I spent the day in the western part of Glasgow today. Such as it was since I slept in until 1030 and had an immense home cooked breakfast at my Airbnb (I’m feeling very pampered here and loving it). I didn’t get out until after 1! But it’s all good.

I started at the Riverside Museum, which is really a transportion museum on the River Clyde, including a board-able tall ship. Of course it started raining as I exited my train but it’s surprisingly warm today (upper 50s and not windy?) and the walk was fine. Meantime I think this museum (also free) would be ideal for kids. And there were some there but lots of just adults too. Luca would’ve loved it as a little boy. I would’ve loved it for him.

I mean these look like real live Thomas the Tank Engines! And many of the exhibits are interactive and you can get inside to sit, drive, climb, etc. I am serious, I would’ve just let Luca (Mr. Transportation obsessed when he was young) run wild there.

They also had an old Glasgow street representation where many of the shops were “open” and you could walk around, including going down into the subway and sitting in an old car. Quite cool.

Then I headed to the University of Glasgow where there’s the Hunterian museum with a re-creation of a house that Chas Rennie Mackintosh lived in with his wife (and often work partner), Margaret MacDonald. I couldn’t take photos but here’s a link. https://www.gla.ac.uk/hunterian/collections/permanentdisplays/themackintoshhouse/

Again it reminded me of Frank Lloyd Wright and his houses in Oak and Hyde Parks though this was much smaller. Still beautiful. Sadly I’m not going to be able to see a lot of his stuff here — the Glasgow School of Art (one of his masterpieces) had a major fire in June — after it was restored from a smaller fire in 2014! And I already mentioned I can’t do the Hill House. So a little disappointing but it’s all part of the flow.

I checked out much of the rest of the Hunterian Museum (free too, although the Mackintosh House has a fee). And walked around the university. It’s beautiful. Even in the rain.

I learned that many famous folks graduated from University of Glasgow. Adam Smith (considered a father of economics — their business school is named after him) actually studied social philosophy and later taught moral philosophy here. (And OK I was appalled that a philosopher created that stupid “invisible hand” idea. Ugh. He was a good friend of David Hume, another Scot apparently, who I neither liked nor understood back in my philosophy days. All makes sense now). Lord Kelvin taught physics here a long time (and um, I remember a Kelvin scale and something about “degrees Kelvin” but really can’t remember much else about what that has to do with anything — though he’s big in thermodynamics, one of my father’s specialties — sorry Dad!). And apparently Mr Joule, Mr Watt, and Sgr Volta (yes he was Italian) all had dealings with Lord Kelvin during the age of the Scottish Enlightenment. Who knew? Oh and James McGill (of the famed Montreal university), was a Scot who went here and was so influenced by it, he founded his own similar university after emigrating to Canada.

Hopefully you can read this sign — it’s a pretty intense way to have to pass your exams!! And we worry about our finals!Meantime I must say I saw as many Asians as whites on campus today. Not sure they’re all students (and I heard mandarin but also other languages I didn’t recognize), though I suspect they are. Also heard several people speaking Italian. And American English so I guess this really is an international campus! It would appear they’re still very strong in physics and philosophy but also engineering and natural sciences. Oh and did I tell you that tuition is always free to Scots? Though I suspect they make back some of their money though all those aforementioned international students.

To finish my day, I walked around the west end area (the posher side of Glasgow).

I didn’t eat on this street but it’s quite adorable. Close to the university and also to Byres Road, a trendy/eclectic part of town (I got that from a website – and I ate on Byres). I still have some energy but this Cinderella turns into a pumpkin pretty much when it gets dark (so much for midnight) — and it’s almost 8 so I’m heading back to my Airbnb.

I’ll explore a different part of Glasgow tomorrow!