A nice step up from our hostel, we got to stay in a hotel the entire week! Not to mention, a very nice hotel. Thanks again, DIS.
We stayed in Glasgow for two and a half days and I enjoyed my time there. The city had some pretty areas, but overall was more industrial and had less charm all over than many European cities. The first day we went to a beautiful cathedral!!! It really was one of the most elaborate and biggest ones that I have been to. Behind it on top of a big hill was a necropolis that we climbed. It gave a beautiful view and had some of the biggest and most ornate tombstones I have ever seen. It was a great way to begin my week in Scotland!
While in Glasgow I also went to a lovely tea party, reminiscent of my tea party days! If only they had big hats, boas, and fancy dresses, it would have been just like it used to. They had fancy little sandwiches, biscuits, and deserts for us and of course some delightful tea :) I was actually a little sick on this trip, which explains the lack of pictures I have of myself. But they are still out there! I think it's important for you to see other people too, though. So here are some of my friends in the Willow Tea Room.
We were given the option between two museums, but a friend of mind and I decided we could made it to both and what a great decision that was! First we went to the modern art museum which has some interesting exhibits, but it was small. While everyone else left and went back to the hotel or in search of lunch, we ventured far across the city (it was actually about a 45 minute walk!) to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. As we approached it, just from the outside, we could tell we made the right choice to go see it. It looked like a castle from the outside and was just as marvelous on the inside!
Here is the modern art museum
and the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum as we were approaching it.
Kelvingrove had some wonderful paintings by well known artists from all over Europe as well as historical exhibits on things like the vikings, wildlife in Scotland, and even a country-western American exhibit!
The inside of the museum
Two pieces from the museum. The one on the left was what a man working at my hotel noted as his favorite, it was the only sure thing I knew to expect before going. The second was one of my favorites :)
Before leaving Glasgow we took a trip to tour the oldest house in the city, built in 1471! Which was actually pretty impressive for being so old. The family who lived in it must have been very rich because it is still standing strong today.
After Glagow we hopped on a bus and made our way to Edinburgh! I am very happy we took a bus there because it gave us the chance to see some Scottish countryside.
OK....so I wrote all of that right after I posted UK Journey Part 1: Dublin. When I stopped it was because I had to run off to meet my parents in their hotel upon their arrival in Copenhagen! Since that time they have been here, we went to Berlin, and I've been scrambling things together to prepare for a 2 week trip I'm leaving for in about an hour...so I wanted to sum a few things up before leaving for this trip and then add to it later.
So we drive into Edinburgh and as soon as the city is in sight we all think we've just driven straight into a fairy tale!!! It is a beautiful, old city that is centered around a giant castle on top of a giant rock. We had a great hotel in the center of the city too. So on this trip, in addition to our academic visits, we took a drive through the beautiful Scottish highlands to a whiskey distillery tucked away in the valleys and by a pretty waterfall. At the distillery we got a tour. I really liked the Guinness tour, but I have to say this one topped it. May it is because I'm not a big fan of Guinness, but a better guess would be because of the beautiful surrounding area. After that we went to a very pretty castle. There we got a tour and then time on our own. Again, absolutely beautiful!
Another highlight of Edinburgh was a ghost tour. When I first heard we were doing this I thought it would be similar to the night watchman walk I went on in Ribe, a nice walk around the city at night. Could I have been more wrong??? It was scary!!! It was more like a walk in volts and chambers underground through the most haunted place in the UK, ranked by the BBC! So while we were down there the tour guide explained the history of all the crime that happened in these volts hundreds of years ago which leads to why they now believe them to be haunted. She told us about the strange experience people have and shared ghost stories. Whether or not you believe in ghosts, it was a spooky place to be! Dark, old, candlelit, damp, underground, and a string of small rooms! After we got out of there the tour continued above ground with more spooky history of Edinburgh and a demonstration of how they whipped 2 englishmen...yes, a demonstration! Imagine our shock which she actually whipped the 2 volunteers in my class who agreed to participate in a little role playing. Luckily she didn't whip them as hard as they did back in the 1800s, but there were still small red welts on the poor guys back :( Not something you'd find in America! We enjoyed our last day in Edinburgh and headed home.
It was sad to end such a great trip with such a great group of friends, but we were also happy to be back in beautiful Copenhagen, which officially felt like our new home!
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