sogno: Bits of Glasgow

“Edinburgh is the beautiful town. Glasgow is just ugly, grey, industrial and poor.” That’s what I had heard about a million times, before I finally went to have a look at Scotland’s biggest city myself, yesterday. I was totally open for the charm of the dodgy, industrial sites, but seriously, what I found (at least in the city centre) is anything but ugly and repelling. Frankly speaking, one of the main reasons that made me visit Glasgow just yesterday, when I actually didn’t even have a full day off, was shopping. Yeah, shame on me, I know that sounds horrible, but I had had a stressful Thursday at university and wanted to buy a few things that I didn’t find in Edinburgh, and seriously was craving for a real Mango store (we only have small sections in two department stores) and a “real”, less Harry Potter/fairytalish, vibrant city. And I have to say, I loved it from pretty much the first step on, that I took into Buchanan Street, right next to the train station. Buchanan Street is the main shopping street in Glasgow and I had expected one of that ugly, grey, overcrowded high street shopping streets like Rue Neuve in Brussels, or Kaufingerstraße in Munich. Actually Buchanan Street is quite steep, and the sun was standing (sitting?) very low, right over the lower end of it, so that you can already forget the “grey” part. Unless when I was absolutely blind and didn’t see anything, the light was just amazing. The city is known for its Art Nouveau architecture, which reminded me of my beloved Antwerp (the Meir shopping street) and Brussels (away from Rue Neuve!), maybe also because of the mix of beautiful buildings with indeed ugly modern cement ;).

Due to my lack of time I couldn’t have a look at the university building and some other places that friends and travel guide recommend, but I’m planning on going there again before Christmas. I just checked out The Willow Tea Room, a tiny cafe in Art Nouveau Style, not far from the station. I almost missed it, you have to enter through a store and then go up the stairs, but then you’ve truly found a jewel. I definitely know where I’m going to have tea at my next visit.

Moreover Glasgow is said to have a very vivid art scene. Unfortunately this time I only saw the Modern Art Gallery from the outside, but that’s just another reason to come back again.

Ahhh, and the shopping…. I think it’s a great shopping place, and dare say that there’s more in between the very cheap British High Street and the expensive brands, than here in Edinburgh. And there’s also simply more overall. I read an article about shopping in Glasgow off the mainstream on Les Mads some weeks ago, will print it for my next visit. I found first edidtion book cover posters at Waterstone’s and bought Zelda Fitzgeralds Save me the Waltz for my walls (excitement!) and an old Scottish Rail Advertisement map print of Scotland. I’ve become soooo tired of my white walls, trust me! The Mango store unfortunately was a little disappointing. I’m going to order from now on, this part of the world might not be Mango’s priority (not a reason to dislike this part of the world, of course!). They have All Saints, Aldo and a million other shoe stores, Forever 21 soon, and much more, of course! When I was almost on way back and looking for a post office I found American Apparel and got two basics there. (Is there a need to tell you that I had American Apparel right next to my class room in Munich for about two years and NEVER even entered the store?)

So in the end, which city do I like better? Apparently you have to only like one out of the two. I decided to skip this rule and like them both. It’s hard to compare them, the magic, medieval Edinburgh probably outshines most European cities in terms of picturesque beauty. I still often stop on my way home from class, the supermarket or other random things, to stare at some building, the light, anything. But on the other hand it might become a little small from time to time, and therefore it’s good to have more “real” place so nearby, to experience some big city life, urban culture, a Mango store…