10 Day You Challenge - 6 Places

Hey everybody!

Sorry for the short hiatus with my 10 Day You Challenge; I was staying at my parents' on Tuesday before heading to an exciting work-related meeting on Wednesday. I'll explain more later, as both places I went to feature in my post.

Today is all about 6 places and I'm taking this to mean that I can talk about 6 places that are important to me. Not necessarily favourites, but places that have some meaning for me. And now my 6 places are...

1. Glasgow - I harp on an awful lot about how much I love my home city. But there's the clue: it's my home. It will always be my home; where I was born, grew up, educated (both in school and in life) and where my family and friends mostly live. It's just where I want to be :)



I grew up somewhere just outside the middle left of this picture, in Glasgow's West End. That's where I was on Tuesday, having a girly pub-crawl with my mum around the West End.

2. Puerto Mogan, Gran Canaria - Last year, the lovely folk that deal with taxes realised that Kris was due a tax rebate... to the tune of £1300! And Kris decided that the best way to spend was to book our first holiday together and we settled on Puerto Mogan on the southern tip of Gran Canaria. This place has a lot of significance in Kris' family; Kris' dad remarried here (on a boat in the Atlantic, mega romantic :P) and we could see why; it's an absolutely gorgeous little fishing town. I would love to go again, Kris and I had such a relaxing time and we loved every second.

 

Sorry if this picture shows up huge, couldn't find a better one!

3. Home - The little flat I share with Kris in Kirkcaldy may suffer from the fact we live in, y'know, Kirkcaldy, but it's ours and it's a lovely flat. I will be sad to leave it when we eventually move, but I see it as the first place Kris and I started to build a home together and a symbol of the stage in our relationship where we became even closer and stronger together as partners (in crime haha!).

This was Kris in our kitchen sharing our first Christmas together alone (I had to work Christmas Eve and Boxing Day so we didn't get to go home but we still had a fab Christmas together!)

4. Crianlarich - Kris' dad and step-mum live in Crianlarich, where Kris' dad runs a guest house. It has to be one of the tiniest towns in Scotland (but it's signposted everywhere) but it's played host to a lot of great memories for Kris and I. My first weekend away with Kris was here, the same weekend we decided we were officially a couple and also when I got my degree results (a 2:2 in English Lang and Lit!!). It is also where Greg and Charlie (Kris' dad and step-mum) had their blessing ceremony for family and friends after their wedding in Gran Canaria.


This is the blessing party outside the Crianlarich Hotel (I believe it's a Best Western, and it's well worth a stay if you want to explore Loch Lomond) and that's me in the flowery pinky/reddy dress behind the beautiful bride Charlie!

5. New Struan School, Alloa - Yesterday, I visited the specially-designed school for autistic children which is run by Scottish Autism (charity I work for), New Struan in Alloa. I'd been invited after meeting Scottish Autism's Director for Education at a conference (nicest guy ever and loves going to gigs :P) and he gave a tour of the school and I met some of the 40 pupils at the school. It is an amazing place doing fantastic work; these are 40 pupils with the most challenging cases of autism in the country and all the children there are well supported. The staff are passionate and the work they do is fantastic; it made me see how much difference a great support package can make in someone's life, and I can imagine it helps families and siblings as well. It's made me realise I want to do even more to support Scottish Autism, so fingers crossed I get that chance!

If you want to find out more about New Struan School, please click here :)

6. Barcelona - My first holidays abroad were spent in Cambrils, a fishing town outside of Salou (which is now a horrible 18-30s hole). One of the trips we went on was a tour of Barcelona, visiting the zoo, the Nou Camp, Las Ramblas, La Sagrada Familia and the fountains. It's a beautiful city and I would love to go back again as an adult to explore. :)


So those are my 6 places :) I would love to see what your 6 places would be, feel free to take part in the challenge if you wish!

Christina xo

Glasgow Smiles Better - A Weekend at Home

My name is Christina (hello!) and I live in Kirkcaldy, in Fife (also known as the Kingdom of Fife, hence the name of my blog.). I haven't always lived here, just for the last 15 months. I'm originally from Glasgow, the West End of Glasgow if you want to be exact. I always try to get home to Glasgow whenever work allows, so I can see family, friends and relax in the city I call home! The reason I wanted to write this post was because there's been a few murmurs of discontent (myself included), that we Scots don't really get to see many events for bloggers (Not begrudging any other cities, or London, but it's just a fact of life it seems). I wanted to write this piece about my home-town, simply because I have so much love for it, and I want to share how awesome Glasgow is with everyone :)

This is the (slightly rainy) view from my parents' living room. Yes it's a motorway, but beyond said junction, that's Glasgow's Riverside Museum. And just out of shot to the right, are some of the Govan shipyards across the river that made Glasgow a famous hub of industry during the Victorian period (and beyond... Until Margaret Thatcher ruined it.) Also you can just faintly see Glasgow's Science Tower beyond that, and on a clear day, you can also see the BBC Scotland building at Pacific Quay. Isn't it lovely fact fans?!

Already, you can see so much of Glasgow, and we haven't even left my parents' yet :P Next up, one of my favourite places in the city...

This is me with my boyfriend Kris on my graduation day from Glasgow University (I'm an MA in English Language and Literature :D), and we're standing in the Cloisters. They look like something straight out of Harry Potter! Glasgow University is a beautiful place, nestled in the heart of the West End of the city, well worth a visit if you're nearby.

The main thing I love about Glasgow, however, is its constant cycle of reinvention and betterment. I mean that in a non-snobby way! Every time I return home, somewhere has been refurbished, or sold and re-opened as somewhere new. It's like a new adventure each time I return home and I love it! Following on from here are some pictures of what I got up to this weekend, with an explanation as to how this links in to the cycle of reinvention...

This is The Grosvenor, and this is now part of a cinema, bar and cafe, all under the same name; this part used to be just know as the Loft, and it was one of my favourite haunts while I was at uni. It's mainly a bar/restaurant, but it also regularly hosts events, craft fairs, even film nights. I met my friend Lisa here for lunch, and it was just the perfect place to sit and people-watch (we even spotted Colin and Justin, the fabulous local interior duo, as made famous by I'm a Celebrity :P).

In Glasgow, we have our own subway system. It's just one loop, going in two directions, the Inner and Outer Circle (a whole lot less complicated than London, yes?), and at the moment all the stations are getting a face-lift in time for the 2014 Commonwealth Games. The first station to be completed was Hillhead, which was finished with an amazing mural from the artist Alasdair Gray (author and artist extraordinaire, he also created the murals in the nearby Oran Mor.) It's beautiful, and it sums up Glasgow perfectly, with its mix of people, local characters and more.

Finally, Glasgow always has some of the most delicious eateries, and while I was home, I got to try out a new one! A bar/eaterie that's so new that we visited on its 3rd day of opening!

Cocktail and Burger is on Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow, nestled between all the bright lights and razzamatazz of the bars and clubs which surround it. There's a local blogger named James, who, along with his partner Pamela go around Glasgow looking for the best burgers, and they've reviewed it here. My thoughts? Amazing. Delicious burgers, and some of the nicest cocktails I've had in the city. It is so good, that it actually pains me to share it with people cause I love it so much that I don't want its beautiful simplicity to be ruined by over-crowding!

This is one of the cheeseburgers they serve, photo taken from Cocktail and Burger's Facebook Page. Kris, my friend Vicky and I each had a burger, Kris had a beer and a White Russian (the best he's ever tasted), and Vicky and I both had a daiquiri and a mojito each. Total cost for all this deliciousness? £23!! I literally died and went to foodie heaven after reading the receipt...

Cocktail and Burger sums up what I love about Glasgow. Every so often, somewhere new pops up which utterly blows people away with how good it is, whether it's a new shop, exhibition, or a new restaurant. And there's something for everyone in Glasgow too :) just ask and ye shall find!

I hope this post has helped sum up my feelings for Glasgow in a way that people can understand. I just want people to love my hometown as much as I do!

Have you ever been to Glasgow? Would you like to go? And if you have been, what did you enjoy about it?

Christina xo