Glasgow, the dear green place of Scotland

Glasgow is the third most populated city in the UK, and the most populated city of Scotland – though Edinburgh is the Scottish capital. I went to visit Glasgow during the Erasmus year that I took in Birmingham, and I could see actually some similarities in terms of the type of city and looks between Birmingham and Glasgow – they both are industrial cities which were important for the process of industrialization of the UK. The Scottish city has a very long and interesting background, and it was very essential in the country for manufacturing, generating a great deal of its wealth, thanks to the River Clyde that grew the prominent industry - shipbuilding. Glasgow is also well known among people for the many different experiences that the city offers – museums, art galleries, monuments, beautiful landscapes and large green parks, good universities, different types of restaurants, good pubs and discos for partying. I know many Spanish people who went on their Erasmus year there and had an amazing experience in the city (some of them even chose to stay after finishing the Erasmus year).

Glasgow Cathedral and its Necropolis

Glasgow cathedral is one of the city icons, and it is only ten minutes walk from the city centre, located north of High Street and east of Cathedral Street. This medieval cathedral was built between the 13th and 15th Centuries and serves as a perfect example of Scottish Gothic architecture. The cathedral is also known as High Kirk of Glasgow, St Kentigern's or St Mungo's Cathedral due to the patron saint of Glasgow, Saint Mungo, who built his church and was buried there too. I thought it was a beautiful old building, with a touch of a 'creepy' combined with 'old' that made me travel back in time. I had a very similar feeling when I first saw the Necropolis. Very close to the Glasgow cathedral, you can find one of the most different, ancient and unique cemeteries in Europe, popularly known as Glasgow Necropolis. It is located on a hill to the east of the cathedral and remained as a Victorian cemetery when Glasgow was considered by many people to be the second city of the Victorian British Empire. It is definitely worth it to go up the hill, explore the place and enjoy the beautiful views of the city, and from there you can understand the reason why the city is also called the Dear Green Place – Glasgow means ‘dear green place’ in Gaelic.

Picture © Credits to RudolfT

The picture shows the Necropolis in which fifty thousand people have been buried, and 3500 gravestones erected.

Picture © Credits to AnnaElizabethPhotography

It is definitely worth it to visit it and feel the special kind of energy the city of Glasgow has, as well as experiencing the different places, accents and people.