an ubiquitous building material in this area).

Thornloe with Italianate detailing from 1860s

Oldest surviving building in West End (1794)

Woodbank, owned by only three families since 1840

Remnants of WW2 still can be seen, besides the blocks filled in after bombing damage, the most common are walls where the iron fencing was cut off for the war effort.  Some of it has been replaced, but not all.

Another aspect we love about our neighborhood is the big windows through which you can glimpse the grand front rooms and home decor.  Flowers, both real and fake, are the most common decorative element in front windows, but sometimes you see more interesting things.

made of straw and feathers

puppy enjoying the view

There are four maps of the West End, so I'm sure I'll be exploring the architecture of other parts of our wonderful neighborhood!

Modern Art

Today, we said good-bye to my mom, after saying good-bye to Martin and Lesa yesterday.  I'm sad to see our visitors go.  We'll miss the company of course, but mostly the extra love that only comes from being with family and friends.

My mom, Lesa, and I found these giant, astro-turf covered chairs outside the Riverside Museum. 

While visiting, Clucky made Cormac this awesome hat with local wool!

To deal with our sorrows, we took the boys to see some exhibits that are part of the Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art.  I'm telling you there is a festival almost all the time in this city!

First stop was a sculpture installation that encouraged kids (and adults) to play with and on the sculptures, including steel drums connecting to tubes, forts with snap-on material, and structures to jump and run on.

Then, we went to the Collins Gallery which has a show on a Scottish environmental artist, George Wyllie, who created sculptures that were usually temporary, like a locomotive made of straw suspended above the River Clyde before it was ceremonially burned.

bike made out of bike tire

Titled "A Mortgaged Home Climbing Up a Wall"

Fireplace dug (dug = dog)
a pun since usually a fireplace dog holds the logs above the hearth

Finally, off to GOMA (Gallery of Modern Art) to see an installation made of sawdust and plastic bags. Although Martin said this exhibit made him mad because he thinks the artist is just messing with people, I found it somewhat charming.  Yes, it's made of trash, but there were some quirky elements like the shapes made from make-up that I liked.

More exhibits to come, including an inflatable version of Stonehenge which is also a bounce house.

Our Personal Chef Comes to Visit

With the arrival of Martin and Lesa came the arrival of our most foodie friends, so we have reaped the benefit of delicious meals during their visit.

Martin, of course, had to try haggis which is a Scottish dish of sheep's offal (organ meat) mixed with oats and spices encased in the stomach (or nowadays sausage casing) and simmered for hours. It tastes and looks more innocuous than it sounds since it's not served in the stomach and the liver flavor is predominant in most versions. Liam says it's like livery meatloaf. Generally it's served with mashed turnips (neeps) and mashed potatoes (tatties), but we've had it on pizza (with jalapeno peppers) and as a crisps flavor.

Martin's order of haggis, neeps and tatties, here was served layered like a shepherd's pie, while other places serve it in little mounds or strips.

Lucky for us, Martin wanted to cook one night. Near our flat are many delis, bakeries, cheese mongers, etc., so we set out for a food shopping expedition one afternoon. After stops at two amazing food shops Peckham's and Kember and Jones, which are practically side by side, we had loaded up on the fixings for antipasto.

We hit George Mewes Cheese which is also in the same block and tasted then purchased a French brie, a Scottish goat cheese, and a goat cheese wrapped in oak leaf. It's a little bizarre to have so many food options so close to our flat. We're not in Bangor anymore!

Then, back to the flat to enjoy the meal. Cheeses, meats, olives, sardines and bread, followed by braised pork and salad -- so delicious!

Then, our final foodie experience with them was at Two Fat Ladies, where we had the best meal we've eaten in a restaurant since we've been in Glasgow. This restaurant has three locations in the city, but we went to the original one which is closest to our house, more funky, and less expensive. We all enjoyed fabulous meals, featuring local fish and seafood. Yum!

We're sad to say good-bye to our buddies! Glasgow won't be the same without them, though it will give me a chance to cut way back on the goodies during our brief window of no guests.