Having a look around!

I got a comment from Lee {after moaning about life in general} to ask if had 'looked around', which started me thinking.

How often do people stop in their tracks and really look around them? I live on the edge of the city of Glasgow, and even as a child, when I visited the city centre I would often not only look at the people and the shopfronts around me but I would also look UP at the buildings - many of which were covered with statues and sculptures and artisitic details - which one never saw unless looking up at the buildings. Many of these old city centre buildings were constructed around the late 18th and early 19th centuries, when Glasgow was a very prosperous city. The Merchants of the city were making huge profits and spending their money on their town houses and ofiices and stores within the city. I know that a lot of this money wa made on the misery of others - the slave trade and the tobacco trade being the main 'money spinners', but the legacy they have left for the people of Glasgow is wonderful. There is a lot of new building going on in the city nowadays, and I have to say that a lot of it, while perhaps being "exciting" to the builders and architects and financiers - are not very inspiring for the rest of us. The developments along the River Clyde side for example. After years of the river being hidden from the general public by the Shipyard buildings [ necessarily high to contain the ships being built] what do they do when they knock the old buildings down? - Build new blocks of tiered flats, right on the riverside, which are even higher! They are also constructing a new road bridge across the river to link finlaystone with Govan, just east of the old carriage tunnel route, and it is neither high, nor does it have anyway of opening, therefore there will be no chance for any large boats [or boats with high masts] being able to pass underneath. The reason that the Kingston Bridge was built [in the late 1960's] so high above the water was to allow the passage of comercial ships underneath! Maybe they will develop the upper part of the river, as a marina ype area for pleasure craft??? [Doubt it] Many major european cities which have large rivers flowing through their centres, have many areas filled with both commercial and pleasure craft. Why is our city river empty???

Enough moaning! The last couple of days have been very spring-like here, and I have even sat out in the garden for an hour or so in the sun - reading and drinking coffee. [Ok I was wearing a jumper, but I did not need a jacket - especially in my little garden suntrap!]

The daffodils and crocuses which I planted last autumn are all showing above ground - the lovely purple of the crocus gleaming like amethysts and the bright yellows of the different daffodils just starting to peep through their protective covers. Time to get the cameras dusted off again............ bye for now.