Glasgow

The journey began in Glasgow, my home for one year. Something that many people mix up, is that Glasgow is Scotland's biggest city, but not its capital city. That's Edinburgh, which i'll also talk about, but later. I don't want to bore you with my arrival.

I lived in a somewhat rural area. I could see a field with two cows, two calves, and a small, fat Shetland pony from my window. The bus service ran twice per hour between 9am and 6pm, but it was hardly ever on time. Instead, it came 20 minutes too early or late.

That's how it is with the Scots. They don't take it very seriously. Important: in these Glaswegian buses you should always have the correct change. The drivers won't give you change. As a tourist though, you might come across some nice bus drivers who won't mind if you're a few pennies short. I once had a driver let me on when I was a whole pound short.

From time to time the ticket machine wouldn't work, so all passengers travelled for free for several months.

All buses drive to the city centre. If you lose your way, but know your way home from the city centre, all you have to do is get on a bus - you'll get there at some point.

The main part of the city centre is made up of Argyle Street, Sauchiehall Street and Buchanan Street. On Buchanan Street there's a shopping centre. Those who can afford it can buy Prada and Gucci in House of Fraser. On the top floor there's also a home department, where you can get everything from serviettes to suitcases to beds.

Walk up Buchanan Street and you'll find the Buchanan Galleries, where there's some affordable shops, and a very big Boots, which is a drugstore and pharmacy. In this shopping centre, I recommend the shop Arran Aromatics to everyone. The handmade soaps, body lotions etc. smell fantastic. My favourite soap is called Glen Rosa.

Opposite House of Fraser you'll find Princess Square. There are nice cafes and restaurants. The tapas restaurant on the top floor is great. The Argyle Arcades is directly next door. I've never been there, but it looks very fancy, they even have doormen.

Sauchiehall Street is at the northern end of Buchanan Street. Events take place there and you can go shopping. If you go east before the Buchanan Galleries, you'll arrive at Queen Street Station. From there all trains go to the North and East.

In front of Queen Street station you'll find George Square, which is very handsome and one of the filming spots from Outlander.

At the southern end of Buchanan Street, right in front of House of Fraser, you'll find Argyle Street. It glistens with Tartan House, Primark, T. K. MAXX and the St. Enoch Centre. If you go west, you'll end up at Central Station, where you can catch trains to the South and West of the UK. If you go east you will end up at the Merchant City and Barras. Barras is a market perfect for bargain hunters, although I can't promise you'll find high quality goods. On the middle of Argyle Street, next to the entrance to the Argyle Arcades, is a pub: Sloans, where they hold a Ceilidh (dance night) every Friday night for £10.

Ceilidh is a Scottish folk dance, but you won't find many Scots doing it, it's mostly tourists. Usually nobody has a plan of how to do it, but an announcer gives instructions. Till now, even the biggest dance-phobe has always had fun there. You won't embarrass yourself and it's a must for every tourist in Scotland.

In Merchant City, on King Street in the Avant Garde, there is a free Ceilidh every Saturday night.

Nearby is the large park Glasgow Green, right on the River Clyde. In the park there's the Peoples Palace, which also has a small botanical garden and a museum about Glasgow's history.

Unfortunately, I can't describe every single place down to the very last detail, but everything I name here is definitely worth a visit, here's a little list:

Parks:

Glasgow Green, Pollok Country Park (including Pollok House), Rutherglen, Queens Park (+ Greenhouses)

Museums:

Peoples Palace, Science Center, Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, Riverside Museum, Glasgow Cathedral (+ Necropolis), Botanical Gardens.

Pubs:

Sloans, Avant Garde, the Pig and the Butterfly, the Granary, Waxy O'Connor's, the Blue Dog, the James Tassie.

Oh yeah, Celtic & Ranger can't stand each other.

North of Buchanan Street is the Cineworld Cinema (with 4D! ).

If you like Zumba, you can go to lessons at Agne Der in Dennistoun or the Glasgow Caledonian University gym, it costs about £4 per sessions and it's so much fun that some of us have become trainers ourselves.

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