Glasgow

Scotland has two major cities – Edinburgh and Glasgow. They are only about 45 miles apart, about an hour by train. The trains run several times an hour so it’s almost like catching the subway. We took a day trip to Glasgow to see what it’s like. Once we arrived we took a hop on/hop off bus tour so we could get an overview of the city in a couple of hours. Some of the photos below were taken through the rain-splattered bus window. Once our tour was complete the rain had stopped so we walked around downtown and had lunch in an Italian restaurant.

Edinburgh has a reputation as the political and cultural center of Scotland whereas Glasgow is considered the industrial hub. For many years Glasgow was considered gritty and dirty, the center for shipbuilding and other heavy industry. A century ago Glasgow had over a million people, twice the size of today. But in the mid-20th century much of the industry dried up. Today the riverfront is undergoing modern revitalization and many of the grand old buildings remain. Many of the older sections of the city have beautiful architecture.

The Glasgow accent is considered one of the most difficult Scottish accents to understand, and we experienced it first hand. While walking downtown we passed some British communists handing out literature. A nearby older Scottish woman waved her hand in disgust and began telling us that she wishes British politics would just go away. We could barely understand her. It was almost as though she was speaking a language other than English.

Glasgow and Edinburgh have a strong civic rivalry. It is said in Glasgow that the only good thing to ever come out of Edinburgh is the train to Glasgow.