Viva Glasvegas!

On Friday night, me and the rest of the team at work got all dolled up and headed to Alea Casino for Mark’s leaving do. I’d never set foot in a casino before (shocking I know!) so I was really looking forward to hitting the tables and trying my luck. As it turned out, I wisely ended up choosing to spend my money on alcohol instead of gambling but I still had a cracking night!

We started the night with a gorgeous three-course meal in the restaurant – I had deep fried Haggis Bon Bons in a whisky sauce to start, followed by pork loin and then probably one of the best Sticky Toffee Puddings I’ve ever tasted in my life. The food was absolutely delicious and was really good value at only £20 a head. Apparently the restaurant does a really good lunch menu as well so Ill definitely make a point of going back again one day.

Haggis Bon Bons

Sticky Toffee Pud!

After dinner, we all headed into the bar and continued the evening with lots of drinking and gambling. I had a great night catching-up with everyone outside of work and by the end of the night,  the four of us who’d stayed to the end were all up dancing the night away. Somehow we managed to stay in the casino until 4am so it was a pretty late one – I was not feeling so fresh the next morning as you can imagine!

Me, Paola and Claire

At the moment, I’m really enjoying life up in Glasgow. It suddenly feels like everything has clicked and I’m feeling positive about the next few months again which is good 🙂 Worrying to think that though tomorrow marks the start of my final five months – this year really is flying by at the moment.

The Barras.

Yesterday morning I decided to brave the gale-force winds and venture over to the east end of Glasgow so I could finally have my first experience of The Barras. For those of you that don’t know, The Barras is a famous fleas market that basically sells bric-a-brac, antiques and a selection of dodgy designer knock-offs. However, it’s also meant to be a real experience for the atmosphere and all the Glasgae ‘patter’ (or banter) that you encounter.

Barrowlands

I had high hopes for The Barras when I arrived but, unfortunately, I found the whole experience a little disappointing. The market itself was quite sparse and it had very little of the vibrant atmosphere I’d been expecting. Also, most of the stuff was just not appealing to me and my tastes so I was unable to find a hidden gem amongst the rubbish. Admittedly, I did choose to go on a day that was freezing and extremely windy and it was relatively early when I arrived so I understand people may not have been out in their droves. Thus, I would be more than willing to go again, maybe on a Saturday afternoon when the weather is that bit nicer and warmer. It wasn’t entirely a wasted trip though as I can now say I’ve ventured to the East of the city (and survived!)

Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum.

Last Saturday I decided it was finally time to tick off one of the attractions on my list and visit Kelvingrove Museum. It’s a building I’ve walked many times before and also wanted to visit but had never quite got round to doing so. I was first struck by just how big the building actually is and how much there is to see. The museum is divided into two sections – life and expression. Broadly speaking, expression is the art gallery element and life is the museum element. Throughout the whole building  there are actually 8,000 different objects in 22 themed galleries – unsurprisingly it took me several hours to see everything and even then, I probably missed a few things out!

Outside

Inside

Spitfire! 

Sir Roger The Asian Elephant

As well as the collections themselves, there is also a cafe and shop on the lower ground floor. As I stupidly visited during lunchtime I decided to pop into the cafe for some substance to help me round the next floor of exhibitions. I opted for a Lanarkshire Blue Cheese and Broccoli Tart, served on a bed of salad with the house vinaigrette. It was beautiful and, at £4.45, was actually quite reasonably priced (always a good sign!)

Food!

All in all, I’d really recommend Kelvingrove for a good day out. There is so much to see and do there and a real mix of collections spanning all different periods, as well as an extensive artistic collection. Plus, I hasten to add, all this is free so really you can’t go wrong either way!

St. Patrick’s Day.

Sunday was St. Patrick’s Day so to celebrate, me and Bronagh (along with Dom and Paola) decided to head to an Irish Pub in town and celebrate in traditional style – aka with lots and lot of Guinness! We headed to Waxy O’Connor’s, which is a great pub right in the centre of town. The bar itself is absolutely huge – there are three different floors, numerous bars and far too many different flights of stairs to try and navigate. In all honesty, I was getting slightly lost before I’d even finished my first drink so by the end of the night I had no clue where I was heading!

Me and Bronagh started proceedings just after 12pm and I’m pretty pleased to say we managed to last almost a whole 12 hours! As you can imagine, the next day was not very pretty at all. Note to self: do not mix Guinness with Jagerbombs, it is fowl and it will get you drunk very quickly! However, I did have an absolutely cracking day/evening. There was live music, good conversation and then, later on, there was DJ to see you through the evening so then there was lots of crazy dancing – including a few slightly embarrassing attempts at an Irish Jig! Somehow, we also managed to gain a lot of rather cool Paddy’s Day merchandise including a Waxy O’Connor’s Rugby Shirt, a Guinness Hat and a wee green St. Patrick’s Day Rosette.

Rockin’ the Guinness Hat

Getting into the spirit of things…

It’s been far too long since I’ve had a proper good old session in the pub and I actually really did enjoy myself. It was also a great opportunity to get to know everyone that bit more, as everyone is much more chatty once they’ve had a pint or two (or four!) Fingers crossed we’ll all be able to go out again soon, although I think I’ll definitely be giving the Guinness a miss this time.

The Halfway Point.

Tomorrow marks the sixth month anniversary of me moving to Glasgow. Honestly, I really cannot believe that I am now over half-way through my placement – I’ll actually be leaving at the end of August, instead of mid-September as originally planned, as my postgraduate course starts on Monday 9th September (less than six months now!) This means I have five and a half months left here, which is actually quite a scary thought.

The past month has been very up and down. The highs have been just fantastic – I have a great weekend in Lancaster catching up with old friends and then an even better week in Nottingham with all my nearest and dearest. Equally though, I admit I’ve spent the majority of the last  month feeling quite lonely in a way and wishing that I could just be in London already. I’ve struggled a lot since Eujin and Rosie left and I think recently it’s finally dawned me just h0w far away all of my close friends live and how much I need at least some of them to be that bit nearer.

However, going home was actually a really positive step for me. Admittedly, there was a big part of me was simply dreading getting back on that train and I was really quite upset for a wee while. Once I got back to Glasgow though and saw everyone at work and such forth, it wasn’t long before I started to feel a lot better. Having a change in scenery was just what I needed and I’ve come back feeling refreshed and determined to make the most of my remaining time in Glasgow. I know I say this every month but here is so much I need to see in both the city and the country as a whole and I finally feel like now is the time to make good on that promise and finally do it.

I’ve decided to start small and work on seeing some of Glasgow’s most famous attractions initially before I go travelling off throughout bonny Scotland. I have a 3 day weekend so my plan is to finally head to Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, which is apparently Glasgow’s most popular free attraction and then maybe spent some time in the West End window-shopping and eating cake (perfect Saturday!). Sunday is St. Patrick’s Day and the plan is to spend all day in Waxy O’Connor’s, an Irish pub in the city centre. There’s going to be live music and DJs and plenty of alcohol so I think it should be a pretty good day! In between nursing my hangover on Monday, I’ll also be volunteering at the Red Cross shop on Byres Road again. I’ve done about four proper shifts so far which I’ve enjoyed a lot, plus I get 20% staff discount and first pick on all new donations. I managed to get an Urban Outfitters cardigan which should have cost about £40 for only £3.60 when I was on shift yesterday – absolute bargain!

Looking further ahead I have no real plans beyond this weekend, except for my friend Hannah hopefully coming to visit in mid-April. I haven’t seen her since before Christmas so I’m already extremely excited to see her again and show her all that Glasgae has to offer. However I’m sure that between now and then a lot will probably happen, as it always does with me!

Spring has sprung!

I decided to take full advantage of today’s glorious sunshine and go for a wander round Bellahouston Park, which is only a short 10 minute stroll from my house. The park itself is quite extensive and is also home to Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s  House for an Art Lover, as well as some formal gardens and lots of leisure facilities. Unfortunately I didn’t have time to go round the house itself but I did manage to take a nice wander round some of the park and the walled garden.

House for An Art Lover

Walled Garden

I imagine that, when spring has fully sprung, Bellahouston will be lovely and I look forward to heading down there more in the summer (if Scotland actually has one!). The park also host big outdoor concerts, with Eminem playing in August, so fingers crossed they’ll have some decent artists on that I can go and see. All this recent sunshine is making me very very excited for summer – I can’t wait to no longer have to wrap up every time I want to leave the house and spend most of my time in various beer gardens or parks! I already have some exciting plans for summer including a weekend in Edinburgh in August to hit the Fringe fest amongst other things. I’m also hoping I might be able to fit a cheeky city break abroad  into my schedule although I’m not sure how realistic that’ll be (plus I need to find someone to drag with me!) Either way though, I have a feeling that this summer is going to be pretty good 🙂

The Fifth Month.

I have now been in Glasgow for exactly five months – yay! This month has in many ways been a weird one. There have been a lot of changes, most notably the fact that both Eujin and Rosie have now left. It’s really strange not having either of them about and I have to admit, I’m missing both of them loads – things just don’t quite feel the same up here any more and if I’m being totally honest, I’m just not really enjoying myself as much at the moment. Equally, while finding out I’d been accepted onto a postgraduate course at City University in London was undoubtedly the biggest high of the month (if not the whole year!), it’s really affected the way I’m viewing my placement. At first, it was a relief that I’d been accepted as it meant I could just massively throw myself into life in Scotland as a whole, without having to worry about the future. However, the more I research the course and flats and London life, the more I just want to be there now and I find myself sometimes wishing the next six months away which, of course, I know I shouldn’t do –  I can’t seem to help myself that the minute though!

I think the main problem is that I’m a bit bored of Glasgow now. While there’s still so much for me to see and do, in the city and beyond, I’m starting to get a wee bit fed-up. I’m really really missing home at the moment and especially spending time with all my friends, both back in Nottingham and the Lancaster lot. Thankfully, I’m heading to Lancaster next Friday (SO EXCITED!) and then I have a ten-day holiday on the 1st March when I’m finally getting to head home. I actually can’t wait and I’m hoping it’ll do me the world of good and I can come back to Glasgow all refreshed and with a much more positive attitude. However, I am slightly concerned that I just won’t want to head back to Scotland at all but, fingers crossed, it won’t get quite that bad – my mum will force me on the train anyway whether I want to go or not!

In other news, last week I started volunteering at a new charity shop on Byres Road, in the West End of the city. I happened to see that they needed volunteers and, having previously worked in retail for five years and having volunteered in an Oxfam shop, I decided to give it a go – it’ll help keep me busy and I’ll get to meet some new people hopefully. Unfortunately, I never did hear back from the Communication Support Volunteer role I mentioned in a previous post but not to worry, I’m sure this will be good in a different way!

Also, yesterday I attended a special CSV workshop in Edinburgh which was actually really good. Obviously, I never pass up the chance for a free trip to my favourite city and I had a great day. I got to meet some of the new CSV volunteers who have just arrived in Scotland, as well as meeting a few others that I haven’t had chance to see previously because they are based up in Edinburgh. All the newbies seem really nice, if not maybe a little shy at the moment, but I’m hoping that with time (and alcohol) that will pass and we can arrange some more frequent meet-ups.

Beautiful Sunny Day in Edinburgh

The month ahead looks great, mainly because I’ll spend most of it either at home or at Lancaster (which is practically my second home!). There’s a lot of good stuff planned – it’s my Nephew’s Christening at the beginning of March and Mother’s Day as well so I’ll get to spend lots of quality time with my family which is always good really. Plus I have lots of trips and meals out with my friends planned as well as a few cheeky nights out in Lancaster for me to look forward to – now all I have to do is put some plans in place for Glasgow and I’ll be laughing!

Me, Myself and I.

Yesterday I decided that it was finally time to spoilt myself a bit, be pampered and indulge in some much-needed retail therapy. My day of treats started brilliantly with a lovely 30 minute Swedish Massage at The Residence, Park Circus which is a nice wee spa in the West End of Glasgow. The best part of this, apart from the luxury of being pampered, was that it was actually complimentary – I found an offer in a free local magazine (i-on), filled in my details and ta-da! I can never usually be bothered with such things but, being slightly poorer nowadays, I decided to give it a go and I’m so glad I did! I’ve never actually had a massage before but by the end of it I was feeling so relaxed it was untrue.

The Residence

After my massage I decided to have a mosey round the West End, do some window shopping and grab a wee bit to eat. I ended up in ‘Little Italy’, which is a small place on Byres Road. Although fairly basic, the food was nice (I indulged in a focaccia to remind me of my trip to Italy) and the opportunities for people-watching were ample – always a fun way to pass a quick half hour or so!

 

Parma Ham, Tomato and Mozzarella Focaccia

Unbelievably I still had some gift vouchers from Christmas to spend so my next port of call was Buchanan St. to treat myself to a new outfit (or two) for my upcoming trip to Lancaster. I managed to get a gorgeous grey dress in the Miss Selfridge Sale for only £20 (I only paid £10 myself because of my vouchers, bargain!) and a nice black and white number from H&M – I’m sure you’ll all see pictures in future posts!

All in all, I had a really good day. It’s been a while since I’ve actually taken the time to have a day purely to myself and just spend some time on my own wandering around and taking in the city and I really enjoyed having that “me time” again. Also it has been far too long since I’ve treated myself to some new clothes and things and that always puts the smile on my face – definitely the best way to celebrate my recent good news!

Drinking From The Bottle.

This weekend has been one of the best weekends I’ve had in a long time, mainly because I spent most of it slightly intoxicated and showing off all my best dance moves. The fun started on Friday night – one of my work friends was having an eighties themed party for her 30th Birthday which both me and Rosie were invited to. We started the night with a few cheeky drinks at mine before heading over in our best fancy dress, completely with leg-warmers and everything. There were a few other people from work there and even two of the women we support there which was really nice to see. Most of our guys headed home about 11pm (lightweights!) so me and Rosie spontaneously decided to head into Glasgow on a night out. I’ve never actually been to a proper club here before (shocking I know!) just bars or house parties so it was good to finally get out there! We ended up in The Garage which was pretty good – they played some decent music although it was full of really young students so me and Rosie (at the grand old age of 22) were probably two of the oldest people there. So depressing!

Trying to rock the Flashdance look.

Once we’d finally managed to drag our poor hungover bodies out of bed on Saturday we both headed over to Balloch for Rosie’s leaving do with all her work colleagues. We started the night with a meal at Raffles before heading on to a couple of pubs and then going on to one of the only two clubs (it’s a wee place to say the least) which was having some kind of popcorn party – basically a foam party but with popcorn instead (whatever next!)  To say it’s only a very small “town”, I actually had a great night plus the drinks were ridiculously cheap, perfect!

Fish-bowl! 

However it’s been a very long time since I’ve done two nights in a row and it’s safe to say I was definitely feeling it a bit by Sunday. It was well worth it though. I had a bloody amazing weekend and it was just what I needed after getting into a bit of a funk last week – I finally felt like everything had come together again and I was making the most of being up here and just enjoying myself again 🙂 Plus, the guys at work spoilt me rotten and let me join them for a beaut Sunday Roast which sorted me out nicely – they do look after me well!

In other news, I finally heard back from Newcastle today. Basically, I’ve got a place on the reserve list as a medium reserve which means that if a significant amount of people drop out then there’s a chance I could get a place. However, I was also told that medium reserves aren’t ranked as it’s highly unlikely that enough people would drop out to let me in. Although I’m obviously a little bit gutted, I’m actually feeling pretty alright about the whole thing –  I know in my heart of hearts that I just don’t have quite enough experience just yet anyway so it’s not the biggest disaster. They told me that I should strongly consider re-applying in 2014 which I will do if I can gain some more experience over the next year to help boost my application some more. If not, I may have to wait until 2015 but I’m sure I’ll get there one day (fingers crossed!). With regards to the other applications, I still haven’t heard a thing from Reading or Essex. City should get back to me by Friday (although we’ll see whether they actually do or not) and I’ve now been told that QMU won’t reply until March, so it looks like I still have a long wait ahead unfortunately. Oh well, we’ll just wait and see what happens eh!

Burns Night.

Yesterday was Burns Night which is a celebration of the life of the poet Robert Burns, one of Scotland’s most famous sons. Traditionally people celebrate by heading to a full Burns Supper but, as Eujin is leaving on Tuesday, she decided to have her leaving do last night instead. We headed to Citation, a beautiful restaurant in Glasgow’s Merchant City, for a meal before heading onto a few pubs/bars in the area. I’d never been to Citation before but the food was really good and excellent value – we managed to get two courses and a glass of wine for under £10! As it was Burns Night, I had Haggis and Black Pudding Fritters to start followed by chicken on a bed of potatoes and mushrooms with a red wine jus which was lovely.

Haggis Fritters

After that we headed onto Maggie May’s and The Libertine, also in the Merchant City, for a few drinks and what ended up as a ridiculous amount of shots! Although they were two places I wouldn’t normally choose to go to (not cheap or cheesy enough for my liking in all honesty!) I really enjoyed myself and had a great night with everyone – there ended up being quite a lot of dancing to such classics as ‘Summer of ’69’ and ‘Living on a prayer’ which was interesting to say the least.  I’ve never actually been out with Eujin and Rosie properly before which was fun although it’s a shame we’ve never got round to doing it before now. However, Eujin is hopefully heading back to Glasgow for a holiday in December so fingers crossed we can be reunited then for more dining, dancing and drinking!

Me, Eujin and Rosie at The Libertine

Me and Rosie at Maggie May’s