A free trip to Glasgow--what should I do?

[Robinne Weiss]

Hey all you Litopians...I know some of you are in Scotland. My husband and I have been offered a free trip to Glasgow for a meeting next April. We're hoping to arrive in Scotland a week before said meeting in order to do some sightseeing. What should we do? What are the must-dos or must-sees? Neither one of us has been there before, so everything will be new. Husband has Scottish ancestry (descended from one of Robert Burns' illegitimate children, no less!), so he'd be keen on historical stuff. Both of us keen on hiking, getting out of urban areas, but also enjoy museums and the like.

 

[Dorm Ant]

Hey all you Litopians...I know some of you are in Scotland. My husband and I have been offered a free trip to Glasgow for a meeting next April. We're hoping to arrive in Scotland a week before said meeting in order to do some sightseeing. What should we do? What are the must-dos or must-sees? Neither one of us has been there before, so everything will be new. Husband has Scottish ancestry (descended from one of Robert Burns' illegitimate children, no less!), so he'd be keen on historical stuff. Both of us keen on hiking, getting out of urban areas, but also enjoy museums and the like.

Will you have use of a car?

 

[Hannah F]

Roslin! The home of the medieval chapel, just South of Edinburgh City. And from here, there are great hikes up the Pentland Hills.
Stirling Castle, once the home of our Scottish kings. Lovely hikes around Stirling as well. And you're at the foothold of the Trossachs if you want a bit of further gorgeous landscape sightseeing.
A ghost tour of Edinburgh city.
You can visit Mary Queen of Scot's imprisonment island on Loch Leven in Fife. Nice walks close by at the RSPB nature reserve.
St Andrews historical city plus lovely walks around the East Neuk of Fife.
I don't know much about Glasgow though.

 

[Dorm Ant]

Robert Burns Centre, Dumfries – Museums

Discover more details about Robert Burns Centre including opening times, photos and more.

www.visitscotland.com

Robert Burns Centre, Dumfries – Museums

I live near this.

 

[Barbara]

A few days in Edinburgh.

A tour of the the Highlands (I booked the one I went on at the Edinb tourist info).

Hiking in what some people call the Scottish mountains and I call "that's not a mountain, that's a mere hill". I based myself somewhere near Ben Nevis (can't remember where exactly though).

I went to ... erm, ... Glamorgan castle (?? is that possible?? It was nice anyway). Or was it Cawdor? It sounded Shakespearean.

Any, each and every whisky distillery.

And maybe venture farther south to England and Wales. You could fly into Heathrow and work your way up north, either by hire car or train.

 

[Hannah F]

A few days in Edinburgh.

A tour of the the Highlands (I booked the one I went on at the Edinb tourist info).

Hiking in what some people call the Scottish mountains and I call "that's not a mountain, that's a mere hill". I based myself somewhere near Ben Nevis (can't remember where exactly though).

I went to ... erm, ... Glamorgan castle (?? is that possible?? It was nice anyway). Or was it Cawdor? It sounded Shakespearean.

Any, each and every whisky distillery.

And maybe venture farther south to England and Wales. You could fly into Heathrow and work your way up north, either by hire car or train.

If travelling from London by train, get the one that goes up the west side of the UK. Wonderful views of the lake district to the Borders hills.

 

[Dorm Ant]

If travelling from London by train, get the one that goes up the west side of the UK. Wonderful views of the lake district to the Borders hills.

The only good thing* about grumpy, traffic-packed, plastic money England is that if it didn't exist, there wouldn't be castles in Scotland and Wales.

(*I'm exaggerating, obvs. There are a few other good things.)

 

[E G Logan]

You could go to Alloway, now a suburb of Ayr, to see Burns Cottage. (Frequent train Glasgow-Ayr, bus to Alloway.) It is the genuine house the family lived in. Journey down the coast is under an hour and quite scenic.

But be aware, the thatched cottage is very simple and there isn't much inside. I believe the Dumfries Museum has a lot more content, as such.

The ruins of 'Allowa's auld haunted church' (Tam O'Shanter), and the bridge the witches couldn't cross, are still there. Although Robert himself and wife Jean Armour are not buried in Alloway (Mausoleum in Dumfries), a great many of his family are. That might be of interest to your husband.

Do stop in Ayr town. Look out for the Wallace Tower (Braveheart), and the old bridge that Tam cantered over at the start of his long ride home from market. Flat shoes – beware cobbles.

South of Alloway, still on the coast, Culzean Castle. Remarkable National Trust-maintained big castle with interiors (fabulous ceilings, stairs) by Robert Adam (late 1700s). The coast bus used to pass that way, but you are probably looking at a taxi, really.

Glasgow: Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, must see, esp their collection of Scottish Colourists, and The Glasgow Boys (and Girls).
-- Also the Burrell Collection: I've never seen it myself, always been shut, but I'm told it's remarkable. Near the University.
-- Glasgow Cathedral, built around the same time as the one in Pisa (12thC), but massively different.
-- Tennant's Brewery, guided tours. My son and I took one quite recently. Fun. Stairs are steep. Includes pint of ?strong? lager. (I don't remember, so it probably was.)
-- The Ubiquitous Chip, restaurant, famous, central, good. (Used to be a journalistic long-lunch hang-out.) Will be busy, booking required. Recommended.

BTW: you might check out You-tube for animated films of Tam O'Shanter. There are several. The poem is written in dialect (Lallans), but the films make it clear and funny, in a way that an English-English translation does not.

(Sorry to sound like the Ayrshire Tourist board, but my family are Ayrshire Scots for generations back and we went to school there.)

 

[Robinne Weiss]

Cool! Lots of good stuff to consider here! I assume we'll hire a car @RG Worsey--it's so far in the future and we just got the dates for the meeting my husband is attending yesterday, so plans are still quite fluid. Now my parents are considering meeting us there ... *sigh* so much for a nice trip with my husband now the kids are out of the house.

 

[Dorm Ant]

If you hire a car, definitely explore the Galloway Forest Park.

 

[Dorm Ant]

Cool! Lots of good stuff to consider here! I assume we'll hire a car @RG Worsey--it's so far in the future and we just got the dates for the meeting my husband is attending yesterday, so plans are still quite fluid. Now my parents are considering meeting us there ... *sigh* so much for a nice trip with my husband now the kids are out of the house.

Hire a two seater car that won't fit the 'rents?

 

[James Charles]

Hey all you Litopians...I know some of you are in Scotland. My husband and I have been offered a free trip to Glasgow for a meeting next April. We're hoping to arrive in Scotland a week before said meeting in order to do some sightseeing. What should we do? What are the must-dos or must-sees? Neither one of us has been there before, so everything will be new. Husband has Scottish ancestry (descended from one of Robert Burns' illegitimate children, no less!), so he'd be keen on historical stuff. Both of us keen on hiking, getting out of urban areas, but also enjoy museums and the like.

My fifth great-grandfather was from Edinburgh. I've been there, so you have to do a whisky tour! Ha. Also, I saw Nessie and have the pictures to prove it.

 

[E G Logan]

I forgot, Kelvingrove doesn't just do Art. It has the Natural History collection as well.
(And a cafeteria: recommend Scots mutton pie and beans, for non-veggies. My son said: 'Mum, you don't have to have that. They've got all sorts of good salads...' I replied: 'This is historic. I haven't had this since the last time I played hockey. It's what they always used to give the visiting teams for lunch.'

From memory, I believe there is a dinosaur, and lots of stuffed creatures, posed in 'scenes'.

 

[Robinne Weiss]

Hire a two seater car that won't fit the 'rents?

LOL! My only ray of hope is that they actually manage to go on about one in fifty trips they plan--they're really good at finding reasons not to travel. And we intend to give them a nice out by visiting the US (where they live) before we head to Scotland. Crossing my fingers they'll go for a couple hours drive to a beach house rather than a flight to Scotland.

 

[Anneliese]

As long as it doesn't require flying, enjoy every moment! I write climate fiction, which, sadly, is less and less fiction all the time (and air travel is the fastest-growing source of carbon emissions). #homeisbeautiful

 

[Hannah F]

As long as it doesn't require flying, enjoy every moment! I write climate fiction, which, sadly, is less and less fiction all the time (and air travel is the fastest-growing source of carbon emissions). #homeisbeautiful

New Zealand to Scotland is a loooong journey without flying.

 

[Anneliese]

New Zealand to Scotland is a loooong journey without flying.

Mm - I was hoping she was maybe in Europe. It's hard to swallow that our 'long journeys' are having such a disastrous impact, but it's true. I'm sure there are amazing places to explore in New Zealand (and that might solve the in-laws issue too.

 

[Barbara]

New Zealand to Scotland is a loooong journey without flying.

A childhood friend of mine walked from Switzerland to Australia when he was in his twenties. He was gone for quite some time ....

He walked home too.

Then ... eventually ... he returned home, thought 'home' was a bit boring and walked to Tanzania.

No idea where he is now.

 

[Hannah F]

A childhood friend of mine walked from Switzerland to Australia when he was in his twenties. He was gone for quite some time ....

He walked home too.

Then ... eventually ... he returned home, thought 'home' was a bit boring and walked to Tanzania.

No idea where he is now.

en route?

 

[Hannah F]

Mm - I was hoping she was maybe in Europe. It's hard to swallow that our 'long journeys' are having such a disastrous impact, but it's true. I'm sure there are amazing places to explore in New Zealand (and that might solve the in-laws issue too.

It's a work related thing. Sometimes air travel is necessary whether we like it or not. The main issue regarding global emissions is frequent flyers.

. . . If only someone could invent teleporting . . .

 

[Dorm Ant]

The main issue regarding global emissions is frequent flyers.

It's livestock farming.

 

[Hannah F]

It's livestock farming.

Yes, definitely. I was talking specifically about air travel, but yes, livestock farming, especially huge ranches of livestock is both killing the planet and hugely bad for the welfare of the animals. I include dairy farming in that - calves taken from distraught mothers within the first 48 hours so humans don't have to share their milk, cows with poorly feet from standing 4 to 5 hours a day on hard ground. There are exceptions: farmers who leave the calves with the mums, but you won't find their milk in supermarkets. The big milk sellers cultivate the awfulness of dairy farming because they pay so little per litre of milk. That's why I don't drink the stuff.

 

[Barbara]

en route?

...en route to somewhere else, no doubt. He came back from Tanzania then walked to Spain.

 

[Hannah F]

...en route to somewhere else, no doubt. He came back from Tanzania then walked to Spain.

His name isn't Forrest Gump by any chance?

 

[Barbara]

His name isn't Forrest Gump by any chance?

No but it should be 'Forrest on Steroids'.

 

[Robinne Weiss]

As long as it doesn't require flying, enjoy every moment! I write climate fiction, which, sadly, is less and less fiction all the time (and air travel is the fastest-growing source of carbon emissions). #homeisbeautiful

Yes, which is why it's the first trip we've taken since my father-in-law died four years ago. We don't fly for vacations--this is a work trip for my husband, and since they're paying for both of us to go, we plan to take advantage of it.

 

[Robinne Weiss]

A childhood friend of mine walked from Switzerland to Australia when he was in his twenties. He was gone for quite some time ....

He walked home too.

Then ... eventually ... he returned home, thought 'home' was a bit boring and walked to Tanzania.

No idea where he is now.

Surely he didn't walk ALL the way to Australia ... there must have been a boat or a plane involved unless he's REALLY good at holding his breath. LOL!

 

[Barbara]

Surely he didn't walk ALL the way to Australia ... there must have been a boat or a plane involved unless he's REALLY good at holding his breath. LOL!

LOL. Well, my guess is he probably walked the deck on the boat over, just so he's not lose the habit.

Actually, when he ran out of land (Far East), he did do some work (something to do with boats) to earn the boat fare to Auz.

Then he worked in Auz for 6 months to buy the boat fare plus a bicycle to come back.

Then he walked /cycled back to Switzerland. Via Everest Base camp. Just for fun. He sold the bike at one point along the way.

Did I say he was gone for a while?

 

[MattScho]

My limited experiece in the Glasgow area would suggest adding "in the chilly rain." to everything above, though later in the month the rain might not be that cold.
On one trip there I rented a boat to take a nice self guided tour of Loch Lomond. Technically, i guess i was fishing but as technically I was working that morning, and technically the trip began at 7:30 am on July 7, 2005, meaning it was very much cut short, I count it as a boat trip.
Quite beautiful.
Also, while a local told me it's a long drive to Edinburgh, it is not, and that is a really lovely city to spend an afternoon walking and getting lost in.

 

[Mel L]

My limited experiece in the Glasgow area would suggest adding "in the chilly rain." to everything above, though later in the month the rain might not be that cold.
On one trip there I rented a boat to take a nice self guided tour of Loch Lomond. Technically, i guess i was fishing but as technically I was working that morning, and technically the trip began at 7:30 am on July 7, 2005, meaning it was very much cut short, I count it as a boat trip.
Quite beautiful.
Also, while a local told me it's a long drive to Edinburgh, it is not, and that is a really lovely city to spend an afternoon walking and getting lost in.

Agree! My daughter was in Glasgow for school some years ago and we visited several times. There are some lovely parts by the university and a fun, urban sort of street vibe in the centre. But Edinburgh was on a different level. Well worth the short trip to explore for a day!