Small Feet

Tower view, Kinnoul Hill, Perth  Pho, Hanoi Bike Repair Shop, Glasgow Study time Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow University of Glasgow Chapel, Glasgow Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow

The thing about Glasgow is that it has nine -- nine -- free museums . On a Sunday afternoon or a Tuesday morning, people spill in and out of tall doors to examine paintings, stone arrowheads and wall fragments, faded gowns from the nineteenth century, sculpture, books with indecipherable handwriting opened to the middle of their spines, taxidermies from around the globe, and artifacts both from colonized jungles and from Glaswegian houses down the street.   Museums are a beloved pastime of mine, a superb shelter from rain and wind and indeterminate precipitation of all seasons. In my opinion, the people in the museums are as much an object of fascination as the objects numbered and held behind glass. The small families, scattering themselves sometimes across the wide galleries as they seek something of interest; the chattering tour groups on a determined yet careless scavenger hunt that they will likely repeat in a similar location tomorrow; the elderly couples who walk slo...

Glasgow sounds like blaring horns and revving engines and accents thicker than black pudding. Its voice is electric and as old as the hills, and everywhere I turn it is new. More than anything, Glasgow is a city of music. It is home to the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and the National Piping Centre, as well as palatial concert arenas and sweaty underground venues. I think it does actually have something for everyone. I've attended concerts in old churches and the Royal Concert Hall and local pubs. The audience is always a mix of students, families, and elderly couples out for a night. I've also been taking lessons at the National Piping Centre, using a practice chanter to learn the multitude of exercises necessary to play the Highland bagpipe. In the city centre, bagpipers and fiddlers play on the streets. Music is everywhere, on every night of the week and in each lighted window.

Vegetarian Scottish breakfast at Craigard Tearoom in Helensburgh Donuts for two at Nic's NYC in Glasgow Home-roasted winter veg Vegan coconut nachos at The 78 in Glasgow Seitan burger at Brewdog in Glasgow Muddy feet in a muddy bog -- a common sight, and how I'm burning off all these calories

Clock tower, Merchant City, Glasgow Attraction found at the top of a hill Reproduction of unicorn tapestry, Stirling Castle Glasgow Cathedral Botanic Garden blooms Wisdom at the Gallery of Modern Art

I've been here for a month now, give or take, and I feel like I've been here forever. Several people have asked me for directions, but the minute I open my mouth it's evident that's not a very good idea since I got a bit lost on Friday. Who knows if I look like a local since I wear a lot of black or if they're just really desperate. I say 'cheers' a lot to demonstrate my grasp of the dialect here, but I also have to ask people to repeat things three times because the Glasgwegian accent is a bit like a foreign language. I've started asking the whereabouts of the toilet rather than the bathroom, because it makes me feel British despite my American accent and because I get a bit of a thrill out of saying something that would make a twelve-year-old giggle. I wrote a paper for a history course about class in Glasgow, and have gotten into the odd habit of sharing facts about the city's expansion with anyone I happen to be walking with. I'm learning to...

New friends -- Highland 'coos' at Pollok Country Park in Glasgow Vibrant sky and sandstone in the city centre Glasgow Necropolis Emily Smith and Jamie McLennan at Celtic Connections music festival Greenery in the Botanic Gardens Wall wisdom in Glasgow

Bute Hall, University of Glasgow Whiskey with new friends at Dram! Blinded by some rare sunlight on Byres Road Traditional session at the Ben Nevis Bar Historical omnibus at the Riverside Museum The University of Glasgow by day...  ...and by night

I've never been one for solitude. It's not that I don't like myself -- on the contrary, spending time alone isn't distasteful to me at all. Rather (and this is in no way a complaint), I have been blessed with abundant family, friends and loved ones whose company often seems more exciting to a lone stroll or foray into a cafe. Coming to Glasgow alone has changed this. The only person I know in this whole city is with me constantly -- I can't avoid spending time alone. In the week I've been here, I have walked miles on cobbled streets and sidewalks that are cracked patchworks of pavements, wandered into charity shops, cafes, pubs, museums, bookshops, grocery stores.... As someone who talks a lot, days spent by myself are vaguely jarring. Words that would generally spill out into the chilly air have no ear to catch them, and so they remain to bounce around as unarticulated thoughts and observations in my mind. My solitude makes every exchange an important par...