Glasgow Gallivanting: December 2020

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December, eh? A dark, dreary month for the most part, only enlivened by watching the Christmas lights appear in houses and gardens on our after-work walks. Like most people, we had a Plan B Christmas. Months ago, when things still seemed to be improving, I booked a cottage in the Scottish Borders for Mum, John and me. Of course in the end we weren’t allowed to travel, but we’ve postponed our booking rather than cancel it – fingers crossed for Easter! Tonight, we will also have a Plan B Hogmanay because we can’t celebrate with the friends we usually go out with.

When we visited Scotstoun’s Living Advent Calendar last year, I knew immediately that I wanted to use the photographs on my blog this December. The first lockdown gave me the time to prepare most of them and I’m now looking at a bare drafts folder for the first time in months! Thanks to everyone who followed daily. A couple of you, I think Carol (The Eternal Traveller) and Jude (Travel Words), suggested a gallery of all 24 windows, so here they are. Best viewed by clicking on the first one and scrolling through as a slideshow if you have the time or the inclination. Scotstoun has some very artistic and ingenious residents as I’m sure you’ll agree.

Scotstoun Living Advent Day 6

Many of my blogging friends have been busy with the 10 Days / 10 Travel Photos challenge in the last few weeks. Thanks to Su (Zimmerbitch) and Andrew (Have Bag, Will Travel) who both nominated me, though I declined at the time because my Advent Calendar was ongoing, and to Geoff (TanGental) who nominated me a couple of days later. Instead of a day to day version, and because I really don’t have much else to say about December, I thought I’d include a gallery here of 10 photos, fairly randomly selected, which featured in the first couple of years of my blog when I knew very few people, though some images are obviously much older than that. Arranged in date order (with links to the relevant posts) you can see:

  • Florence 1992, the only Christmas we have spent abroad. We loved it: much more understated and tasteful than the homegrown version. I also loved that tartan coat: I bought it for £10 in a second hand shop and spent another £10 replacing the torn lining.
  • Havana, 1999. We were sitting on a café balcony from which this man saw us watching him as he delivered oranges and tossed one up to us. John caught him at just the right moment.
  • Mount Teide, 2006. We spent our Silver Wedding anniversary in Tenerife. There’s a lost luggage story attached to this.
  • Grand Canyon, 2009; Bryce Canyon, 2010; North Carolina, 2011; Peggy’s Cove, 2012; Acadia National Park, 2013. Part of a run of North American road-trips which may, or may not, happen again.
  • Berlin, 2012, and Dublin, 2013. Both involving large beers, and both destinations planned for the same purpose: a concert by the late, lamented Leonard Cohen.

All happy memories!

Florence 1992
Havana 1999
Mount Teide 2006
Grand Canyon 2009
Bryce Canyon 2010
North Carolina 2011
Peggy’s Cove 2012
Wannsee, Berlin, 2012
Dublin 2013
Acadia NP 2013

One positive thing about December to report – I have another article published about Jessie Stephen, the Suffragette I have been studying for the last few years, this time in the journal Scottish Labour History. Woohoo!

Scottish Labour History cover 2020
My article

In December I take a peek at my stats, and I note that my page views have more than doubled this year. I don’t take from this that I am any more popular, just that I’ve posted an awful lot more, sometimes daily – my Advent Calendar, for example, and some of the lovely Becky’s quarterly Square Challenges. (Follow the link to discover what she is up to in January.) As I said earlier, my drafts folder is now empty, so I’m expecting those stats to plummet any time now! It doesn’t matter, I appreciate every visit, especially this year when I think we have all valued our online friends more than ever. So thank you to everyone who has read, Liked, or commented, and may our friendships continue into 2021 and beyond. Happy New Year!

Scotland, UK , , ,

73 Comments »

  1. Not sure how I missed this Anabel but a very belated New year to you! Always enjoy your fascinating blog posts and thank you for your support of mine too, best wishes for a better year ahead!

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  2. I remember walking through those columns back when I visited Glasgow and got to meet you (which feels very long ago indeed now!). I hope we’re at least allowed to travel domestically by this summer, as even going somewhere else in England would feel very exotic at this point. Very belated Happy New Year!

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  4. Happy New Year, Anabel. It’s been such a joy meeting you this year and following your gallivants. Your posts are always fascinating and chockfull of interesting photos. I love your advent windows. I think the Havana orange toss is my favorite. James and I wish you a 2021 filled with joy, peace, and good health. 🙂 ~Terri

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  5. Congrats on your published article, Anabel. Very impressive. Thanks for sharing your happy travel memories. I particularly loved the Havana one. I would still love to go there one day. Happy New Year to you and John. 🙂

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  6. A lot of beautiful, fun, and positive nuggets in this month’s roundup, Anabel! The advent photos are spectacular and colorful – I’m happy you decided to gather them here. The memories of past travels are great. A lot of the views I recognize, especially Acadia and other coastal shots. And, an empty draft folder… ooooh that must feel so good. I just love going through things, ticking items off my list, and “cleaning house.” 🙂 Congratulations on the article publication and the higher blog stats! The pandemic had some positive effects as well! 🙂

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    • Thanks Liesbet, I’m glad you enjoyed the post. Not so keen on the empty drafts folder, it means I have nothing ready! Just one post scheduled for next week so I’ll have to get busy. I read your memoir over Christmas and enjoyed it very much, but it doesn’t inspire me to a life on the waves!

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      • Oh great!!! I’m glad you enjoyed my memoir. If you’d like me to come over to Glasgow Gallivanter one day to tell your readers a story or answer some questions regarding “Plunge,” I happily do so and that would be another blog post figured out. 🙂 Or, if you have one burning question that you’d like me to elaborate on – about my lifestyle or my book – I am sure to be able to spin an answer around that as well. I can always use a bit of a boost…

        And, what the lifestyle aboard concerns, I’m not surprised I didn’t entice you to give it a go. It’s surely not for everybody and I don’t even know whether I will ever (want to) do it again! 🙂

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  7. Happy New Year! I always enjoy your posts, but I especially enjoyed your Advent windows this year. Thanks for taking the time to share them. I hope you are able to go on your trip in Easter, and I think that the odds are good. The vaccine will slowly but surely make a difference and free us from the stranglehold that Covid has on our lives. Meanwhile, I enjoyed your pics of happy times past, and wish you many happy moments and travels in the future!

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  10. Well thank you for another enjoyable year following your adventures. And thank you for the gallery – there are some very talented people in Scotstoun – I think my favourites are no7 and no8 and no11. Wishing you and John all the best for 2021 and here’s hoping we get a chance to travel a little further afield this year.
    Jude xx

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  11. Happy New Year – well it is here and a nice 29c day. Up at dawn and out with the dog. The boys are working – well one is, the other is on call. Just me, Annabell and Benji brought in the New Year I had a dram (or two) of 12yo Single Malt. Not a blessed thing on television to usher in the New Year. Sad ending to a sad year. The future just has to be brighter!!

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  12. Happy New Year. Ah, sunny shores and abundant heat. I’m happy with the amount of sun I get every year but staying hot I’ve still got to work at. Like tastes in music or films people’s Idea of Christmas seems to vary wildly looking at the windows- but I like them all.

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  13. What a lovely, lovely post, Anabel. I’m so glad I found you years ago, or was it you who found me? No matter, I’ve been absent from the Glasgow Gallivanter (and other blogs I love) for too long, and am so glad to be back. Reading this post, and looking at the ten pics, you have gained a “whole ‘nother” dimension: you are not only interesting, learned and wise, you are COOL! Happy New Year!

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  15. Anabel, it was very interesting to see all the advent windows together, and also to get a peek of some of your random travel photos over the years. Of the places shown, I’ve been to Peggy’s cove, Acadian National Park, Berlin, and Dublin.

    All the best to you and John in the New Year.

    Jude

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  16. A great post to end the year Anabel, I love all the windows put together in a collage. Here’s to a peaceful and healthy New Year and I hope you can resume your travels soon 🙂

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  17. Wishing you and yours a happy and healthy new year Annabel. Love the photos especially the advent calendar and the tartan coat is ace. Apologies for not visiting (I dont think at all in 2020) but arriving back from Gambia earlier than planned on 16th March gave me abit of catching up with myself to do .:-)

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  20. Happy New Year to you and love all those Advent windows where some are very talented indeed. I love the other pictures you posted of your travels. May you be able to venture out later this year.

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  21. I’ve enjoyed your gallivanting all year, Anabel. That photo of the orange toss is so great! Hope your plans for Easter come through. At any rate, do enjoy the new year. And congratulations on the article publication!

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  22. Hi Anabel – lovely post for the end of this cheerless year … and here’s to a happier 2021 and to your cottage holiday in a few months. Thanks to Jude and Carol for suggesting the posting of all 24 windows … well worth the watch through. Glorious undercroft too … have a blessed New Year’s evening and then year ahead – Hilary

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  23. I am so glad to see you back in my Reader feed. I had assumed you were taking a break from blogging but it turns out there must have been some glitch that dropped your posts from my Reader. Annoying. Anyway, for that reason I am glad to see the collected Advent windows since I had missed those posts and probably more.
    Best wishes for 2021!

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  24. Your page views stats are of views for your blog pages. So you have had more people viewing each of your blog posts. Your overall site traffic would be the one which would obviously be up if you were just posting more often!

    The reason, of course, is that you have engaged more of us in your fascinating walks and the things that catch your camera’s eye as you walk around 🙂

    Well done and long may it continue.

    Happy new year to you. I’ll be virtually first footing 🙂

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  26. Hi, Anabel –
    Congratulations on the publication of your article on Jesse Stephen. That’s awesome!
    I loved seeing all the advent pics together is one slideshow – very impressive.
    I also greatly enjoyed your 10 days/10 travel photos.
    Wishing you and John a happy and healthy 2021!

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  28. What a lovely idea, to post all the advent pix together. They really are spectacular and well worth another visit. And thanks for your company during the year, your ever entertyaining blogs and lovely photos of Scotland, for introducing me to places I’ve never heard of and opening my mind to vistas unknown. A happy 2021 to you and yours.

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  30. oh isn’t this a lovely post – so wonderful to see all the advent windows. There were a couple I missed, and looking forward to going through some of your travel ones later.

    Huge thank you for the link, do hope you are able to look us up for a couple of days in January.

    Wishing you both a very happy Hogmanay, plan B’s are always good xxx

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