In Glasgow, more rain, more art

My first Couchsurfing experience as a guest has been great so far, one day into a four day stay. Ewa (from Poland) is generous, funny and sweet. She has a mother and son pair of overweight cats, pretty shy except they both molested my boots. She has a nice low-income flat in a northeast area 3.5 miles from Glasgow City Centre that I think is called Barmulloch. Lots of immigrants live around here, like her. She is from a southeastern town of Poland called Łańcut or Lantzut.

Ewa took me partway on the bus to City Centre and a young woman from the Seattle area, here to study for 5 years at the University of Glasgow, helped me make sure I got off at the right stop. Her mother is here to help her settle in and she exclaimed about the hard rain, something she said she is not used to in Seattle. "I don't use my hood! And I don't even own an umbrella!" It is true that Glasgow gets significantly more rainfall than Seattle. 

I found the GoMA, the Glasgow Museum of Art, and enjoyed the exhibit. Unfortunately, the outside was all blocked off for remodeling, just like the famous George Square (two years plus for the work), but an exhibit told the history of this amazing building,  850 years of it, from home, to bank, to a stock exchange, to library, to art gallery! There is still a public library on the ground floor.

It looked quite different when Cunninghame lived there:

I was happy to see some work by Niki de Saint Phalle (1930-2002; she did the famous TarotGarden in Italy)

     The gallery gift shop's       display

 

      Perfume bottle designed  by Niki de Saint Phalle and some nice pins, scarves, etc designed by her in the gift shop. But I felt I had to buy a warmer hat (to add to the ones I bought in Ireland and Iceland!) and gloves since I already lost one of my cheap pair from the Primark I remembered well from Ireland.

After the museum I found a restaurant for lunch and Ewa was nearby and joined me, my treat. Then we wandered and she showed me the historic Central Station.

Once again, heavy rain, so although it was early, I didn't object to taking the bus back to Ewa's flat.