But had some stuff to get for a special birthday on Saturday so headed to Braehead shopping centre. While I was there though quite fancied taking a look around the Clydebuilt museum which is on the Clyde side next to the centre.
Here are just a few photos of a small, gentle Glasgow the Day tour round the Clydeside.
The Clydebuilt museum is all about the shipping and shipbulding industry that was so important to the development of Glasgow. Has some nice exhibits and lots of hands on stuff for kids (and big kids like me :) )
The term Clydebuilt came to be a word simply meaning quality. Some of the world's greatest ships were built on the Clyde. The Cutty Sark, the Lusitania, the Queen Mary, HMS Hood, the Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Elizabeth II (QE2) all just examples of Clydebuilt ships.
Above is one of the hands on exhibits where you can try your hand at being a riveter and putting the rivets in using the tongs. How people managed to do this hundreds of times a day becomes a wonder to you after taking 5 minutes fumbling with even one.
There is also a Rivet gun to hold, just like this model above. It is a heavy piece of kit. Makes you once again wonder how somone managed to do this for so many hours a day.
The museum also covers a lot of the history of Glasgow and it's relationship with the Clyde. And that of course inevitably brings you to the Tobacco Lords. Above is a model of John Glassford who I mentioned the other day in the tour around Glassford Street.
Outside the museum are these lovely statues of 2 workers pulling on the chains of a ship. Very dynamic statues which tell the story of the shipbuilders better than any words.
The museum also has it's own Clyde built vessel in the shape of the little Kyles coaster. You can go onboard and have a look around. Was nice to feel right out there on the river today. Just what the doctor ordered.
You also get a great view up the Clyde. Above this is back towards Glasgow. The clouds and fleeting sunshine causing all kind of wierd effects on the water.
And this is downstream towards the BVT Surface Fleet yard on the North Bank. You can see the bank of rain clouds coming across. Would get caught in that before the day was out.
I noticed that there was still a ship in getting fitted out at the yard so thought I would take a wander up and see what ship it was. It is HMS Dragon, D35, the fourth of the new Type 45 destroyers. The others being Daring, Dauntless and Diamond. Defender and Duncan will be the next two.
HMS Dragon was launched from here in November 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Dragon_(D35)
Is great to still see ships being built on the Clyde. And even under it's covers you can see the sleek lines of this impressive piece of engineering. From across the river you could here the noise of drilling, hammering, engines. The noise of industry. Made me wonder what it must have been like when all the yards were up and running.
Closer view of the front of HMS Dragon showing the Welsh dragon painted on the prow.
Beauty and the beast?Wild flowers growing on the bank of the river with a dragon peeking through.
Seem to have been finding lots of dragons in Glasgow lately?
Was just a wee gentle tour today. Was nice to take a walk along the river. People feel better being near water. And was nice to see some sights of Glasgow's great ship building heritage both old and new.
But that rain front came sweeping in and started pouring down so headed back into Glasgow to spend a wee while down at Penna to catch up some more.
Some very different images from Glasgow "The Day" but it all part of the great variety of this great city.
Be well, be happy!!
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