Leisurely Days and Lovely Jaunts

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Leisurely Days and Lovely Jaunts

We’ve been so lucky with the weather lately and the sunshine has been ideal for enjoying Glasgow’s festivals, cafes and parks and for adventures further afield. The sun shone at the Mela in Kelvingrove Park, where thousands came out to enjoy Scotland’s biggest multicultural festival. It was colourful, lively and the atmosphere was fantastic.

The Merchant City Festival was another big success and I spent a pleasant afternoon wandering around the market places, listening to the bands and meeting friends and acquaintances. The Italian foodstalls with their fancy coffees, cheese, pastramis and salamis were absolutely choc a bloc – very tempting – I bought some delicious amaretto coffee and a huge piece of provolone cheese.

It was good to catch up with Issi and Davie Wilson and Jack Whitbread, a touring cyclist visiting them via Warm Showers. It was also good to bump into Heather and Kathleen, two of the librarians from Glasgow Caledonian, and I also had a wee chat with Tam Dean Burn, out enjoying the festival with his family. Recently I’ve been busy promoting Tam’s readings of Julia Donaldson’s stories at North Kelvin Meadow. He’s now planning a cycling marathon, taking in locations across Scotland to read all the works by Gruffalo author – part of the celebrations of Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games Cultural Programme.

I had a great catch up with Norma, when she came through from Cumbernauld and we had a lovely wander around Kelvingrove. We’re really all lucky to have such a fantastic free resource. I particularly enjoy seeing people come along to have their lunch while they listen to the organ recitals. (Monday – Saturday 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Sunday).

My grandson Ryan and I have been out and about a lot in Kelvingrove park and the Botanics. Usually enjoying an ice cream or a wander round to Queen Margaret Drive to the wonderful Smile Cafe.

We also had a lovely lunch at Ecco 808 Crow Road. A shame to see David and Sandra Ianucci gone but the new owners are doing a great job.

We’ve also been meeting John for al fresco pizza and salad lunches at Dino’s in Sauchiehall Street. It’s particularly nice on very hot days as it’s not on the sunny side of the street.

A particular highlight last month was our trip to Rothesay on the Isle of Bute. John, Tyan and I had great fun exploring, wandering on the beautiful beaches and we even tried our luck at some fishing.

We’ve had our usual walks up the Kilpatricks although I’ve not quite made it up to Loch Humphrey, We’ve also taken strolls down to Bowling and we had a super picnic in the Lusset Glen with my great nieces, Eve and Freya, and Caitlin and Ryan. Brought back many happy memories – there’s nothing like a wee paddle in a burn to cool you down.

Jim and I have also been out and about and one sunny day we took a drive down to Cardross. It was lovely walking round Ardmore peninsula and we bought some lovely plants at Ardardan Garden Centre. We then drove on to Cove to Knockderry House and finished the day off sampling the great home cooking at The Green Kettle Inn. I had very tasty mackerel – line caught earlier that day.

We also enjoyed a trip up to Carbeth Huts Gala Day. There’s great wee community at the huts and the atmosphere was most convivial. The dog show was a lot of fun and we enjoyed music from the Jugettes, with Lesley from the Carlton Jug Band.

Back in Glasgow West End

I met up with James Christie in Nardini’s and heard all about his latest trip to America. His exploits since he wrote his book Dear Miss Landau are absolutely fascinating.

It was also good to catch up with Maggie Graham and hear about another exciting trip – as Maggie’s just back from visiitng her family in Thailand. I also heard all about Jackie’s holiday in France when we met at Cafe Alba on Great Western Road.. The home baking is superb and it’s a great place to stop off if you fancy a browse in Caledonian Book Shop, right next door.

I had a lovely day out when I met Ann. We had a pleasant wander around Ashton Lane and Byres Road then had afternoon tea in the Victorian Tea Room, upstairs in De Courcy’s Arcade. We also checked out some of the new shops including Jolly Molly’s in Cresswell Lane. This is a really lovely shop with a fantastic selection of gifts and household accessories. Ryan particularly loves the monkey clock. Upstairs in De Courcy’s is another new shop, Janet and John, where some of Janet’s hand crafted gifts are on sale. So things are looking lively in Cresswell Lane, where, of course, Nancy Smillie’s is also a main attraction.

The very stylish Oliver Bonas has also opened on Byres Road so no shortage of activity on the shopping front.

In his latest West End dining and drinking feature, Roy Beers, highlights what’s happening on the dining out front. Including the opening of Little Urban Achievers Club at Kelvinbridge.

Balcony Life and Guests

The sunshine provides a wonderful opportunity for enjoying our balcony. Particularly pleasant on a warm evening when the sun’s going down and the sunsets have been spectacular. I’ve got so many pots and plants on the balcony that the humans have been edged out a bit – our guests have had to make do with dining in the house with the door open. We’ve done a wee bit of entertaining recently and have had visits from Frances, Val, Issi, Gillian and James.

Val came along to give me lots of lowdown on Paris as I am going there for a few days with Frances and my sister Catherine at the end of the month. Catherine, my brother-in-law Alistair and my niece, Lauren, are coming home for a holiday so I’m really looking forward to that.

Writing Stuff

Gillian, James and I worked pretty hard when they visited – giving each other feedback on our final portfolio submissions for the MLitt. Their assistance and support have been invaluable and I’ve enjoyed reading their work too. It’s hard to believe that two years of study have almost come to an end. However, I still have loads to learn and I’m also going to keep going along to Alan McMunnigall’s Wednesday evening classes at Glasgow University. The students are very enthusiastic and the drink afterwards in The Halt is always fun.

I went along to a Masterclass on Creating Characters by Alan Bissett at the CCA. It was very enjoyable but I don’t think I’ll sit at the front again as my memory is not quite up to calls to participate. It takes me all my time to remember who wrote a particular book and the title – the chance of any blow by blow account of the plot or the characters is sometimes a bit beyond me.

I was particularly pleased to meet Mary Irvine, Mary Edwards (hope Mary’s ebook A Spider’s Thread Across The Tay. It was good to chat to the two Marys and other women from Helensburgh Writers Group, when we had a drink in the Saramago Cafe after the class.

Music, music, Music

Jim had fun playing recently on Alan Grant’s show on Celtic Music Radio where he helped celebrate Alan’s birthday. Jim mentioned how busy he’s been working on his Bearpit Brothers CD. It’s hard to believe that it’s all coming together but we’re now planning the launch – at The Glad Cafe on 23rd November. Seems quite far away but there’s a lot to be done. However, the main thing is the music and it’s fantastic. Everyone who’s had a sneak listen loves the songs so it’s very exciting.

Also looking forward to the Linlithgow Folk Festival, were Jim is supporting the Outside Track, at the headline concert.

There’s another gig coming up at Troon Live and I’ll be going along to The Dram in Woodlands Road on 22nd August, when Jim will be playing at The Cotton Candy Club. It’ll be good to catch up with Dochan and all the gang.

Best in the West

Welcome to Glasgow Artist, Allan Richrdson, one of the best in the west.

Now that I’ve got my final portfolio out of the way I’ll be able to focus more on our Best in the West business support initiative. Please get in touch if you think your business is one of the best in the west. Email. Clare.

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Written by : Pat Byrne

Publisher of Pat's Guide to Glasgow West End; the community guide to the West End of Glasgow. Fiction and non-fiction writer.