A focus on Glasgow...

A Focus on Glasgow…

Gorgeous Glasgow is Scotland’s largest city and lies along the banks of the river Clyde in the historic county of Lanarkshire. Glasgow is one of our favourite Scottish cities for so many reasons, and now as we head into the festive season the city begins to transform into a holiday delight, complete with twinkling lights and Christmas trees.

Glasgow sports a wide array of theatres, restaurants, museums, and art galleries as well as many public parks such as Kelvingrove Park and Glasgow Green.

In Gaelic, Glasgow means Glaschu, or ‘Green Glen’ and evidence of a fortified prehistoric village exists on this site, however Glasgow was not officially established until about 550 AD, when Saint Kentigern (Mungo), created a religious community here.

Ideally located on the river and close to the see, the port of Glasgow became an important shipping hub, attracting traders and soon sprawling markets were set up to trade in coal, plaid (wool cloth), and herring. When trade with the America’s boomed in the 18th century, Glasgow as at the forefront of importing tropical produce (tobacco, sugar, and rum) from which the merchants made huge profits.

With the onset of the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century, Glasgow took the lead in iron founding, coal mining, and most noticeably shipbuilding in which they held strong until World War I, when the industry took a great knock.

Nowadays Glasgow is very diversified and is involved in several types of engineering, aerospace technology, information and communication technology, renewable energy and even film making, television production and even medical technology.

Glasgow is steeped in ancient architecture, and for those that love old churches and buildings, you’ll find plenty to keep you busy. Discover the breath-taking University of Glasgow which was founded in 1451 and is the fourth oldest university in the world, and Glasgow Cathedral which is steeped in history.

If you love museums, you’re in for a treat. There are over twenty museums in the city, and most of them are free to visit too. The wonderful Hunterian Museum is a must visit – it is the oldest museum in Scotland!

Music and football play a large part in the lives of Glaswegians – there are estimated to be over 130 music events taking place in Glasgow every week, and if you love music, you should certainly visit the Britannia Panopticon which is the longest surviving music hall in the world.

It was founded in 1857 and can seat 1,500 people – and in its heyday there would be four shows a day! Famous acts like Stan Laurel got their big break on the stage of the Britannia Panopticon.

The venue was founded in 1857 and was built to entertain an audience of 1,500 people for shows that were staged four times every day. Glasgow has even been named a UNESCO City of Music – the very first in the UK!

When it comes to football, there is no stronger rivalry than the one between the Celtic and Rangers supporters. The rivalry goes back over one hundred years Glasgow when Celtic supporters came from East Glasgow and were predominantly Catholic and Rangers supporters came from the mostly protestant areas in West Glasgow. Nowadays the rivalry is no longer religion based, but it is still fierce!

Glasgow plays home to some of the oldest pubs in the world, and also some of the top modern restaurants, so when it comes to food and drink, you’re in for a treat!

With so much to do in and around Glasgow you’ll certainly want to book to spend a few nights in the bustling city.

It’s also the perfect way to relax and unwind after time spent walking the Scottish trails, and you’ll leave feeling fully steeped in nature, culture and beautiful architecture.

We wish all our Walkers Club friends a wonderful Christmas, and we’ll see you soon on the bonny hills of Scotland!