Today began with a good breakfast with my homestay family after waking up. We each had various things like cereal, fruits, or oats. I then began to get ready for our class at the Graham Hills building. I decided to take the subway as that was one of the faster ways to get there. After I got off the subway, I went for coffee at Tim Hortons and got an iced French vanilla latte before walking to class. In our class, which was taught by Dylan today, we learned about Geert Hofstede's 6 Dimensions of Culture. It was interesting to see how the different countries that we chose compared to each other in each of the categories. After class, we headed to Buchanan Galleries, a mall, to look around, as some of us had not the day before and others wanted to see more of it. We were a little surprised at how big the mall was and how similar it seemed to an American mall. We were able to get a couple necessities and other various things that we wanted. We were then very excited to head over to Mackintosh at the Willow for our Teatime!
After the tearoom, we went to The Hengler's Circus, a nice little pub where we enjoyed a few drinks. When we decided it was time to leave, everyone but Jeneva, Maysa, and I headed home. We wanted to look around at some clothing stores, so we went to Primark and H&M before heading back to our homestays and preparing for our next day of activities.
0 Comments
Today's journey began by waking up and enjoying breakfast at our homestay. Cora, Rhonda, Delaney, Olivia and I indulged in a combination of banana and Nutella toast, cereal, and coffee. Once it was time to head to class, we hopped on the bus for a ride into the city. Our class today involved discussing global issues including poverty, sustainability, and our perception versus reality. During an activity, Ethan and I researched how climate change has affected Scotland and we learned that Scotland was the first country to declare a climate emergency and has taken active steps such as low emission vehicles and zones to reduce the affects of climate change.After class, a few of us headed over to the City of Glasgow College to eat our lunches and enjoy each others company. We talked about our experiences thus far, and made plans for the rest of our day. One thing we discussed was how nice it is the city includes ample green space and walking paths. This aspect brings a sense of nature and comfort amidst the large city. Once lunch was over, we walked to the Buchanan Galleries. This is a huge mall with several stores and 4 floors! We explored a little, but didn't have much time before our next activity.
After our bagpipe experience, a group of us headed out to visit some thrift stores. However, after getting trapped in the subway train for 30 minutes, getting kicked off a bus in the middle of nowhere, and then not being able to find an active bus stop back to town-- we made a long journey back that included a good 3 hours of walking around. While this was a bummer, Jess, Natalie and Maysa did their duties of keeping the groups spirits up. Maybe someday we'll actually get to visit the thrift shops!Our group had our second full day in Glasgow today! To begin the day, my roommates and I ate breakfast at our homestay. We ate a variety of cereal, toast, fruit, and more. After quickly eating and getting ready, we took the bus to the center of Glasgow to meet the rest of our group. Our WorldStrides leader, Elena, walked us around to various sights around the city.
We first saw the Glasgow Cathedral, which was built in the 12th century and is one of the only cathedrals in Scotland to have survived the Protestant Reformation. The Glasgow Cathedral and many other parts of the city feature a symbol known as the Glasgow coat of arms. The symbol consists of a bird, a bell, a fish, and a tree. These items are representative of the life and stories of Saint Mungo, a religious leader in Glasgow that lived from 518 AD to 614 AD. Next to the cathedral is the Necropolis, a Victorian cemetery that has about 3,500 monuments. This cemetery features many rich merchants and royalty that have lived in and around Glasgow, such as John Robertson, Andrew Fraser, and Sir Thomas Lipton. Many of the people buried here were merchants and engineers, who helped Glasgow become a working-class city. Elena explained this to us after the Necropolis when she brought us to Merchant City. This area of Glasgow was created for “tobacco lords” that worked in Glasgow in the late 18th century. In addition, many engineers in this area built ships that were used in the triangular trade, increasing the city’s wealth. Around the city, there are lots of murals and artwork on the sides of buildings that depict the history of Glasgow, featuring many of the engineers, saints, and tobacco lords that were mentioned earlier. After our tour of the city, our group split up for lunch. Some of the group members and I went to a small restaurant that served pizza, burgers, soup, sandwiches, and many other dishes. We ate outside and enjoyed the scenery, and then headed to our next destination: Tennant’s Brewery. We went inside and learned about the history of this brewery, which is the largest brewery in the United Kingdom. We were also able to see the machinery used to create and package the products. After learning about all of this, our group enjoyed some free beverages that were included as part of the tour. The group then split off for dinner, some going out to eat and some returning to their homestays for the night. I went back to my host, Linda’s home and enjoyed smoked salmon, vegetables, roast beef, and green beans with Olivia and Delaney. We all reflected on the day and were tired from all the activities, so decided to go to bed early in preparation for the next day. I have greatly enjoyed Glasgow so far and am eager to continue exploring the city with my classmates! ![]() Today was our first full day in Glasgow, Scotland. We started the day with breakfast at our homestays. Hiking up to see the Old Man of Storr wore me out, so it was nice to get a good night's sleep in a bed. My hosts, Fiona and Peter, cooked bacon and eggs with tomatoes for me, along with some of Fiona's homemade bread and some butter. Class started at 10:30 at the University of Strathclyde, so getting there meant figuring out the subway. While initially a little intimidating, doing so didn't take long. After class, we had the rest of the day to ourselves. Most of us had packed lunch from our homestays; I myself had a sandwich and some clementines that Fiona had packed for me. Some classmates and I then visited the Glasgow Botanical Gardens. This was one of the things in Glasgow that I looked forward to the most. They had two huge greenhouses filled with many different plants and beautiful grounds to walk and enjoy the weather. We spent a couple hours just walking around the greenhouses and then walked around the grounds for a while as well. Many people were lying out on the lawn, so we decided to lay out there for a little while before heading back to our homestays for dinner. Peter cooked sausages, potatoes, and onions, a proper Scottish dinner. Peter and Fiona are excellent cooks, and I am very thankful for the chance to stay with them. After dinner, I thought I would turn in for the night, but I was quickly persuaded to venture out to a pub to have a drink with some classmates. They had a table at Tennent's, a pub on the northwest side of town. Considering I was already within walking distance, I decided to head over there to join them. I also found it fitting since we would be touring Tennent's Caledonian Brewery the next day. After Tennent's, we visited a couple of other pubs in a mini pub crawl. This was an excellent chance to see some of the Glaswegian nightlife. However, many locals were already quite inebriated after the Celtics vs. Rangers football game on the same day. Everyone in Glasgow was amiable nonetheless, something I had not initially expected. Those I spoke with were very welcoming and curious about my and my classmates' purpose for visiting the city. Overall, I greatly enjoy Glasgow and look forward to seeing more of the town. May 10th - Exploring the Charms of Scotland: A Day of Legends, Landscapes, and Highland Delights5/11/2024 We all were up bright and early this morning on the beautiful Isle of Skye! We headed out from the hostel around 8 am and continued on our journey to see the gorgeous views of Scotland with our tour guide Hoji. Our first stop was the river Sligachan. Legend has It if you stick your face in the water under the Old Sligachan Bridge for 7 seconds and let It dry off naturally, you'll be granted eternal beauty. So of course several of us had to take turns putting our faces into the freezing water.
After meeting back at the coach, we then continued on our drive to Glasgow. We took one last stop at a beautiful set of waterfalls.
|