Thursday, October 15, 2009

Taking A Cultural Vacation In Glasgow

By Karl Fraser

Edinburgh many be Scotland's capital, and it may also be Scotland's number one vacation destination but the sad fact is that many of the annual visitors to this fine city are missing the opportunity of visiting the fantastic nearby city of Glasgow.

Glasgow is growing in popularity as a vacation destination but most tourists are attracted to the city because of it's reputation for having exciting nightlife. Glasgow has much, much more to offer visitors, especially the more culturally minded, and below I introduce 3 superb places to visit associated with arts and culture.

The Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum: The Kelvingrove Art Gallery is Glasgow and Scotland's premier museum and art gallery, and home to one of Europe's great civic art collections. It has also been voted one of the most popular free visitor attractions in Scotland. You will find Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum on Argyle Street, in the West End of Glasgow, on the banks of the River Kelvin. The gallery was built in a Spanish Baroque style following the Glaswegian tradition of using red sandstone. The building was designed by Sir John W. Simpson and E.J. Milner Allen, and opened in 1901. The museum's collections were originally from the McLellan Galleries and the old Kelvingrove House Museum in Kelvingrove Park.

The Willow Tea Rooms: It was Charles Rennie Mackintosh, who designed the world famous Willow Tea Rooms, in Glasgow. The tea rooms were a collaboration between Mackintosh and Catherine Cranston, a local business woman, whose father was a Glasgow tea merchant. The tea rooms were located in Sauchiehall Street, and opened for business in October 1903. The name for the tea rooms was derived from Sauchiehall; 'saugh', being the Scots word for a willow tree, and 'haugh', the Scot's word for meadow. The tea rooms were the only building where Mackintosh had complete control over every aspect of the design. Mackintosh designed the exterior, all the interior decorations, the waitresses' uniform, furniture, cutlery, and even the menus.

The Scotland Street School Musem: Scotland Street School Museum, is Scotland's only Museum of Education. The school was designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh between 1903 and 1906, and is classed as a must for all Mackintosh enthusiasts. Here one can learn the story of Scotland Street Public School, and the developments in education in Scotland, through a combination of displays, audio-visuals and reconstructed and restored classrooms. There are classrooms from the Victorian era, through to the Second World War, to the classroom of the fifties and sixties. The audio-visual room has an introductory video about the school as well as showing educational and historical archive films.

So there you have it, three world class cultural visitor attractions in Glasgow. So next time you are planning a vacation in Scotland why not consider this interesting city as a base. One word of warning though, book your hotel or accommodation early as there are periods when it is difficult to find vacancies.

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