Glasgow Gallivanting: May 2025
We had a friend staying with us for a few days in the middle of the month, which is always a good excuse for getting out and about. Two of the places we visited we had not been to in years, decades even.
Greenbank Garden is in Clarkston, just outside Glasgow. The gardens were originally created at the same time as the house, above, was built in the 1760s for Robert Allason. He made his money as a tobacco merchant and slave trader, but after the American Wars of Independence he went bankrupt and lost Greenbank which today is owned by the National Trust for Scotland. The house is used as a wedding venue and for private events, but the garden is open to the public. Jude might spot a bench.
Located just outside East Kilbride, the National Museum of Rural Life is a partnership between the National Trust for Scotland and National Museums Scotland. Wester Kittochside Farm belonged to the Reid family for more than 400 years and was left to the National Trust for Scotland by the tenth laird James Coats Reid and his wife, Margaret. Today it comprises a modern museum building, a working farm and the Georgian farmhouse with rooms presented as they would have been in the 1950s. You could walk between the museum and the house or take a ride in a very bumpy tractor trailer. I tried both methods, and I definitely preferred walking!
As you can see, the weather during our friend’s visit was, in local parlance, scorchio. Of course, after five dry weeks it all had to break on Friday 23rd just in time for the Late Spring Holiday Weekend. I had already planned a visit on Sunday to Gardens House in Houston, a new opening as part of Scotland’s Garden Scheme, so despite a wet morning we went ahead. We were lucky to arrive during a window of sunshine between showers! Amongst other plants, it has a fine collection of rhododendrons and azaleas which were very colourful.
My exhibition at Maryhill continues, though there haven’t been any specific events connected to it this month. However, life at Glasgow Women’s Library has been busy. The gallery below shows a fabulous Story Café in which Donna Moore launched her latest book, The Devil’s Draper. It’s set in the 1920s so Donna, who is also a part-time staff member at the Library, dressed the part beautifully, and also brought along a cake iced to match her book cover. She really is amazing! You can also see two of the current exhibitions (some of the banners from For Peace! and the installation In the Folds by local artist Alexandra Compton), a guided walk in the Necropolis where my favourite angel, who always used to have a pink flower, has now acquired a doggy friend and, finally, me looking very pleased with myself after a major move-round to make room for new poetry books.
John made the most of the good weather to go cycling. Below is a trip to Bute.
And this one was a long mostly off-road trip starting and ending in Callander.
And finally, a new addition to the city’s Billy Connolly murals appeared on Nelson Mandela Place recently. This one was self-initiated rather than commissioned and is a collaboration between artists Conzo Throb and Ciaran Globel, known as ConzoGlobel.
The Glasgow comic is often known as The Big Yin (Big One) and is depicted naked except for his iconic Big Banana Boots. Maybe he has just plucked the smiling sun from the place where the sun don’t shine – his bare bahookie!
On that bum note, I’ll end. Happy June!
The Glasgow Gallivanter 
I knew I should have stayed longer on my trip to Glasgow! This all looks awesome.
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It’s a great city! Not that I’m biased of course.
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Of course not 😉
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Thanks for taking me on a walk through Glasgow. Your walks are my way of seeing the world.
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Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the virtual walk.
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Plenty of great visit. The garden looks interesting.
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Thanks, Mélodie, it was.
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A lovely May, hard to believe I am now staring out the window at pouring rain. That Big Yin mural is so cheeky. 😆
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Yes, pouring here too and I have to do a guided walk in it soon! Yes, the Big Yin is definitely cheeky.
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Those gardens are delightful and the National Museum of Rural Life looks interesting and right up my street. I love the cheeky Billy Connolly mural, it made me smile 🙂
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Yes, we were so pleased to rediscover these places. Why did we neglect them so long – who knows?!
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That’s a fun mural of BC. And both those places you visited look lovely and just our kind of day out.
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I now don’t understand why we haven’t visited either for about 20 years!
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You had a wonderful May! Honestly, sometimes I have a hard time not being jealous of your fabulous trips…..But I manage because a) you’re so nice and b) you share them with the rest of us!
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Aw, thanks Ann! That’s a lovely thing to say.
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Glasgow appears to be a fun and funny place, Anabel. I’m glad you lucked out with the weather for most of May. My mom keeps telling me that summer in Belgium has come very early. Now they worry about a cold and wet real summer. But, rain is needed there.
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It sounds as though Belgian weather is behaving similarly to ours. Cooler and wetter now. I hope we haven’t already had summer!
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Donna Moore looks a lot of fun. I found myself wondering about her book. Sounds like you had an excellent month, Anabel, and it sounds like you’re down in Yorkshire next month. God’s Own Country, so I’m told. Billy would love that mural. I hope he’s doing ok xx
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Donna is wonderful! Her book’s pretty good too. God’s Own Country is exactly right.
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Wish I could meet you both there but I’m not back till August xx
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Someday we might coincide!
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You never know xx
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Generally I like street art, but I’m very glad I don’t have to look at that Billy Connolly mural every day.
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A bit in your face maybe!
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Another good month. But whoever painted that red bench wants shooting! They could at least have unscrewed the plaque.
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😮! I know you love benches, but shooting’s a bit extreme …
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🤣🤣
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Big change in the weather currently from the month long sunshine. Only been in Greenbank once… for a wedding. Bute is a great island to explore by bike. Many happy trips there. Good for walking days as well over several mini hill ranges most folk never think of visiting. Bob. BSS.
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I actually feel more comfortable in these temperatures! John has been cycling in Bute a few times but I’ve not been for years.
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A month of good fun and (mostly) good weather, and a cheerfully cheeky image to end on. Can’t ask for more than that! The Devil’s Draper cake is fabulous, a real work of cake art.
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Cheeky’s the word! And the cake tasted as good as it looked – we even had matching napkins.
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Such a wonderful and interesting set of photos Anabel! Am always interested in history and all the stories behind these old buildings. Those gardens are gorgeous. The weather looks wonderful though too good to last by the sounds of it. Hopefully more sunny days to come 🙂
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Thanks! We certainly have a lot of historic buildings. As for the weather – normal service has now been resumed.
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Always love reading about them all too 🙂 Yes my Scottish friend’s son (they live here) has been visiting her mother in North Berwick this past week with his partner who’s never been to Europe before. She’s been so cold as normally she works up north (which is far hotter than Perth) so it’s been quite a shock to the system. I’m always well prepared for UK weather!
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To me, it’s still quite warm! Just wetter.
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Interesting how one adapts and has a different perspective. My cousin who lives in New Zealand is now spending part of the the year here in Perth – whilst we’re rugged up with the heating on, he says how warm it is (in comparison to Wellington)!
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You concluded your post in fine form. But as ever, you made me realise …. must get myself to Glasgow …
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Thank you! Maybe we can talk about that when we see you next month. Always easier than messaging!
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Sounds like a plan!
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Smiling widely.
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Good!
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Plus, your writing always ignites that desire to hop on a plane 🙂
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Even better!
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Sounds like you had a wonderful May. The gardens look beautiful and I’d love to go cycling where John went. The Big Yin and your commentary on it made me laugh. Happy June!
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Thanks Natalie – happy June to you too!
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No dreich days! Greenbank Gardens looks lovely.
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We are having the dreich days now! It was definitely too good to last.
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I think I write this every time at the end of your posts…Wonderful photos and so much to enjoy and all so interesting!! The scarecrow, the Big Yin and the amazing cake caught my eye as did your great commentary throughout.
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Thank you! The Big Yin is quite something, as is Donna’s cake.
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I’ll start at the end, as that Big Yin mural really made me laugh, as did you commentary on it! I enjoyed seeing your various gardens too, especially those beautiful azaleas 🙂
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”Start at the end” – 😉😄.
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Hi, Anabel – The mix of sunshine, sculpture, and story cafés (complete with themed cake!) paints such a vibrant picture of Glasgow life. And that Billy Connolly mural—brilliantly cheeky! ❤
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Definitely very cheeky! I see what you did there.
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I did hear that all of the UK was suffering from drought and I am glad to hear you had some rain recently. Here, Spring has been miserable with lot of cold and wet days…My small garden is very green and its the only advantage of all of this rain. While in our Western Provinces, it is hot and dry with lots of forest fires. A very strange climate these days.
You had a very busy month and I particularly like your last image…nice mural. (Suzanne)
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Thanks Suzanne – it has been unusually dry and even now, although we are getting rain again, it hasn’t been a lot. I agree the climate is becoming weird. Glad you liked the mural. Billy Connolly is probably the city’s favourite son.
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Conzo Throb — now, that’s a great name!
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I suspect it may be a pseudonym!
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A great collection of photos here, I love the little lamb statue and that little calf’s face reminds me why I rarely eat beef. Some gorgeous scenery shots from John, he certainly gets around on that bike. I like the Big Yin mural, Billy Connolly is my favourite comedian, and your last sentence made me laugh 😀
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Thanks Eunice! I do like a good pun.
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Even a bad pun can have it’s merits. Actually I quite enjoy all humour based on word play. The humour I dislike is where the laugh is at the expense of another person, I find some stage farces quite cruel. I can laugh at Blackadder but not Fawlty Towers so there is obviously quite a fine line to be drawn
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I agree, humour that punches down is uncomfortable (though I’m afraid I did laugh at Fawlty Towers – whether I would now is another matter).
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