Business Trip: Part 4

So, fair warning, this post has little to no reference to Paleo, besides the fact that I tried to stay Paleo while I was in Scotland. But I imagine that you might enjoy some photos...

Wednesday night after I got back from my work meetings, I signed up to go on the Rabbies: Oban, Glencoe, West Highland Lochs & Castles Day Tour on Thursday. I was debating between that one, the Stirling Castle, Loch Lomond National Park & Whisky Tour on Thursday or Friday, and Lochs, Glens, Wallace Monument & Whisky Day Tour on Friday. I ended up picking the Oban one because I figured that it would be better for me to spend the day in Glasgow on Friday since I was flying back early on Saturday, and because I've been to Stirling Castle three times already. I would have liked to go to a whisky distillery, even though I don't actually drink whisky (it's much too strong for me). I went to Oban with my choir when I was 12, as well as Loch Lomond. I've also previously driven through Glencoe when I went to Scotland with SD a couple summers ago and did the Haggis Adventures: Island Explorer tour. As a side note... apparently the restaurant at which my choir ate dinner during my first Scotland trip was burned down in a fire a couple years ago (Oban Times: McTavish's Kitchens).

The tour started at 9:00 from George Square. We stopped by Loch Lomond, the Rest and Be Thankful Stop, and Loch Fyne on the way to Inverary, where we saw the Duke of Argyll's castle.

We were supposed to go to Kilchurn Castle on Loch Awe after that, but it was closed off by the police because a person had gone missing in the area and the police divers were in the Loch. Instead, the tour guide took us to St. Conan's Kirk. The Kirk was interesting because it was designed and built by Walter Douglas Campbell because his mother wanted to attend a church that was closer to her because the drive to the closest church was too far for her liking. Because Campbell designed the architecture himself, it's a bit eclectic  There's different styles combined together and there's even grape decorations on the roof of the cloister (despite the fact that grapes don't grow in the area). All I have to say for the matter is that I'm glad I don't go to church there. It was very cold inside and we could see our breath while we explored inside.

We ate a late lunch of fish and chips in Oban (so not paleo) and then stopped for a bit to take photos of Castle Stalker, which is a castle on it's own little island. We didn't stay for long because the rain was starting at that point. 

Castle Stalker

From there, we drove on/through Glencoe. Parts of Harry Potter and the recent James Bond movie were filmed in this area. I took lots of pictures of mountains during our short breaks (the rain got a bit heavier before it eventually turned into snow).

After a couple more hours of driving we got back to Glasgow around 19:00. I promptly headed back to my hotel, dropped off some things, and then went across the street from my hotel to a Wetherspoon (chain-pub/restaurant). It was jam-packed, and I realized that while I'm okay with sitting in a not so busy pub by myself, sitting alone in a very crowded pub is not my thing. So I walked over to The Piper on the Square, located at the southeast corner of Glasgow, right across the street from City Council. From what my friend told me and from what I gathered when I went there, it's a bit of a locals pub. The bartenders know the names and usual drink orders of most of the people that come in. They were hosting their first ever open mic night, which mainly consisted on one of the waitresses and one guy singing, so it was basically like karaoke. I had a couple Magners ciders there and talked to a couple people that had come in. Apparently they heard my Southern accent (yes mom and dad, according to everyone but us, I have a Southern accent) while I ordered a drink and wanted to talk to me more because I am American. Fun times.

Business Trip: Part 3

On my second full day in Glasgow, my friend asked me what I wanted to eat for lunch. I replied with “salad,” and he was at a loss for where to go to get a good salad. He even googled “Glasgow salad” to see what would pop up. The first search result was Urban Dictionary, which defined a Glasgow salad as chips (French fries for you Americans). So, we ended up going to an Italian restaurant, where I had a bowl of soup and chicken, and got worried looks by the waiters for not clearing my plate. We then took the subway from Buchanan Street to the Kelvinbridge stop, meaning we ended up in West End, the “posh” neighborhood. We went on one of the free tours of the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.

and walked past the University of Glasgow on the left (oh, how I wish the architecture of Georgia Tech were as cool). We ended up on Ashton Lane, where our first bar stop was Vodka Wodka, where I read truth while watching a rugby match.

We then had a few pints of cider at Ubiquitous Chip

and made a friend who was probably as in love with America as I am with Scotland. We finished up the trip to West End and Ashton Lane at The Wee Curry Shop where I ate more non-Paleo foods, and found a Glasgow specialty: Haggis Pakora.

After a stop back at the hotel, we headed to the opposite side of town to Calum’s friend’s house so that we could watch the superbowl. Yeah, apparently the Scots like some American football, too. I’m sure it had nothing to do with the fact that the couple whose house we invaded had lived in the US for a while, and Calum grew up in Texas… Anyways, we finally made it back to the city center around 4 a.m. Obviously, I had a late start the next day. We stopped at Elia Greek Restaurant for lunch, during which Calum and I continued to discuss how my diet is not well suited for Glasgow foods. Alas, it is so true. But, I’d say most of the world has not learned how to be Paleo-friendly either. So maybe we’ll call it a draw.

That afternoon, I checked into a new hotel, Radisson Blu, and then walked back toward Glasgow Cathedral to visit the Necropolis. I walked around taking photos there for a couple hours before heading back to my hotel.

On my way back to the hotel, it started sleeting on me. Since I walked around constantly with my winter ski jacket, I survived just fine, but it was a bit of a shock to my Texas system. After changing shoes at the hotel, I walked back to George Square through the snow and had a pint at The Piper on the Square (go there!), before walking down the street and eating dinner at Jamie’s Italian.

The snow!

After dinner, I walked outside to more snow. And I finished up the evening going over notes for my meeting the following morning.

Business Trip - Part 2

Before I start in on Glasgow again, I just want to point out that in the first 48 hours of not watching Netflix, I read two books (the first book I read was ~300 pages and the second is ~350 pages), reorganized my closet by color and sleeve length, and played with my hair, eventually giving myself blue hair. Well, blue streaks in my hair. I also went to crew practice, met up with a friend for a few hours to discuss upcoming travel plans, took a nap, went to a horse race, and went for drinks with friends twice. This past weekend I also went to a Flogging Molly concert. It was incredible. Go if you have the chance!

Speaking of Celtic things... back to Glasgow!

My flight to Heathrow arrived at 7:35 a.m. on Saturday, Feb 2, which gave me an hour and a half to make my way through customs and through security, and get to the next gate before that took off at 8:55. Again, a bright side of flying business class is that your ticket gets a "FastTrack" note which means you get to skip the giant lines. For those of you who have missed connecting flights because of a late arrival of the first leg of your journey, you know what a blessing this is. Anyways, I got through with enough time to wander around the massive Terminal 5. Weird thing about the UK: When you buy anything (water, newspaper, candy) from one of the stores, you have to give them your ticket/flight number. Strange.

The flight from London to Glasgow is pretty short, so we landed in Glasgow around 10:20 a.m. British Airways did provide us with breakfast of sliced bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, and a roll.  Overall, a pretty greasy breakfast, but hey, it's better than a pack of peanuts or pretzels. Even though I was tired, I was planning on dropping off my stuff at Millennium Hotel...

... and then heading out for some sightseeing before my friend Calum arrived in town to show me around the city where he went to university. Unfortunately, by the time I checked into my hotel around 11, I was exhausted. So, I ended up sleeping for 2.5 hours. It took a while to get moving again, so it was 2:30 p.m. by the time I left the hotel and walked the half-mile to Glasgow Cathedral.

After spending an hour or so looking around, I walked back to my hotel just in time for my friend to meet up with me there. We had an early dinner at The Living Room, where I had the special: Teriyaki Salmon, which did come with some greens. After dinner, I went skipping down the street (because I was excited about being in Glasgow), while Calum rolled his eyes at me. We took a taxi from Central Station to McPhabbs, where Calum's uni friend, Colin, works. There, I got to indulge in my favorite cider (Kopparberg), and share a plate of haggis, neeps, and tatties. Haggis is yummy, but I recommend not looking into the ingredients if you really want to enjoy it. Also... not Paleo thanks to the oatmeal that it contains. After a little while, we walked over to The Park Bar, where we chatted with Calum's cousin Calum... about his uncle Calum, while drinking cider. Anyone else recognize a common theme here?

If you go to Glasgow, I strongly recommend going to The Park Bar. There's live music (including bagpipes and accordian) and friendly patrons.

We ended the evening with a munchy box, which is apparently a popular late-night post-drinking snack in Glasgow. And yes, it was actually called a "Munchy Box." Not Paleo-friendly, except for maybe the meat, but even that is a stretch. I ate part of it anyways. Because nothing's worse than waking up on vacation hungover, and getting some food into your system is a good idea.

Let me summarize:

Breakfast - somewhat Paleo

Lunch - what lunch? oh, you mean sleep... yeah, that was Paleo

Dinner - partially Paleo

post-Dinner haggis - maybe Paleo

post-drinking snack - definitely not Paleo

Paleo fail. Of my food choices, I went for the most reasonable Paleo option without being super demanding of hold this and that... And really, all you can ask for when you're traveling Paleo is to do your best. Now, if you're celiac or have a food allergy, obviously you can find stuff because you'll be much more careful, but for me, I figured, while in Rome Glasgow... So, with the happiness from being in Scotland, I tolerated my gluten headaches and upset stomach from dairy.