The fog was so thick over the pass at Ullswater we could only drive at a crawl. It was early last May and we were leaving left England's Lake District, where we had been staying, and setting out for our road trip around Scotland.
It was not a good start but once clear of the fells the fog cleared and we were able to speed up. We took the M6 motorway before branching off onto the A7 just north of Carlisle to take the scenic route through the Scottish Borders.
Starting in Edinburgh we encircled the mainland and visited a few of the islands as well. Some of the places we stopped at have been featured in recent articles.
Now we had arrived in Glasgow, our last stop on the journey, and were staying close to its two liveliest streets, Sauchiehall and Buchanan.
Sauchiehall Street stretches from the centre of Glasgow way out towards the west and has long been a major thoroughfare in the city. Developed from 1800 onwards as wealthy citizens wanted to build themselves homes on the outskirts of the city, the street was revitalised in the 1860s, at the turn of the century and during the 1960s.
There had been some decline in the street since the middle of the last century, as the retail and entertainment worlds changed and the main shopping areas consolidated in the heart of the city, but it's buzzing again now.
Glasgow claims its city centre is one of the best shopping destinations in the UK, outside of London's West End. I couldn't see it myself but as one who shops out of necessity rather than for pleasure, what would I know? But Glasgow does have a diverse culinary scene, an abundance of pubs and bars and some of the UK's best music venues. The pub pictured below is The Counting House, a cavernous establishment on St Vincent Place.
The Counting House is one of eight Wetherspoons pubs in Glasgow, a UK chain apparently well regarded for its low prices and consistency, with the food and drink on offer being broadly similar across all venues.
Art and history
Glasgow also has museums dedicated to European art and history including the fabulous Kelvingrove in the city's west end. Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum opened in 1901 and is a firm favourite with both local residents and visitors. It has stunning architecture and a family-friendly atmosphere. There are 22 galleries to explore and a revolving program of temporary exhibitions and displays.
The Burrell Collection is housed in an award-winning building in the heart of Pollok Country Park, Glasgow's largest green space. The collection is named after its donor, the shipping magnate Sir William Burrell.
The Burrell Collection is one of the greatest art collections ever amassed by one person, consisting of more than 9,000 objects spanning 6,000 years of history. The Burrell Collection was only just reopening when we were there, following an extensive refurbishment and redisplay due for completion in 2020 but delayed by the pandemic.
The displays range from work by major artists including Rodin, Degas and Cézanne to important examples of late medieval art, Chinese and Islamic art, ancient civilizations and more. Regular temporary exhibitions are hosted at The Burrell, which also runs an extensive program of events and activities for children.
In a new exhibition visitors can explore the astonishing legacy of Sir William Burrell and his wife, Constance, featuring selected works from the collection, as well as two new acquisitions on display for the first time. The exhibition runs until 16 April 2023 and entry is free.
Along the River Clyde
The Riverside is a multi-award-winning museum located on the banks of the River Clyde, with over 3000 objects on display from Glasgow's rich past, including such diverse exhibits as vintage cars, prams, skateboards and huge locomotives. You can even walk down an old, cobbled Glasgow street with shops dating from 1895 to the 1980s.
Berthed outside, and reflected in the Riverside's windows, is the Tall Ship, Glenlee, the UK's only floating Clyde-built sailing ship, and free to enter.
Also in this area the Clyde Auditorium, which quickly became affectionately known as 'the Armadillo' after it was completed in 1997, and if you look at the picture above you'll see why. The name has since been formally adopted and it is now called the SEC Armadillo, the first part of the name referring to the Scottish Event Campus.
Created by world-renowned architects Foster+Partners – responsible for the designs of Hong Kong's Chep Lap Kok Airport, London's former City Hall, Hearst Tower New York and the Bilbao Metro among others – the Armadillo was designed from the inside out with the requirements of conference delegates and speakers as the prime consideration. It offers 3,000 seats over three levels yet has the ability to provide an ideal setting for much smaller meetings.
Foster+Partners were also involved in creating the OVO Hydro, another part of the SEC complex. Since opening in September 2013, OVO Hydro has played host to national and international music megastars as well as global entertainment and sporting events. It was also one of the venues for last year's Cop26 climate change summit. With a maximum capacity of 14,300, OVO Hydro augments the SEC's existing facilities and stages 140-plus events annually.
We stayed at the very centrally located Maldron Hotel on Renfrew Street, from where it is an easy five-minute walk to Glasgow's Queen Street Station. The Maldron is a four-star property located close to many attractions, particularly the nearby theatres of the Pavilion, King's Theatre and Theatre Royal.