Add Glasgow to List of Cities Demanding More Than a Single Day
Days 65-67, 2025 European Odyssey
Tuesday-Thursday, Sept. 2-4, 2025; Glasgow, Scotland; Douglas, Isle of Man; and Cobh, Ireland.
Looking back, I wish I had spent a semester or year studying abroad. The University of Glasgow would be on the short list of places I would have enjoyed. I briefly wondered Tuesday if it is not too late.
The university’s main campus, in Glasgow’s West End, combines sandstone Gothic revival architecture and lively streets with cafes, vintage boutiques and bars. It would be a fun place to live and study.
The Nieuw Statendam docked Tuesday in Greenock, about 45 minutes down the River Clyde from Glasgow, Scotland’s largest city. I chose the convenience of a ship transfer over the lower price and flexibility of taking the train. During the drive our guide told us about the area and the city, and then set us off with maps and a promise to return about four-and-a-half hours later.
First thing: coffee. Avoiding the familiar green Starbucks signs, I stumbled across the Wild Olive Tree, a non-profit café inside St. George’s Tron (Church of Scotland). In fact, the tables take up most of the church’s ground floor, leaving a small seating section near the altar.
In addition to generating profits for charitable works, the café serves as a work training opportunity and provides free coffee and meals for those who cannot pay. It’s obvious this outreach is a vital part of the church’s mission. All I can say is that, while I’m not usually a scone fan, I thoroughly enjoyed my lemon scone (for the record, with cream first and then jam).
I wasn’t too interested in the upscale shops with well-known logos. But because you can never own too much paint, I stopped by an art supply store. (I know, an argument can be made that any color can be mixed from red, yellow and blue, but what’s the fun in that?) I found a few new colors on my shopping list, including Daniel Smith’s Naples Yellow, which will be useful for many of these old European cities. And while I certainly don’t need another tote bag, I couldn’t pass up one printed with the Cass Art Manifesto: “Let’s Fill This Town With Artists.”
I decided the best use of my remaining time was to join the open top deck of a hop-on, hop-off bus. It promised to give me a good overview of the city beyond the small area I already had explored.
Along the riverside we saw the SEC Armadillo, an auditorium that resembles the Sydney Opera House, and the Clydeside Distillery.
In addition to the University of Glasgow, the West End featured the large Kelvingrove Park and the stunning architecture of the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. It has everything from works by the Dutch Old Masters and Impressionists to “Sir Roger the Elephant, a taxidermy measuring 10.5 feet in height and one of Kelvingrove’s most popular exhibits,” according to one website. I’ll need to devote a whole day to it on another visit.
My lasting impression of the bus tour is of the many beautiful spires and towers over the city.
On Wednesday and Thursday, we returned to Douglas, Isle of Man, and then Cobh, Ireland. Both days started with rain, so I caught up with blogging and other “chores” on board, heading into each town when the skies cleared up in early afternoon.
Having toured other parts of the Isle of Man earlier in the summer, this time I explored the town of Douglas. It sits on a sweeping bay with a promenade made for strolling. At the near end I took my obligatory photo of the BeeGees, who were born here before immigrating to Australia.
The promenade is lined with Victorian architecture and public gardens. One block in is the long pedestrian shopping street.
Once the sun came out in Cobh, a crowd gathered outside The Mauretania, a pub named for the Cunard ocean liner that frequently stopped in Queenstown, as Cobh once was named. A single guitar player backed up by a massive sound system led the crowds in familiar sea shanties.
On my final stop this summer in Ireland, I opted for Irish fish soup and a Murphy’s Irish Stout before returning to the ship.
I love following your travels! I’m so glad we met!
Scotland has a piece of my heart!🩷
Just love traveling along with you. I would so love to see Glasgow. Many thanks for your pictures & stories. You really make me want to book a cruise there when able.
Thank you for taking us along. I am very much enjoying your travels. It has made me start looking for a cruise in that area. I would especially love to see Scotland.
Glasgow is a fascinating city. We spent a week there in 2023 and loved it, don’t miss the huntertarian gallery which is also part of the university and on the hoho bus route.
Great photos. Loved seeing all the spires of buildings.
Thanks ver much,
Oh, I knew they were the Bee Gees without you even saying. I just knew. My mother would be thrilled to tears. She loved the Brothers Gibb and raised me on them among many other fantastic artist from Motown to Jazz of the time. She is to this day a woman of incomparable musical taste and appreciation.. and truth be told I too, a true Gen Xer, do love the Bee Gees despite the majority of their discology being published prior to my birth.
I have so enjoyed your posts on this latest adventure. It has made me reevaluate our future cruising plans to be honest. You have brought alive so many place names on my map.
We will be catching up to you on NS in Athens in a little under a month for a 2 weeks trip around the Mare Nostrum. Hope I’ll see you in the Crow’s Nest.
Always clotted cream first, then jam!
Oh to be a bird on your shoulder. I’ll be starting my 22 days on the Rotterdam (new to me) October 4. This cruise has sent me looking through old posts of yours for ideas on shore time. Do you take an excursion only the first time you visit a place, or is it a random decision? Is it that you just like wandering these towns? How do you find out which ones are accessible from the ship? I’m looking at all manner of websites to determine these things. Lots to study.
No matter what, I sure do get excited when writerondeck pops up in my email.
Smooth seas.
These are great questions and probably deserve a whole blog! I don’t have a hard-and-fast rule. As I am traveling on my own this summer and fall, I tend to take more ship excursions in new ports. The problem with independent excursions from most companies is that they don’t pick up at the cruise port unless you plan a private group. I am active on Cruise Critic roll calls and join those groups when fellow cruisers put them together. If I am traveling with family and friends, we may create a group or we may just go ashore on our own. If I’ve been to a port before I’m usually fine with going on my own. But again, it depends on whether I can walk or take a shuttle to a central point.
The good thing about a tour, whether a ship’s tour or independent, is that the guide tells you a lot you probably don’t know unless you did prior research. But then you are tied to the tour schedule. So it’s a toss-up.
When researching I frequently start with http://www.WhatsInPort.com, which is a great resource for where the ship will probably dock and what you can do on your own. Then I just start googling. I like to read blog posts from people who have been to the port before. You’re right, there is lots to study, and when I don’t, I always feel I’ve missed something.
Have a great time on the Rotterdam — three weeks will be fantastic!