A Wet Day in Glasgow

Today we took the train to Glasgow. The two largest cities in Scotland are only about 50 miles apart. It brought home to us (as if we hadn't already figured it out) how much more expensive things are here than in the states. The trip on the train was about 50 miles in 50 minutes--about the same as a trip from Elgin to the Loop on my old commuter line in Chicago. I think the trip in Chicago costs about seven bucks person. Our trip was about eighteen dollars each.

We didn't get to see as much of Glasgow as we would have liked, because it rained all day. We bought a ticket on a hop-on/hop-off bus, so we didn't have to do a lot of walking, but we did do a lot of standing in the rain. Plus, several of the attractions we wanted to visit were closed for one reason or another.

We did see some good stuff, however. The cathedral is very nice, especially the stained glass, which was as good as anything we've seen. There are some photos below. We also had a good time at the Kelvingrove Gallery. We saw some paintings by two schools of artists that we'd never even heard of before. They are not represented in the museums we've visited in the states. The Glasgow Boys (which includes some girls) and the Colourists have done some really nice work. They run the range from Impressionism to Fauvism and some other work that sometimes suggests the Hudson Valley School (one of my favorites). We also made a quick stop at the University of Glasgow, which has a unique look.

Here are some photos.

The outside of the cathedral.




Some stained glass examples.










The Kelvingrove Gallery (named after Lord Kelvin the chemist).




A weird exhibit from the Kelvingrove--a set of masks showing different emotions, suspended from the ceiling.




The University of Glasgow (in the rain).




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