Ramble
Quest - Scottish Border Defense (Glasgow).
I went to Scotland because I wanted to hike the West Highland Way and could get a cheap Ryan Air flight into Prestwick. My plan seemed simple: zip through Glasgow and get on the trail as soon as possible. However, I barely make it out of the airport.
Of all the cursed luck, everyone on the plane strolls through the practically non-existent immigration, no passport checking, no nothing, except that I hesitate for a few seconds, looking around, and get dragged into an immigration nightmare. Two border thugs who normally sit around all day with their thumbs up their butts either decide to justify their existence or else they really are as stupid as they look. They think it's very suspicious that I have so many stamps in my passport. They are highly skeptical that I can travel for so long without working. They are convinced that I'm a potential danger to the safety and well-being of the good people of Scotland.
I'm patient and even polite, which may have been my mistake because they certainly try my patience by keeping me waiting endlessly. They question me over and over, asking the same stupid questions and asking me to fill out forms which, again, ask the same stupid questions. As if there were hordes of Americans assailing the borders of Scotland! They go through my bag, poking through everything in there. They are highly suspicious about my water filter! They even go through my wallet, looking at business cards that people have given me, and making notes of them! Finally, I just get sick to death of them and start to be more assertive and demanding about what they want from me. It's a good thing I did because I probably would have missed the last train out if I'd stayed polite. Without telling me, they write a secret code number in my passport under the "Amendments and Endorsements" section. A nice souvenir from a couple of cutie pies!
OK, well after another warm introduction to a country, I get settled in to the shitty Euro Hostel in Glasgow. But surprise, surprise, it turns out that I actually like Glasgow. In fact, I think I like it better than its far more popular neighbors: Edinburgh and Dublin. It's hard to say exactly why though, but that may be part of the attraction.
There are more tourist attractions than you might expect and pretty good ones at that. The ornate City Hall gives an excellent free tour. The Glasgow Cathedral is outstanding and the views from the old cemetery hill behind it are amazing. The St Mungo Museum is good and also provides marvelous views of the Cathedral and cemetery from its top floor. Inside the nearby Provand's Lordship house I feel as if I've stepped back in time.
The famous Kelvingrove Museum is closed for remodeling, but its best works can be seen at the McLellan Galleries until it reopens. The People's Palace and Winter Gardens are worth a quick look, but the touted Modern Art Museum is a bit disappointing. Pollok Country Park, with the excellent Burrell Collection and the Pollok House estate, complete with plenty of shaggy cattle, keep me happily occupied for a day.
Glasgow's city center is filled with great architecture. I tour the insides of a few buildings, but mostly I'm content to simply wander around at random, taking in the sights from the outside. I'd meant to be in and out of this place in a day, and the Euro Hostel certainly supports this plan, but I find myself lingering here for days. Then I hike from the botanic gardens up to Milngavie, the start of the West Highland Way, and lure of the trail hits me again like a siren's song.