A trip to Italy…

My mum has always been interested in the architecture of the world, for as long as I can remember. (I suppose it is what influenced my decision to study architecture at university!) Although I found these trips boring when I was younger, I began to appreciate them more as I grew up and now would love to go back to all the places (Rome, Vienna…) that I sat on a bench unappreciative, and unaware, of the outstanding architecture around me.

Recently my family and I have been to various places in Italy. Some of my favourites…

Verona, the birthplace of Leonardo Da Vinci and Catullus, and was Julius Caesar’s choice holiday destination. As well as this, it is also the home of Romeo and Juliet and Juliet’s balcony. Juliet’s most famous line, “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” was spoken from the balcony, making it a highly popular place for people to visit and leave letters to loved ones in the hope that they will be answered by Juliet.

Another famous feature in Verona is the Roman theatre, dating back to the late 1^st century BC. These days, only remains of the edifice remain intact but rebuilding has taken place making the theatre seem like it would in the time of the Romans.

 Venice has to be my favourite place in Italy. Full of amazing architecture and built across 117 small islands in the Venetian Lagoon, Venice is like something I have never seen before.  The gondolas and architecture, such as the Rialto Bridge, help to make Venice famous all over the world and add to its character and charm.

The distinct lack of cars is surprising yet enjoyed (I’m not very good at crossing roads, still!) and Venice is definitely a place I would visit again as everything I saw I was amazed by.

St Andrews

I am a BIG fan of St Andrews. Everything about it just makes me happy inside. I know it sounds totally stupid, but, for me, St Andrews is everything a seaside town should be. I have many fond memories of summers in St Andrews as ever since I can remember it has been the holiday destination of choice in my family. With my family owning a holiday home there, it allows me to visit a lot more often than I would if I was still living at home, due to the proximity of Dundee.

Whenever I am feeling down, or just fancy a day away from the calls of work, I take the number 99 bus, across the Tay, through Leuchars, past the Old Course Hotel, and into St Andrews.

The beach is my favourite place to go as it is always quiet and due to its size, deserted. When on the beach the last time I visited, it was very weird for there to be large quantities of frozen sand. (I can only remember snow on the beach once in St Andrews.) As I walk along the East Sands, I pass by the frozen seaweed, as I go through the harbour on my walk into the town. A typical fishing harbour, St Andrews is small and quaint in its boats. I walk over the wobbly bridge to cross the water, and I see the swans. It was too late in the year to see signets (or ‘swanlets’ as my Dad insists on calling them) but I don’t remember a spring where there has not been any signets; St Andrews must be the ‘place to be’ for swans.

To get from the harbour into the town, the massive hill must be tackled (always on foot from now on after a nasty incident involving a bike, a bollard and a very broken wrist) and once at the top of the hill, the views are spectacular. I chose to walk through the cemetery, as even though the are often portrayed as scary and sad places, this one seems to be more of a historical attraction than anything else. The shadow that the old cathedral walls cast create a highly atmospheric cemetery, but beautiful all the same. As I reach my destination of Janetta’s (the amazing 52 flavour ice cream shop) there are so many things that I know I just wouldn’t see anywhere other that St Andrews.

Although I wouldn’t want to spend the rest of my life in St Andrews, due to its distinct lack of night life, or large quantities of life at all, I always enjoy my time in St Andrews. Whether it be relaxing in front of the fire away from the cold winds, watching the dolphins play with each other in the summer, or tackling a foreigner for the last bottle of lemonade in Tesco at the time of the Open, St Andrews always presents a quirk that catches my eye and remains in my head forever. 

Home...

Whenever I say that I am from Houston, usually people turn their heads as if to say "where on earth is that", so to avoid confusion and a long explanation of where it is, I usually say that I am from Glasgow. As it is near to where I live, and in my opinion the best city in Scotland, I like calling it 'home'. 

It's been a long time since I have been home and I have to say, I do miss it remarkably, and greatly look forward to returning after the term is finished. As it is only a short (one hour, twenty minutes) train ride away I am forever tempted to just go back and visit for the day, but the amount of work rolling up is a severely discouraging factor in my number of visits.

One of my favourite places in Glasgow has to be the Kibble Palace in the Botanic Gardens. Its sheer architectural nature is amazing and I think it is one of the reasons I decided to do architecture at University. The detailing and beauty of the Palace is surprising as most people would just see it as ‘another greenhouse’ but I looked closer when visiting earlier in the year…

Another place in Glasgow I find highly inspiring is the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, which opened in 1901. Built in a Spanish Baroque style, Kelvingrove is one of the busiest attractions in Glasgow and its sheer size hides the amount of people within the Museum at the one time. As a child I remember the stress and panic I used to have whenever I lost my Mum and sisters, but over time we devised a plan to always meet at my then favourite piece in the museum, the lit up Elvis statue, if we ever got separated. More recently, after refurbishment, I feel that the Museum has lost some of its previous charm and things I used to love about it. For instance, there used to be something I always thought was magic, but it was a light projector that, whenever you pressed the button, held your reflection on the screen for a short time and this kept me and my sisters amused for hours whenever my Mum went to look at the ‘boring paintings’.

As I have grown older, I have learnt to appreciate the smaller things, such as the checkerboard floor, Art Deco detailing and the heavy wooden doors, as well as the vast range of art and artifacts they have on display throughout the Museum.

So, I am counting down the days until I can go home (just now it is at 15 yay!) to relax, sleep in my own bed and get my dinner made for me. As I am becoming increasingly homesick, I feel that a month at home will do me some good.