Orientation and Fun in Glasgow

I have just completed my first full week here in Glasgow (for the most part) and all I can say about this city is… WOW… I love it here. It really is my dear green place, which is excellent and in stark contrast to Colorado. The week started with the rest of the international students arriving on Sunday for our orientation program. We all had to wake up bright and early on Monday morning to walk at least 20 minutes to campus for information sessions. After tons of fun sitting in the back of the world’s most uncomfortable amphitheater I met some new people and we headed to the Fraser Building for perhaps the most disgusting lunch I have ever eaten ( a good note here is that, Scottish people make funny foods). After more talks and seeing more people I finally got to come back to my new dorm and relax. There are more than 200 study abroad students this year at the University of Glasgow, and I believe 200 more postgraduates and Erasmus students also studying here this semester


On Tuesday I got to meet some teachers to discuss the classes I would be enrolling for. From this information I have decided to enroll for Celtic Civilization, Scottish Literature, Human Form and Function, and Ecology. Hopefully when I get to decide on my seminar times for more intimate conversation on each subject I will be able to avoid any classes on Friday, which would provide me with a three day weekend for travelling and such. On Tuesday I also got to go to a church, that has a crypt in the basement where they serve lunch daily, which sounds a little weird but fun at the same time, I will have to take them up on that offer someday soon. The best part about Tuesday was the rain, it actually rained, so I got to wear my raincoat and rain boots, and it was fantastic. Also Tuesday brought my first venture down Ashton Road which is where the posh bars are. There was much fun to be had, and then a Taxi ride home afterwards, due to the fact that it was dark, and each of my friends and I live in a different dorm.

This all lead up to Wednesday where we finished our talks about campus life (thank goodness), but it also lead to a lot more fun. I got to go to my first Ceilidh, which is a party here in Scotland. They gave us all drinks, some more weird foods, and also taught us some traditional Scottish dances, I participated in one, and watched the others. Afterwards nine of us ventured a whole two minutes from campus back to Ashton Road to enjoy drinks and fun at Vodka Wodka, and true to its name there was much Vodka to be had. We had a lot of fun laughing at our poor dancing skills at the Ceilidh and also what else we would be doing the rest of this week.

Wednesday also had me visiting the beautiful Botanic Gardens in the West End. I decided to go there to read a book, and look at flowers, and I also used that time to enjoy some Chips and a tea. I wandered through Kibble Palace where they have a room full of carnivorous plants, and then I wandered around their main atrium where all sorts of great looking exotic plants are housed. I would highly suggest that if you ever do find yourself in Glasgow, that the Botanic Gardens are one of the first places you visit.

Thursday left me running to campus early in the morning for a full city bus tour. It was absolutely fantastic since my legs can only carry me as far as the west end. So on my own I had only seen from Ruchill Park down through Kelvingrove Park (which turns out isn’t a lot of the city). The bus tour took us to the City Centre and Across the Clyde, I got to see some of the old shipbuilding industry and the Locomotive transferring industry. I also got my first close-up of the Science Centre which looks absolutely fabulous and they are home of the Glasgow Spire which gives full 360 degree views of the city through rotation of the actual building (but only when the weather is nice, so I can’t imagine that being very often). The rest of the day led to relaxation (finally) due to the constant going that Orientation provides.

My final day of orientation had me going on a bus (coach) to Callander and Loch Katrine. From my personal experience, these buses were not meant to drive down these twisty Scottish roads, and it left me dizzy and not very hungry. But I still was able to eat some fish n’ chips (they were pretty good for haddock) in Callander before getting back on the bus to Loch Katrine. The Loch is more than beautiful. It is about 10 miles long and very deep, I believe they said 260 feet deep. The wind was coming down all the hills surrounding the Loch making the boat ride on the Sir Walter Scott a little chilly, but it was well worth it for all of the fantastic views, where the mist was hanging on the tops of the hills, and all of the colors were melding together as the seasons are getting closer to changing. After this we went to Aberfoyle and got to see some animals and I bought myself a very nice Cashmere Scarf.

So after a very busy week, which might be my only one with so much activity in it I am left with perhaps the world’s longest blog. All in all my week has been very exciting and amazing I have seen some wonderful places and things with so much more yet to come, and I am excited for all I will be doing next week, including my enrollment for classes!