Aberdeen to Glasgow to Home away from Home

I have been travelling for almost a month and I am so tired. Aberdeen was a complete flop with little to do and less to see. The town in very Victorian in architecture and there is clearly a lot of money in the area from the oil mining. I arrived on Saturday evening and grabbed a taxi (cost me 7 pounds which was a bit expensive and he already had 3.50 on the meter which I was told was standard but I question) out to the youth hostel – the only hostel in Aberdeen. That is surprising. There is a definite market there if anyone wanted to open one. Because there is only one it does mean that they can charge what they like. It cost me 20 pounds per night and there was no free wifi or anything else. It was cosy and warm and clean but was more like a hotel than a hostel and there was none of the camaraderie of a proper hostel. Most of the people staying there long term were business men who used it as a base. It was just a tad creepy and I felt a bit like token woman when I walked into the kitchen, lounge... basically everywhere except the dorm room which was female only.

I did go for a walk around the town but it is formidable in size and with little to no signs posting where the touristy things are it was pretty much a lost cause. I did stagger across an old church but being Sunday there were services on and I wasn’t going to go inside but I did go and investigate the graveyard. The oldest grave stone I found was the 1600s and quite sweet with its misspelt words and middle English.

While at the hostel I meet a really friendly Scotswoman called Meegan who lives up in the Shetland Islands. She had the most gorgeous accent I have heard. I had to listen very carefully to understand what she was saying. She said things like ‘cannae’ and ‘whey aye’ and other endearments. She is a PE teacher and got the job working up there as there was little other work in Scotland. We exchanged numbers and now I have a contact up there too and she was quite happy to put me up if I get up there. Apparently she lives in the farthest island (basically, it is across from Sweden) and it takes 12 hours to get there from Aberdeen.

I left Aberdeen on bus and arrived into Glasgow at around 4.30pm. Now, there is a cool place. I know everyone says it is industrial in nature but I think it gave the town a certain amount of charm. I was staying down on the river Clyde at the Euro-hostel (looks like a hotel).  I grabbed my key card and went up to the room. However, when I got there the key wouldn’t work, so I had to trek all the way back down with my backpack on. I got the key sorted but forgot about the vital detail that when one has two feet you should lift them when going up stairs, one after another. I went sprawling across the floor and ended up with a swollen and bruised knee. Sigh. At least I had Tiger balm on me from my recent hill climbing ankle issues.

The hostel was located beside a train line, which I didn’t realise, so with the window was open it was really loud and those trains run all day and night. Despite being on the 8^th floor, I was very aware of the sounds outside. The trains and the people. It is true what they say about the nightlife. Every night, regardless of time or day, people are out drinking.

I went for a walk that first evening and was surprised by how busy it was on the streets, people buying stuff. The centre of town was alive with people and it was a little bit overwhelming after being out in the sticks with so few people around.

The next morning I slept in (after snoring Spaniards had kept me awake in Aberdeen). I was surprised that the sun was shining and I was so grateful. I decided to head out to the cathedral of Glasgow, a medieval church outside of the city centre. It is quite serene and the people looking after it were very warm and welcoming. Apparently it is the resting place of St... uh... not sure. I have been to that many places and churches I can’t remember... St Mungo?... I will Google it... woohoo, I am right. Anyway, it was very peaceful there and they let everyone take photos – there was no prohibition on what you could and couldn’t do.

Outside, across the bridge is the Necropolis which was one of the stranger things I have seen. The dead look down from the hill, down onto the city and the people below. They are not small graves either. They are massive, over-bearing tombs and statues on raised platforms. Strangely, also below the Necropolis is a brewery. I am not sure the dead would appreciate the smell of beer and not being able to drink it – it must make restless spirits I would think. The sun stayed out all day. I couldn’t have asked for a nicer day for walking around.

The next day I went exploring... well, I tried to. The fog was thick as pea soup in the morning and I attempted to walk to the botanic gardens but after twenty minutes, my heart wasn’t in it so I turned back. I went to the Glasgow Museum of Art where I had the day before been and stumbled across a library. I spent a few hours in the library – it was warm and dry with comfy chairs. When I emerged later, the sun had come out and burned away the fog, leaving a bright but cold midday.

I headed for the underground train system and caught the inner circle to the botanical gardens. The gardens were green and fresh and after so much winter dreariness, the flowers blossoming were a welcome sight.

Later that night I went to meet up with the Nanna, Kit and Lilli, whom I had met in Skye earlier. We had a few drinks, dinner and did a pub quiz which was themed around magic – obviously it was made for me. It was so nice so meet up with the girls again. I really needed the contact with people that I knew already. I was sick of having the same conversation with people – where are you from... oh NZ, that is amazing... blah blah blah. I also met a few of their friends. It was so relaxed that when I left around 11pm I felt greater than I had in a while. The taxi back to the hostel cost me 4 pounds which I couldn’t believe. How cheap!

The next morning I headed off to Edinburgh with only the mildest of hiccups where trying to find the bus station in Glasgow, I accidently went straight past it, walked about ten minutes in the wrong direction. That wouldn’t be such a problem but I had my backpack and bags to carry.

I got into Edinburgh at 1pm and the first thing I did was drop off my bags and head up to the tartan shop where I had seen a pair of purple high heels with tartan pattern. They were gorgeous shoes and I had dreamt about them the whole time I was touring Scotland. I had to have them. 40 pounds and they were mine.

I spent the afternoon at the Edinburgh museum and saw my first ever T-Rex skeleton. Can check that off my list. I also saw the skeleton of a giant sloth. I didn’t even know there used to be giant sloths but this was massive and apparently wasn’t slow at all like its modern counterparts. The museum was the best I have been to. It was interactive and bright with many different exhibits. However, the one that I really wanted to see on the Vikings was a special one that you had to pay to see. It cost 9 pounds and I thought that was a bit steep just to see a couple of artefacts. It was a shame that it cost so much.

Today I spent the morning in Edinburgh, checking out the rest of the museum then it was off to Durham where I have landed. I am looking forward to a good night’s sleep in a real bed.