Glasgow is located along the banks of the River Clyde. The architecture is fascinating and it's easy to see how the city was selected to be "Gotham City" in Batman.
What did we do?
UCI World Cycling Championship: As luck would have it, it was going on the week we were there. And what is that? We didn't know either. It was the first ever world cycling championship. There was everything: road racing, mountain biking, BMX, para-cycling and more. The city streets were closed off everywhere making driving a challenge. (good thing we weren't driving!)
Men's Timed Tryouts
Women Elite Road Race
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| E, Chabbey had the lead for the longest time |
Glenfinnan, Mallaig and Glencoe tour -- this was a bus tour. An 11 1/2 hour bus tour. And I am NOT a fan of bus tours! And to make it better, we were fashionably later than we should have been and got the very back seat of the bus. The back seat had five seats. Luckily the woman who got stuck with the center seat was very slender. Five rows in front of us, sat a man who suffered from motion sickness. And he puked on the bus and off the bus! Gross! And I almost hurled between that and the driver on windy roads. There were a lot of Harry Potter references on the tour.The Scottish countryside was beautiful! And overall, it was a good tour.
Loch Tulla Viewpoint
James Bond Skyfall Scene
The Three Sister's are three peaks of the mountain Bidean nam Bian. Three Sisters are the most photographed landmark in Glencoe.
Dumbledore's Grave - OMG the bus driver was racing to be ahead of the Jacobite Steam Engine also known as Hogwarts Express 😳. He finally pulled over where we could trudge in the bog to see the train and Dumbledore's Grave.
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| Loch Eilt A bog is a freshwater wetland of soft, spongy ground consisting mainly of partially decayed plant matter called peat. |
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| Jacobite Steam Engine |
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| or Hogwarts Express |
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| Island where Dumbledore's Grave is located |
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| Can you see that white speck? I guess if you are a huge Harry Potter fan it was worth seeing. |
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| Yes we were those tourists |
A short video of Jacobite Steam Engine pulling into the station.
Sharon tried to check out Haggard Alley where Muggles are welcome but she could not get inside the little magic shop (too crowded).
Harbor
Glenfinnan Viewpoint
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| Glenfinnan Viaduct was made famous by the Harry Potter movies. |
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| There were several artists 🎨 with easels setup painting |
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| Short trail 👣 |
Heading home
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| Yes I was the only person drinking on the bus 🚌 |
Clydeside Distillery -- took a tour of the Scotch whisky (note... no "e") distillery and enjoyed some tastings. They have three different whiskeys. One is produced in used bourbon barrels from the US which is the cheapest. The most expensive is matured in cherry wood casks. The third is a blend of the two different whiskys. All three were good! Production began in 2017 and was the first active distillery in Glasgow city centre for over 100 years.
For my Outlander fans the Cathedral Crypt was transformed into L'Hôpital des Agnes.
Necropolis - if you want to do something creepy 😳 for your wife's birthday take her to a cemetery. That's what I do.
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| William Wallace Memorial |
Riverside Museum: If you have a love for transportation history, the Riverside Museum is a treat. The museum showcases a collection of vehicles, from vintage cars and bicycles to trams and locomotives.
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| Tesla Model S P85+ |
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| Glasgow owners personalized number plate "Photons" - essential particles of light. Solar panels we're used to recharge the car's battery. |
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| Tramcar 672 was one of Glasgow's first electric trams |
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| Cafe Booth |
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| Glasgow Pub No women or children allowed No tables, no chairs, no lounging about No fancy lagers or expensive wine It's beer or whisky and that's about it. |
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| Glasgow musicians record sleeves |
Glasgow Green: This is the city's oldest public park. The park has walking paths, historic monuments, and ponds. We were much closer to Kelvingrove Park so 🤷 most of our walks were through this park.
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| Sharon's artistic view of Lake Kelvin |
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| Lake Kelvin |
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| The Psalmist Sculpture |
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum -- an eclectic collection of over 22,000 artworks and artifacts. From masterpieces by renowned artists like Rembrandt to exhibits on natural history, this museum took us on a journey through art, science, and history.
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| Stained glass circa 1910 |
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| Railing late 1800 |
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| Giant Irish Deer |
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| Bather, 19th Century |
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| Achilles |
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| Heads |
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| The Happy Celaeno, 1902 Celaeno was half human half bird. I'll just go with weird. |
Buchanan Street -- Glasgow's premier shopping destination. This bustling pedestrian street is lined with high-end shops, department stores, and street performers.
Random pictures from around Glasgow. The architecture is amazing and we could have taken pictures of every building. Oh wait a minute! I think Sharon did. 🙃
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| The Mitchell Library |
What/where did we eat?
We enjoyed Don Ya Sushi so much we went twice. The sushi was good and the prices were reasonable.
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| Sake Sampler |
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| Chicken Gyoza |
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| Kotobuki Set |
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| Edamme |
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| Kotobuki Set |
Taco Tuesday at The Locale. Yes, pretty empty so we can sit where we want right? Wrong. All the tables were reserved. Apparently it was also trivia night. The place was full when we left. Tacos were pretty good.
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| Baja Fish & Adobo Chicken Tacos 🌮 |
Korean lunch
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| Someone was HANGRY |
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| Kimchi |
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| Dol Sat Bibimbap |
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| Bokkeum Udon |
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| Please just let me eat my f#$&ing lunch |
Shish Mahal (Indian cuisine) was chosen quite by accident. Our first restaurant choice did not serve alcohol and was very tiny. Hard pass. So we walked down the street and wallah this looked good. At first we felt underdressed as it was a fine dining environment but not an issue. The food was delicious 😋. And service outstanding!
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| Steaming hot 🔥Tandori Chicken with Raita |
For Sharon's birthday dinner we chose Cafe Antipasti Restaurant. The service and the food was really good.
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| Pre dinner drinks |
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| Flight of Whisky and Espresso Martini |
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| Scottish salmon Fillet with a tomato, Chorizo and garden pea sauce, Potato and leek gratin |
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| Scottish salmon on Linguine with an Asparagus and vodka cream sauce |
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| Hafod unpasteurized cheddar |
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| Gruyere Suisse |
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| Epoisses Berthaut - cow's milk cheese |
Where did we stay? An AirBnB, "The Art Flat", hosted by David. We never met David but he was a great host nonetheless. The place was comfortable and had a large separate living room/kitchen.
How we get here? By train. It took us three trains starting from Southport, England.
When did we visit: August 7 through August 14, 2023
Glasgow was our first stop in Scotland and we really enjoyed it! The city is very walkable and has no shortage of restaurants.
"So Much World, So Little Time."
