Victoria Park, South Side Festival, and Warm Weather

 Well, two weeks ago we were wearing winter clothes and freezing, but then the weather changed as it always does.  And for almost ten days now, we've had sunny skies and warm temperatures!  At first it was quite a shock to the system, but I'm learning to like wearing shorts and tees, rather than sweaters and jackets.  Once I'm fully acclimated, I'm sure we'll be back to winds and clouds.

This weekend, we decided to further our quest to visit Glasgow's parks and go to Victoria Park.  Our friends Simon and Marina live nearby, so we had walked through back in January and have wanted to return to fully explore the park.  The park has a glass house that holds a reptile room and a great goldfish pond.  There is also a rose garden with stones commemorating Scottish poets, and some great views over the city from the flag pole on top of the hill in the center of the park.

Cormac and Declan decided to roll down the hill -- a few nettle stings later they weren't happy, but clearly are having a great time while rolling.

Many failed attempts to fly the kite despite some excellent breezes -- shades of Charlie Brown

Near the park was the South Side Festival with live music, food, and rides.  The boys had fun trying out some:  bumper cars (aka dodgems), fencing, and battling.

We ended our outing with ice cream that claimed to be the best in Glasgow -- it was good, but not the best, though the crowds in the queue prove its popularity.

This claim to be the best led to a discussion of where the best ice cream is (Gifford's back at home), which led to what is better back in Maine (pizza, ice cream, cereal), which led to what do we miss (our cat, pizza, cereal) -- I think we're starting to get ready to return though still lots left planned here!

Glaswegian Graffiti

Living in a much larger city than Bangor has its perks like the variety of restaurants, museums, plays, shops, etc.  Of course, urban living has its downsides like trash, crowds, crime, and graffiti.  Luckily the first three haven't impacted our experience here much, and surprisingly the last one has been better than expected.  Yes, Glasgow has its share of taggers whose scrawl can be found on almost any surface.  But, Glasgow also has a lot of fun and cute graffiti.  Here are some of our favorites!

Our Neighborhood -- Dowanhill Architecture

Today, my new friend Barbara and I toured the part of the West End called Dowanhill which is where our flat is located.  I met Barbara when my dad and I did a walking tour of the West End two weeks ago, and she and I decided we would do more walks but without our guide (since we knew we could do just as well on our own).  So, armed with another trusty West End Heritage Trail map, we ventured forth on one of the most beautiful days Glasgow has offered up so far.  Meandering through the area bordered by Great Western Road, Byres Road, and Hyndland Road, we enjoyed the sunshine, warmth, chat, and oh yeah, the architecture.

Across the street from our flat is Kelvinside Church modeled after Sainte-Chappelle in Paris.  It was built on the site of Horselethill farm and is noted for it triple spires, soaring Gothic style and stained glass.

Beyond the church is Grosvenor Crescent, which is a charming semi-circle terrace with beautiful windows and dormers.

Despite the urban closeness of the terraces, tenements, and villas (all types of buildings found in this neighborhood), green spaces still exist -- residents-only parks which require a key to enter and private sports clubs.

Willowbank Bowling Club from King's Gate

 King's Gate is two pairs of double villas overlooking the bowling club.  Barbara and I enacted Heard Law and went down the driveway to snoop at the flats, trying to figure out if and how the villas had been subdivided.

On to Dowanhill Church -- Normandy Gothic in style with a tapering spire, now a pub, restaurant and  theatre, Cottiers (here)

An unusual stained glass window consisting of eight panels depicting the four winds and the four seasons at 117 Dowanhill Street highlights the variety of architectural details found in this neighborhood.

Ironwork based on a design by "Greek" Thomson found on Dundonald Road

Different style stained glass doorway at 19 Rosslyn Terrace

Another great door, this one at 1 Princes Terrace

Dowanhill still has some villas (basically a mansion) remaining as homes, but others have been transformed into commercial or civic space, many into doctors' practices.

Northcote, built in 1858 for John Alexander (now a doctors' office)

Elstow, built in1858 then enlarged and restyled in 1898

Kensington Tower, built in 1858 for Edward Alexander (father of John)

love these lawn statues!

Glasgow Disappoints

Well, I guess it had to happen, but we finally had a less than stellar day in Glasgow.  I was just thinking that whoever reads this blog must think Scotland is perfect since everything I describe is "so fun" and "we love Glasgow" ad nauseam.  Of course, I don't post about my boring days spent cleaning the flat or paying bills, yet we truly have had spectacular days here.  But yesterday not so much.  Now, nothing terrible happened, and given the sorrows and troubles people face this may seem a little trivial, but we had a day of disappointments.

First off, in my quest to check out all the parks in Glasgow, we decided to go to Ruchill Park which is within walking distance of our flat.  However, the walk is along busy roads, so not too scenic or interesting. Then, the park was pretty lame.  There were some terrific views over the city from the top of the hill, but other than that blah -- no cool features or fun playgrounds.  Definitely not worth a visit unless you want some panaromic views of the city.

those yellow fields in the distance are rapeseed (made into oil, aka canola oil in the US)

Then, Cormac has been desperate to see Dark Shadows since it was released last weekend.  This movie is a re-make of a 70s TV show about a vampire who returns after being trapped underground for 200 years.  But again disappointing -- kind of boring, kind of long -- gory with no redeeming message.  A few mildly humorous parts (Johnny Depp's character thinking Alice Cooper is an unattractive woman), but those moments did not make up for the nonsensical plot.  Now, I'm fairly uncritical of movies; I will watch almost anything, but this movie was definitely a skip.

Finally, dinner.  I prefer to eat in, the boys prefer to return to restaurants they know they like, and Liam prefers to try new restaurants.  Therein lies most of our dinner conflicts. So yesterday, the boys wanted to go back to Amber, a Chinese restaurant on Byres Road (where we've eaten once and had take-out from twice), while Liam wanted to try an Indian restaurant that got a good review in The List (a magazine about things to do).  We compromised and tried Soba, another Chinese restaurant on Byres Road that opened up when we first moved here so we've seen ads for it for five months.  Mistake!  The food was terrible -- a confusing mishmash of flavors resulting in the worst meal we've had in a restaurant in Glasgow.  For example, wonton sweet and sour soup -- huh?  If you're ever in Glasgow don't bother with this restaurant, especially since Byres Road has many much better options.

So, now we know Glasgow isn't perfect, but if it took us five months to have a day of mediocrity then we're still lucky to have landed in such a wonderful city (99% of the time)!  And after a week of cold and rainy, the weather has turned sunny!!

Edinburgh -- Castle and Kilts

Yesterday we took a day trip to Edinburgh with my dad and Holly.  Our main tourist purpose was to visit the castle.  I had been there in March with Molly and thought it was touristy then.  Well, the tourists have certainly arrived.  There were swarms of people around the castle, but in the usual tourist way a few blocks away from the castle the crowds thinned to almost non-existent.

Edinburgh Castle is spectacular in its size and variety of exhibits; however, the view is really what makes it a great spot to visit.  Much of the view outside the castle is now obscured by scaffolding being built for the summer festivals, but from inside the castle walls there are wonderful views over the city to the Firth of Forth.

After a delicious lunch of pizza and pasta at Vittoria, where Holly practiced her Italian on the wait staff, making it feel like a side trip to Italy, the boys and Holly and I went kilt shopping and my dad and Liam went to tour the Scottish Parliament building.

a very modern building meant to look as if it is part of this hill behind it

The boys have wanted kilts since we arrived Scotland, but the ones in Glasgow are fancy and expensive (meant to wear to a formal occasions), so we kind of put them off.  When I visited Edinburgh with Molly, we saw more touristy kilts, i.e. cheap, and I decided to let the boys get them when we went to Edinburgh. And here they are in their Scottish glory!

sweatshirts from the upcoming Fringe Festival

This was our last full day with Dad and Holly, so we're sad to see them leave today!

As you can tell by the winter coats it's been cold here!

Tourist Life

Here's how tourist life under our rule goes:

Visitors to our Glasgow enjoy a leisurely pace and a unique combination of local, off-beat sites and best of the best of tourist sites.  We will tailor your visit to your individual interests:  sports, gardens, museums, politics, food, shopping.  We will allow you to enjoy all that Glasgow has to offer using our vast five months of experience in this city!

Here's what we did with my dad and Holly in the last three days to give you a taste of what may be in store if you visit Glasgow with us:

Wednesday:  Late morning start (11:00 -- so time to relax and enjoy your healthy breakfast) with a massage and facial (1/3 off regular price due to being with a temporary local) followed by A Play, Pie and a Pint (45 minute play at local pub accompanied by lunch).  Then, off to observe native Glaswegians picking their children up from school (chance to see real locals in their native attire).  Finally, a gourmet seafood dinner at Two Fat Ladies (bistro-style, neighborhood restaurant with delicious fish).

Thursday:  Late morning start, then to the Kelvingrove Museum to see the wonders within, including Glasgow Boys art, Mackintosh design artifacts, taxidermy animals, Scottish art, and much more.  Relaxing lunch at the cafe where you can choose from local dishes such as salmon cakes, soups and sandwiches or tea and cake.  Then, an evening of snacks, wine and games in a typical Glaswegian flat.


Friday:  Earlier start (10:00) at the City Chambers for a tour of the amazing Victorian architecture and interior design (see photos below).  A quick tour of the Cathedral and St Mungo Museum of Religious Art followed by a two hour rest period.  Then high tea at The Butterfly and Pig and a night at the theatre with the family seeing Avenue Q (described as a satirical Sesame Street) at the King's Theatre (another chance to experience some gorgeous Victorian design).

As you can see, we balance activity with rest, food with walking, culture with architecture.  Limited tours still available, so be sure to book soon.  All rights reserved.

Also available, tours of Bangor, Maine after July 2012 (but then you will mostly see harried parents juggling work and family in a town with much more limited options).


Photos from inside Glasgow's City Chambers

the ceiling of the lobby

archway into city council section

ceiling of council section

longest marble staircase in western Europe (3 storeys)

detail of Italian marble used throughout

The Victorians may have been gaudy and repressed (which is an interesting combination in itself), but they designed some amazing buildings, and luckily many of Glasgow's Victorian buildings are still around!

Inside the City Champers the former Lord Provosts (like a mayor but elected by the city councilors) all have a portrait.  Most are very typical, an oil painting or photograph either at his/her desk or seated in a chair.  This controversial Lord Provost chose this almost caricaturist style -- he had a lot of conflict with the city councilors so I wonder if the stormy sky with red edges is to reflect that conflict or is he proclaiming himself as the dawn that will disperse the cloud?

Pat Lally, Lord Provost 1995-1999

Richard Thibedeau, acting Lord Provost 18 May 2012 10:45-10:47am